Show Review: MUTANT SUPREMACY (NYC), ETHICIST, VALDRIN @ MAYDAY - 7/18

Photo taken by Reid Raley

I just saw MUTANT SUPREMACY (from New York City) at Mayday in Cincinnati and partied with them all night.  I have yet to get to sleep (please keep that in mind while reading this)  Had no idea that the main vocalist was a member of ATAKKE (female-fronted crusty death/thrash also from NYC).  They're all pretty cool dudes.  They played late 80's/early 90's death metal (my favorite kind) very well and while they didn't "break any new ground" (as if that matters...), they avoided all of the annoying trends in death metal today, like "br00tal slamz", super-techy bullshit, ripping off AUTOPSY, or trying to sound just like CANNIBAL CORPSE.  It was a total breath of fresh air.

A new blackened death/thrash group from the suburbs (Fairfield?) played, as well.  Their name is VALDRIN.  They were very young and left me very impressed.  And not just because of their performance - the lead vocalist had an embroidered BLOOD FEAST patch (an obscure death/thrash band from my hometown) and at the party after the show, they out-nerded everyone on black metal (even me).  They were also the only band to get people moving (which is very hard to do in this city) and holy shit, I don't think I've seen a pit that crazy at a metal show here since Sudsy Malone's was still around.  It was more nuts than even RAMMING SPEED and MUNICIPAL WASTE's pits at recent shows   Keep an eye on these guys.

However, it was the opener, a local black metal band on only their third or fourth show, who completely blew everyone away...  Their name is ETHICIST and they sound like WEAKLING and (early) WOLVES IN THE THRONEROOM with maybe a little DEAFHEAVEN thrown in there.  They soundchecked one song and over twenty people came in to watch and were very disappointed that they had to wait 10 minutes for the show to start.  :).  It's unbelievable that three people can make as much noise as they do.  The set was absolutely incredible, the sound job was perfect yet again (thanks to the talented hands of Mark Light, who is widely considered to be one of - if not THE best sound man in the city...), and I had the horns raised for probably their entire set.

This was a free show and the bar did so well that they sold out of everything they had that came in cans - everything.  If you didn't go to this, I feel bad for you, because it RULED!!!!!

Right now I'd like to give a shout-out to the lovely and wise waitress who served me at the end of her shift at an empty Waffle House this morning just after 6 AM.  Her advice for my headache worked perfectly.  I don't know if she believed me when I said that it wasn't from drinking (for those of you new to this site, I'm straightedge), though...

Btw if you've ever wondered what a "reek of putrefaction" smells like, just walk around Clifton Heights just before the crack of dawn early Thursday morning in the summer.  Trash day there is worse than walking by a cow pasture.  And yes, I'm quite acquainted with that - my grandfather and those who came before him were dairy farmers...