The terms seminal and genre defining are probably thrown around too much these days but the work of Godflesh, and in particular debut album ‘Streetcleaner’, deserves those accolades and more. It’s therefore almost unbelievable to experience the band performing the album in full after all these years. The anticipation prior to opener ‘Like Rats’ is palpable and, once some feedback and sound difficulties are overcome, it’s a joyous ride through what is a very important set of tracks from the late 80’s that has undoubtedly shaped the very fabric of industrial metal ever since. It almost feels like the crowd are dumbstruck in awe and wonder, simply letting the divine mix of processed machine drum beats, gnarling overdriven guitars and sporadic yelled guttural vocals wash over them in disbelief at what they are witnessing. The digital backdrop bleeds and spurts the horror-inspired images so closely aligned with the band’s optics, and the stoic stage presence not only befits the music and legacy, but also that revered status we all offer Justin Broadrick and G.C. Green. The set is a series of genuine hairs standing on the back of your neck moments, and something none of us will forget in a hurry.

All day the Eyesore Merch stage has been the home of the subtle and understated. Pallbearer prove to be in no hurry to change the tempo as they provide a masterclass in slow-burning melodic doom. The room is enveloped in an eerie red fog, making it look like Brett Campbell and his compatriots have possessed their audience. The pandemic robbed them of the opportunity to tour 2020’s astonishing “Forgotten Days”, therefore this is the first opportunity to play the songs on our shores. The album's closer ‘Caledonia’ is of particular note this evening as it becomes a wonderfully sprawling exercise in crescendoing melody. It feels like they have massively developed as a band and in place of the coursing riffs, there is now a much more restrained and refined approach. There are those who still think that Doom Metal is all thud thud thud. Pallbearer have taken this most primordial of metal genres and turned it into something quite exquisite and tender. A mesmerizing way to spend an hour.

For those that are feeling more in the mood for full-on bludgeoning deathcore heaviness, then on the other stage Despised Icon are open for business. The Canadian band’s raw passion and intensity is clear from the off, and in the dual frontmen of Alex Erian and Steve Marois they have the variety of vocals to cover all bases. Alex steers the crowd perfectly and delivers brutal hardcore growling mids, while Steve switches between guttural lows, high pitch shreds and pig squeals. The guitars and bass malevolently rip and gnash away, clipped chugging occasionally giving way to a surprising technical run. Drummer Alex Pelletier is renowned for his blastbeat delivery, and seeing him live is a real treat. All the instruments beat and drive in unison, with Alex and Steve prowling the stage up front in their basketball vests. The swagger and groove to their hardcore-heavy deathcore is a nice change-up from a lot of the acts today and I’m impressed with the catchy, yet furiously intense, variety in their songs.

Ok, the sound is not the best, and is quite difficult to discern which guitar is doing which solo. But I don't care, this for me is one of those bucket list moments. This is one of my favourite bands in the world doing one of my favourite albums in the world and frankly, At The Gates could have come on and done ‘Blinded by Fear’ on kazoos I still would have been utterly ecstatic. “Slaughter of the Soul” is the template for every single metal album that has been made in the last two decades. Any modern act that tries to pretend that they don't owe it a huge debt is lying. Its combination of melodic guitars with harsh vocals brought forth not only the entire new wave of American metal but also every metalcore act to shout over maiden-esque riffs. It is a staggeringly good record that manages to have no flab or fat. There is no filler or downtime. Every second of his thirty-four-minute running time is precision-engineered perfect metal.

Tonight, we get the whole album in its entirety beginning to end. Yes, ‘Blinded by Fear’, ‘Cold’ and the pounding title track have all been mainstays of At The Gates setlists since they reformed for good in 2010, but hearing lesser-played gems such as ‘Onto Others’ and ‘World of Lies’ feels special. There is something pleasantly reassuring about hearing an album you know so well played in full. There is no Russian roulette of "ohh will they play this or that”. You can simply lean back and enjoy the spectacle safe in the knowledge you know exactly what you're getting.

Probably even more exciting is that I get the opportunity to see what an At the Gates performance would have looked like if they ever got the opportunity to fill arenas. It's like being in an alternative world where they didn't split in 1996 and instead went on to be the stadium-bothering entity that they should have been. Needless to say, they utterly own the place. Tomas Lindbergh prowls the stage like a caged tiger at dinnertime and the pride in his eyes as nearly 5000 people scream back "GO" is evident. At the Gates have always given “Slaughter of the Soul” the respect that it deserves without milking it. They have never felt embarrassed or resentful about the myriad of platitudes that it receives, but they also never solely relied on its prestige either. Instead preferring to build on their legacy with a horde of new releases. With their reputation intact this feels like the right time to perform it in its entirety and believe me it was glorious.

Decapitated are survivors. They have had more misfortune thrown at them than any one band really deserves, yet they have routinely shaken off the pitfalls and trudged onwards. Somewhere in the middle of all that adversity that have become an institution. They have transmogrified from just being another face in a veritable sea of death metal bands, into being venerated legends of the genre. Tonight, they arrive as conquering heroes as opposed to the also-rans that they were in danger of becoming. Part of it is due to the standing of guitarist Vorg who is now pulling off a double shift as Rob Flynn’s partner in crime in Machine Head. But part of it is their dogged resilience and refusal to change their style or musical direction. Having celebrated their past earlier on in the year, this time around they are concentrating on their latest release “Cancer Culture”. It is prime Decapitated, driving, compulsive and full of flair and it goes down a storm with a crowd that essentially now just wants to running around in circles and crash into one another.

Whilst the Holy Goat stage is a flurry of pulsating riffs it is another story over on Eyesore where Elder are living out their Rush fantasies. The psychedelic doom metal four-piece have the crowd hanging on their every note from the very start. They meld those doom elements effortlessly with 70’s prog-rock to superb effect. It’s not that they switch genres or styles through each odyssey of a track, but rather they manage to draw out what they need from so many influences and reimagine as a cohesive single coherent package. Complex technical riffs, sweep across a melody with velvety keyboards and time signature jumps. Founder member Nick DiSalvo’s vocals just add another layer and dimension to the piece, and in his echoey high register delivery I find myself closing my eyes and thinking of Perry Farrell with Jane’s Addiction in their more meandering prog-grunge songs. There’s a great groove and churn to Elder, and they really are something special to cherish.

And 11 hours after we started, we reach the end. The final hurrah and the reason why every hardcore kid in the country is just a little bit over-excited. A Converge set on his own special but Converge doing “Jane Doe” is something to behold. It is their masterpiece, an unsurpassed collision of punk and metal that manages to skilfully amalgamate the anarchistic chaos of the former with the grounded songwriting of the latter. Converge are well aware that their playing the album in its entirety is something out of the ordinary. Rather than go off and fire it off willy-nilly to all and sundry, they choose to reserve it for special occasions. Tonight is definitely that. Last trams have significantly thinned out the crowds but those who remain make up for the departed brethren as the room goes utterly bonkers as the band crash into ‘Concubine’. This is truly something and every other band playing today seems to have gathered on the balcony to witness this moment.

One of the wonders of “Jane Doe” is the way that it builds. Converge didn't seem to have got the memo that you put your strongest material first and then let your album wain towards the end. Instead every song feels that it builds on the intensity of the one before, each of them ratcheting up the energy until you reach the all-consuming might of the title track. It might be 21 years old, but “Jane Doe” still feels fresh and exciting. It's amalgamation of poetic finesse and metallic ferocity doesn't seem to have aged. In fact, it feels more relevant now than it ever did.

It is just exhilarating to watch every member of the band put their heart and soul into each track. They don't hold back and when they eventually reach a crescendo of that title track, they all seem emotionally spent. But we are not over yet. The unexpected cover of Entombed’s ‘Wolverine Blues’ is an utter delight and sends those death metal diehards who are still going into palpitations. We get two further tracks which are welcome but frankly unnecessary. We have heard “Jane Doe”, in full, what more do you need?

And that's it. The cancellation of Tokky Horror means that the aftershow is "just" a disco (a disco with a Pantera conga line but still nevertheless a disco). But the bottom line is that Gavin and Paul and everyone else who lives and breathes Damnation have pulled it off. They have taken a small but revered festival and turned it into an arena bothering Behemoth. Whatever the teething problems they were dwarfed by the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see bands of the ilk of Pig Destroyer, Full of Hell, At the Gates and Converge on a mammoth stage.

What they have done is downright miraculous. They have managed to take the heart and soul of Damnation and transferred it to a cavernous warehouse on an out-of-town industrial estate without once compromising what the festival is. Damnation is still very much Damnation, it's just got a much bigger sandbox to play in. Here is to next year.

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos and and the We Lost The Sea interview here!

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