SOS Festival, Longfield Suite, Prestwich, UK
16th July 2017
Resin, Faith In Glory, Eternal Breath, The Deep, Harriet!, Dorja, Chris Appleton, Fire Red Empress, Fahran, Triaxis & Power Quest.
Day three of a festival is always going to be a slower one. Everyone is worn out and it’s usually the day where the crowd winds down a little. Yeah, the same is true here. Even I was trying to take it a little easier. What wasn’t going easier, was the bands. Once again every band really brought it to the stage. Even if I might not have enjoyed every moment, I can still respect the effort that they put into it. I was once again in and out of the press room so I may miss some bands here and there. Yet, I think the Sunday was still a pretty strong day.
The day kicked off with a hard rock band, Resin. Wow, the feedback. From the get go the set was bogged down with technical issues. The sound was muddy and there was feedback so piercing I think everyone was feeling it. The production was muddy and I felt like the sound was really over cluttered. Even as the production issues were resolved, I just couldn’t get over the songs. It was just bland tunes and over kill on the instrumentation. There was just too much going on in the songs. So nothing felt right. There are too many string instruments into the band and it felt like a calamity. It certainly wasn’t best way to start the day. There maybe a fan-base for this but I’m not in it.
After that disheartening start of the day, salvation came in the form of Faith In Glory. I really loved this set. Their presentation was excellent. Big riffs and a big booming vocal performance from lead vocalist, Jack Collins. It was really impressive. They were a very dynamic band with lots of grooves and lots of tones to keep the audience captivated. All of them were very energetic in their delivery, they looked so enthusiastic when up on the stage. Big smiles on their faces throughout the whole set. They were clearly enjoying themselves and the audience was right their with them. Adding in a cover of Black Stone Cherry’s “Blame It On The Boom Boom” was enough to sell me on them. Let me tell you, anyone that can convincingly cover Black Stone Cherry (one of my favourite bands) then I know they’re doing something right. Keep on rocking lads, that was awesome.
The next act I managed to catch only a little bit of were, Belgium power metal band, Eternal Breath. Like I said I only caught a bit of them but they was spectacular. There was just a great sense of command and power to them. The guitars chugged away and the vocal performance soared over the production. The whole thing reminded me of the real old school metal acts of yesteryear. They paid their respects to the late Philippe Beauprez, from Wizz Wizzard, which got a big ovation from the crowd. Everything about their set was technically perfect. The band was tight, the music was cranked up loud and there was a lot of enthusiasm to go around in the venue. I really liked them. The same can be said for the next band The Deep. It was, once again, a classic type of sound. This was one really fun set. I was standing there with them and I enjoyed every moment .They brought awesome old style grooves to the table. It was sharp and crisp and the solos blew me away. It was just that real pumping classic rock sound that I grew up with. It got me up and moving. It was loose and fun and and they didn’t look like they taking themselves too seriously. They just worked well. Again not too much to say about them, I just had a really good time.
I think I’ll cover the acoustic stage now as I didn’t really get around to watching much of it. First of all acoustic artist, Harriet!. She was absolutely fabulous. Almost a country style of music, she had a beautiful and soulful voice that was excellent to listen. It was simple and elegant. She threw in a cover of Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” which actually sounds great acoustic. She had this incredible sound that was so pure and emotional to listen to. This is someone you should check out immediately. The talent parade continued with, Dorja. These girls can really play. I mean really play. The technique on display was impressive. The stripped back set sounded really nice and I would be really interested in hearing them in a cranked up set. The vocal harmonies were absolutely beautiful and the instrumentation was superb. The guitar solos were really nice to listen to and in this more relaxed set the girls just really put on a spectacular show. This was a really nice discovery for me, five really talented musicians playing some really great music.
The last band I want to talk about from the acoustic stage is Chris Appleton. A day removed from playing the headline set with Blaze Bayley, Chris was back at SOS Festival bringing his songs to the acoustic stage with his brother Luke Appleton. The chemistry was excellent and the songs flowed from the stage. Being the final act on this stage for the weekend they really brought it and showed off exactly what they were all about. They had a great chemistry with the audience that made their set feel electric. It was a superb way to end the day, and the weekend on this stage.
Next on the main stage was my MVP’s of the whole weekend, Fire Red Empress. All I can Say is freaking WOW. They just blew me away. I’ve not seen these guys in a while so getting the chance to hear them live again was freaking excellent. Armed with new lead vocalist, Jennifer Diehl they’re a totally different beast now. The bass boom, the guitars roared and the vocal performance was simply incredible! The new songs sounded wonderful and it has just made me really hyped for a new album from them. The band had this vibrant energy to them that looked great and the room filled with enthusiasm for them. The sound was big and impressive and I’m just stoked to hear and see more from them.
The fun didn’t stop because after that we had Nottingham rockers, Fahran. A few years ago I discovered these guys in a small bar in Manchester and every time I see them or hear anything from them they just get better with time. They were full of life and really brought a great show to SOS Festival. Their song have these huge choruses and these really hard hitting riffs. They used this show to debut some new material. The new songs were “Pyre” and “Some Kind of Family”. Which were bursting with riffs and melodies that sound great. I am really excited for new music from them. They had an instant connection to the crowd. Their classic sound is instantly recognisable and likeable which I think is the secret to their success as a band. They’re just a younger version of the classic rock band we all grew up with. They play with passion and great technique. Genuinely an awesome band.
Unfortunately I missed a lot of Triaxis’s set. It’s a shame too, as Triaxis are on their way out and this maybe the last time I get to see them live. From what I saw they were really good. Like I said I can’t comment on much but I did see that the crowd was really into it. A well put together band with a really tight sound. Just really nice metal music. The vocal performance was really good and the vocals just floated on top of the production. The metal was fast pace and had a lot of energy to it. Just absolutely intoxicating. As I said I didn’t catch much of the set but I enjoyed what I saw.
Finishing off the weekend where power metal champions, Power Quest. Everything just sounded so glorious. Every element of the band worked really well and the production came through loud and clear. From the synth and keys to the powerful guitars the booming rhythm it all just hit home. Songs that lept out for me were songs like “For Evermore”, “Better Days” and of course the self-titled songs “Power Quest”. They beamed with confidence and you can tell that the crowd were really into the performance. Vocalist, Ashley Edison really showed off some amazing ability that completely blew me out of my socks. They were a really enjoyable end to an incredible weekend.
Words: Mick Birchall
Photos: Rich Price and Holly Price (Rich Price – Photographer & Music Journalist)
Friday night, was a pretty damn heavy one. With all the bands meeting the intensity and power of headliners, Kill II This. I didn’t know what to expect from any of the bands playing on the day. Yet, I remained optimistic for what was to come. Opening it up proceedings was UK metallers I Saw The World Burn. Wow, I was completely blown away! They were loud and impressive. They had complete control of the stage. In particularly the front-woman, Katie Cairns who had a real stage presence. Her voice was really powerful and roared above the music. The riffs were large and the early crowd of SOS Festival were really into it. The music was quite consistent. With the vocals being even more impressive with every song. They weren’t the most dynamic of band with every song hitting the same notes all of the time. Yet, it worked somehow. Like Hatebreed or Darkest Hour they had the intensity and energy to make this kind of set work.
It was the closing of a chapter in Equaleft’s book, marking the last gig promoting “Adapt & Survive”. If memory serves me well, they’d said that already a few months ago, but just like Marquito, they couldn’t say no to Sepultura. I believe this time it was really the last one, though, as I know a new record is taking a solid shape, with a new drummer who will be announced soon. But that night was still just for what are already considered classics among the national underground – the intrepid “Invigorate” (featuring the mandatory Star Wars lightsabre), the groovy “Tremble”, the eccentric “Maniac” or the classy “Uncover The Masks”. And in the end, “their trademark” box of cookies was distributed among the fans.
There were a lot of Equaleft t-shirts in the crowd, but when Derrick Green himself goes on stage wearing one… damn, even I felt proud – hence the need of mentioning this little detail. Regarding what really matters: when you’ve been in a band for over 30 years and “big” for almost as long, one hour and a half always seems awfully short, especially after the release of another album. The trick is finding the right balance between new and old and, of course, performing both like there was no tomorrow. Guess who were able to do just that? (Okay, I confess I’d rather watch them play “Troops Of Doom” than “Inner Self”, but we can’t always have our way, and the near sold-out venue went bananas screaming along “nonconformity in my inner self / only I guide my inner self”, so who am I to complain?). Also, if you’ve read my live reports before, you probably know how I disapprove of solos; Sepultura seem to share this opinion as Andreas Kisser proved his skills – as if he still needed to – by playing the instrumental “Iceberg Dances”, out of the latest “Machine Messiah” the band’s currently promoting.
“I Am The Enemy” kicked it off, “Roots Bloody Roots” (what else?) finished it up, in-between Derrick told us “this is your fucking territory” and that he wanted to see us all arise, and Andreas dedicated “Sepultura Under My Skin” to Moonspell and F.C.Porto – the first for being good friends and representing Portugal’s metal throughout the world, the same way Sepultura do with Brazil’s; the latter… well, we all know how football is big in Brazil.
Valkyrian Music 