Vio-lence - Plymouth Review

The summer can often feel like a bit of a barren wasteland when it comes to gigs. With bands often focusing on the festival circuit rather than organising headline shows, this time of year often feels quite quiet from a live music perspective - especially as I feel that my festival-going days are likely now behind me. Whilst my epic trip to London to see Def Leppard and Metallica twice fell at the beginning of the month, it now feels like quite a long time ago - with the fairly relentless heat that has fallen over the UK of late somewhat making time drag. My August is uncharacteristically busy, with three notable gigs in the diary, but there was one last treat for July to serve up - as last night I went out in Plymouth for a night of thrash metal. The venue was The Depo, on the very edge of the city centre, a well-respected venue that focuses on operating as a nightclub and as a host for DJs rather than as a traditional live music venue. It is a shame that it does not host bands more often, as it is a good size and fills a gap otherwise unfilled in the city - but given it opened back in 2021 as the pandemic wore away, the fact that last night was only my second visit shows how little the venue caters for those with tastes such as mine. The reason for the night out was a surprising visit to the city by the San Francisco-based thrash act Vio-lence - a band that date back to 1985, so were very much part of that Bay Area thrash scene during the 1980s. They might not be as much of a household name as fellow Bay Area acts Metallica, Megadeth, and Slayer, among others, but Vio-lence certainly earnt their spot in the roster - with 1988's Eternal Nightmare often considered something of a thrash classic. Two former members of the band in Robb Flynn and Phil Demmel later went on to play together in Machine Head, too, which Flynn has led since its inception - whilst Demmel is currently part of Kerry King's solo band. Vio-lence was a band that I was familiar with in name-only for a while, but I did not listen to them properly until I saw them live at the 2022 iteration of Bloodstock Open Air. That was, surprisingly, the band's first ever UK show - as they had never toured here during their original run in the 1980s and 1990s. I remember them impressing live, and I have since become something of a casual fan. The band's line-up back in 2022 included three classic-era members, including Demmel, as well as two other well-known faces from the thrash and wider metal scenes - but over time that stacked line-up has disintegrated, leaving just classic-era frontman Sean Killian left. It was a real shame that the reunion imploded, but Killian clearly had the will to keep going - and has put together a new-look version of Vio-lence over the last couple of years to keep touring and bringing the band's small, but hard-hitting, catalogue to the fans. Since that Bloodstock show in 2022, Vio-lence have toured the UK once as part of a bill with Exhorder. There is clearly a desire from Killian to keep any current momentum going - as some UK headline shows were announced earlier in the year as part of a wider European tour that included both headline shows and festival appearances. I certainly did not expect to see a Plymouth date included - but when I saw that the band were going to be within walking distance I picked up a ticket and started swotting up on the band's albums.

Following dinner at the Wetherspoons across the road, by the time I got to the venue it was about 15 minutes after the doors were supposed to open - but everyone was still stuck outside. It was not too much longer before we were all let in, but I did not think that the night seemed all that well run. There seemed to be limited urgency between sets to get things ready for the next band - plus it was clear that little thought had been put into getting the venue ready for the paying public, as the toilets, moments after the doors had opened, already looked like they tend to at the ends of gigs with wet floors and no toilet paper. The Depo did little to ingratiate itself with me, then, but it is the music that is of importance here - and the night got underway with a fairly short set from local act Atom Smasher. I had not seen the band live before, but I was familiar with them by name and reputation. The three-piece slightly progressive death metal act were largely playing to a pretty small crowd, but they had an enthusiastic approach and were pretty tight throughout - with some of the drumming in particularly impressing. Songwriting-wise, though, I did not feel that they were always all that interesting - especially for a band with a clear progressive influence. The riffs were often not knotty enough for me, nor were the arrangements especially interesting - with the band's music being pretty typical death metal overall, and towards the lighter end of the genre. There were certainly some strong grooves, and the use of two different voices to mix things up between deeper growls and higher screams did shake things up - but overall I think that it was fair to say that what Atom Smasher were doing was just largely not for me. Those who turned up early did make a bit of noise for the band, though, so there was a bit of atmosphere early on - getting things underway nicely.

The main tour support in the form of Cutthroat LA were up next - a four-piece hardcore band based in Los Angeles but with many of the current line-up hailing from Brazil. Led by frontman Neil Roemer, I think that both the band and the crowd took a couple of numbers to warm up - but it was not long before both were having a good time. I am not the biggest hardcore fan, but the genre often comes across well live - and I found myself really enjoying what the band were doing. The riffs from Renato Romano (guitar) were powerful throughout, with plenty of trademark groove, but perhaps the most impressive member of the band was Betto Cardoso (drums) who played some pretty off-kilter drum grooves in a hardcore context. Roemer made quite a big deal of the influence the Brazilian musicians brought to his LA hardcore sound - and there was certainly a bit of a Sepultura influence in some of the grooves on show, even if Cutthroat LA rarely went for a thrash approach. Vocally, too, Roemer sounded powerful, even if he was a little low in the mix at times, but he really excelled as a frontman. He spoke well to the crowd throughout and spend quite a bit of time down on the floor, largely due to limited on-stage space admittedly, but doing so he really ensured everyone was involved. Despite the crowd not being huge, there was a lot of energy in the room. Quite a few mosh pits broke out, and those of us not moshing joined in with plenty of headbanging. Roemer really worked hard to get the crowd onside, but his efforts paid off and it was clear throughout the set how much fun he was having. That is always great to see, especially given that the turnout could have been better, and I certainly came away impressed by the band's effort, tightness, and overall performance - even though, as mentioned, hardcore is not always really my thing. They put on a fun set that brought everyone in the room along for the ride - and that is not always an easy thing for a band to do, especially as I cannot imagine that too many present were already familiar with Cutthroat LA.

Following the two openers it was soon time for Vio-lence. The crowd seemed to swell a little after Cutthroat LA's set, but the place was not exactly packed. The floor area looked nicely populated in the open area in front of the balcony - but further back there was certainly plenty of space, and I doubt there were too many on the balcony. That being said, the turnout was not too bad for a Wednesday night and for a band that are not exactly a household name - and everyone that turned up had done so for a good time. As such, as soon as Vio-lence took to the stage, the overall energy levels rose and the atmosphere was great from the off. The band played for an hour - which is on the short side but thrash shows are often shorter than average, and the 10-song set was largely culled from the band's first two albums. As I said, only Killian from the current line-up has any real history with the band, but the four musicians that backed him all look to be veterans of the scene - and I recognised Ira Black (guitar/vocals) due to his previous involvement with bands like Lizzy Borden and Dokken. Killian just really feels like a lifer at this point, and a huge smile barely left his face all night. I do not know a huge amount about him, but I get the impression he has struggled with his health over the years - as well as the original disappointment of Vio-lence ending in the early 1990s. He just seems to be happy to finally be able to tour the world with his music - and even though he was playing in front of a relatively small crowd in a UK city generally off the beaten touring path he seemed to be having a great time. He has lost almost none of his throaty voice, either, and he sounded powerful during the set - whilst the riffing throughout from Black and fellow guitarist Claudeous Creamer was tight. Setlist-wise, the show was packed full of favourites. Most of the classic debut Eternal Nightmare was played, with the knotty title track kicking things off - but all three of the band's studio albums were represented, as was the Let the World Burn EP from 2022. Riff after riff came throughout the night, with shorter, sharper numbers like the break-neck Serial Killer sitting nicely alongside the anthemic like I Profit - with gang vocals from the band and the crowd helping Killian out during the chorus. Killian spoke to the crowd well, generally just coming across like a guy happy to be there, but generally he kept things brief and the band powered on. Ageless Eyes saw 1993's Nothing to Gain get some rare representation, whilst Officer Nice is a live staple for a reason thanks to its groovy, grinding chorus. The anthemic and shout-along Kill on Command should be seen as a true thrash classic due to its chorus alone - and it felt like the centrepiece of the show, even though it came towards the end. It was a high watermark moment, but the newer Upon Their Cross also felt powerful - before World in a World, which was a single back in the day, rounded out the band's powerful hour on stage. The setlist was:

Eternal Nightmare

Serial Killer

I Profit

Calling in the Coroner

Ageless Eyes

Phobophobia

Officer Nice

Kill on Command

Upon Their Cross

World in a World

It might not have been the most spectacular gig going, especially given the recent competition of two nights of Metallica at the London Stadium, but there is always something pleasing about a thrash show in a smaller venue with a crowd of die-hards who are out to have fun. Vio-lence are one of those bands that are well-respected but that never truly broke through - but those familiar with the thrash scene love them and are enjoying getting to this current opportunity to hear some of those old songs live. Killian deserves this latest Vio-lence era, too, even if many of the classic line-up seem to want nothing to do with the band - and he gave his all in Plymouth last night.