I had to weave past the drunks spewed at the bar and the drunks gambling their last króna on fruit machines to reach the stairs of Grand Rokk – kinda like Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones – only to be told that the show started an hour after the time listed on the flyer. Naturally I occupied my time by drowning my sorrows with a fine Icelandic beer and watching the copious amounts of folk celebrating Iceland’s runner up award in the Eurovision song contest.
Eventually all this tedious hanging around was rewarded when Momentum vocalist/bassist Hörður took the stand – firm, like a proud Viking warrior, in front of those glaring orange lights and equipped to the teeth with a beard and hair longer than Odin’s pubes. Momentum´s crushing mixture of post-metal, epic psychedelia and technical math caused a domino effect of head bangs across the room.
Dominant figures in the Icelandic metal scene, Celestine brought the mosh. A cocktail of emotive Converge punk rock and doom-ridden brutality mixed with a floor punch or two equals a fucking good time. It also featured some of the greatest breakdowns known to Satan.
Headliners The Psyke Project, one of Denmark’s foremost exports alongside Ecco shoes and Carlsberg, started their late-o’clock set with ‘technical difficulties’. I personally believe it was either the work of huldufólk or that The Psyke Project used up all Grand Rokk’s electricity charging their über-sludge batteries. Joking aside, Psyke Project’s slaying guitar screeches, chug filled bass lines, crashing drums and guttural vocals complimented for one hell of a show.
Highlights of the night include the small girl in the grey jeans slam dancing with the best of ‘em and Psyke Project bassist Jeppe’s showman antics. All of which kicked Eurovision’s ass.
- MySpace: thepsykeproject
- Jonathon´s Take: Brutal!
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