Cabal Delivers Deathcore Decimation In London With Viscera, Vexed And Lifesick

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Cabal Delivers Deathcore Decimation In London With Viscera, Vexed And Lifesick

Live music is something which is almost essential to the lives of most people who read this site, or stumble across articles like this one. It’s where we get to experience the music which played an important part of our lives, discover new favourites, meet new and old friends or simply let out our frustrations, aggression and negativity. This seems especially true for metal fans. So after going without a live show for over two months, I was itching to get to any kind of metal gig that I could, which is a growing problem in post-Brexit Britain, with many bands omitting it from their tour schedule. Fortunately, Danish quintet Cabal were kind enough to include a number of shows in the UK on their current tour and had some very intriguing support joining them, so it was off to London for my first show of 2024.

Though they had their fans, opening band Lifesick weren’t who I was thinking of in the “intriguing support” statement. Having signed with Metal Blade Records recently, there’s some buzz around the Fredericia natives. Being totally unfamiliar with a band is usually a good place to be when seeing them live, as one can’t compare them to their studio output or previous gig experiences. For die hard fans of metalcore, and there were some in the Underworld tonight, there’s enough to enjoy, which is to say, a lot of breakdowns. Breakdowns and jumping around like an early 2000s pop punk band seemed to be all Lifesick had to offer though. Not the worst band ever, but no different from every other local metalcore band you’ve ever seen and thus, not much to write about.

Up next we had our first English outfit and the group who I was most interested in seeing, Vexed. Bursting onto the scene in 2021 with their debut album, “Culling Culture,” the alt-metal band from Stevenage has a lot to say and they express it very well. The wide range of lyrical subjects are espoused by vocalist Megan Targett, who has a very commanding presence on stage and is in fine voice from beginning to end. Promoting their latest album, “Negative Energy,” Vexed drew from it with songs like “X My Heart” and the superb “Anti-Fetish.” They had the crowd buzzing from the very start and were an absolute thrill to watch, adding their name to the list of young bands who need to be witnessed first hand.

Following Vexed, it was the turn of fellow Brits Viscera to take to the stage. Also promoting their second album released within the past twelve months (“Carcinogenesis,”) the band led by former Sylosis and Heart Of A Coward frontman Jamie Graham are a perfect example of why one shouldn’t dismiss a band based on their genre. Those who spit feathers at the mere mention of deathcore would do well to hold their rage and actually check these guys out, because they can really play and don’t restrict themselves to limitations. Viscera possesses a great weight which pummels the audience throughout the entire set, much to the delight of the capital’s moshers. Despite only performing six songs, they made the most of each of them, with “Lamb To The Slaughter” and “Obsidian” being received particularly well, as was the closing number, “Sungazer.” Viscera are rising fast up the British deathcore scene and deservedly so after putting in such an intense performance.

Ultimately, it was time for the evening’s headliners Cabal to send the crowd home happy, and boy did they ever. Immediately, Cabal unleashed an enormous sonic fury, sparking pits and stage diving. Still celebrating the release of their third full length album, “Magno Interitus,” the Copenhagen deathcore squad carried themselves very well. Not being a fan (or able to find their setlist online,) I’m unfortunately unable to name any of the songs played tonight, but given the roar from the audience, it’s safe to say there were plenty of favourites on the schedule. Vocalist Andreas Paarup is a frantic ball of energy, flying around the stage making sure everyone in his field of vision is pumped up and having fun, which they clearly are, screaming, moshing and head banging. I’d first heard of Cabal when interviewing their countrymen Baest in 2018 and asking if they could recommend any more bands from Denmark, with Cabal being the first name they mentioned. Judging from tonight’s show, it was easy to see why. An excellent night.