Cannibal Corpse / Municipal Waste / Immolation / Schizophrenia – Manchester Victoria Warehouse.

Years ago a 3,000 capacity venue would have been playing host to the likes of more mainstream bands like Korn or Sepultura. Now however, such is the rise in popularity of metal, and the now legendary status of headliners Cannibal Corpse, that it is no surprise to see huge numbers arriving tonight as several sets of merch sellers line the approaching streets before we’ve even got inside.

First on are Belgium’s thrashers Schizophrenia. They blitz through a short sharp set consisting of 5 original songs plus a cover – giving the audience the choice between Morbid Angel’s “Maze of Torment” or Slayer’s “Necrophiliac”. Manchester opts for the latter and it is delivered with punchy precision. Schizophrenia was a brilliant addition to tonight’s bill and went down really well. Anyone who’s a fan of tight old school thrashy death metal should check out their 2022 album “Recollections of the Insane”.

Death metal stalwarts Immolation play a mix of old and new with classic, brutal death metal fused with more progressive, gothic elements from their more recent albums. Vocalist/bassist Ross Dolan forms an imposing presence with his deep, guttural vocals and rumbling bass as they belt out brutality such as A Glorious Epoch alongside more epic and atmospheric tracks like A Noose of Thorns where the pace slows for a while. Both rhythm guitarist Alex Bouks and lead Robert Vigna are immaculate in their execution with Vigna occasionally plucking at his guitar as though it were a harp or a dead goose even. It’s dark apocalyptical theatre as well as music. By now the crowd is getting going and the final track, the classic “An Everlasting Fire” from their 1991 debut, goes down well.

Municipal Waste are greeted with such excitement that you might think they were headlining as they lineup on stage in full early 80s thrash style outfits with denim and headbands. To have 4 death metal bands in 1 night might have been too much for some people so to mix things up with a different type of band is a reasonable idea.

It’s fast, wild, full on 80s style thrash and by now a circle pit is forming as they get going with opener The Executioner. I find it hard to imagine that anyone into metal would not like this band. It’s just so fun and exciting. They know it – and the crowd know it and love it as well. Singer Tony Foresta laps up the crowd enthusiasm but jokingly tells the left side off for not forming their own circle pit as the bouncers work constantly to ensure all the crowd surfers make it safely down at the front as the whole place gets wilder by every song. By the time the band closes with “Born to Party” everyone is chanting along with the anthemic “Municipal Waste is going to fuck you up” in what is now a party atmosphere.

By the time headliners Cannibal Corpse take to the stage the place resembles an unholy cathedral as the wild, hedonistic energy of Municipal Waste has been replaced by the dark foreboding and anticipation that pre-empts such legendary extreme metal bands. They do not fail to disappoint in what is as much a theatrical spectacle to be witnessed rather than anything else. “Singer” Corpsegrinder is so comfortably at home with such a level of intense guttural bellowing that you can well imagine that he could do a few hours of this and still be keen. When there is a pause in the vocals we are treated to a churning, 360 degree windmilling mosh of his head going round and round with his hair flailing. You can see why T-shirts have been produced, (one of which he is in fact wearing) that exclaim “Respect the Neck!”. He’s at the legendary level of an American Institution much like The Undertaker from Wrestling or some character from a movie.

Few bands though have this level of heaviness or intensity or indeed a 16 album, near 40 year back catalogue of full-on quality death metal as they reel off classics like “Staring Through the Eyes of the Dead”, “Chaos Horrific” and “Fucked with a Knife”.

The music is brutal and fast paced and played meticulously but has more classic song structures with familiar chorus lines and lead riffs than many other death metal bands that are often more technical or unconventional these days. You can see why they have almost become The death metal band. By the time the band close with the classic “Hammer Smashed Face” everyone in the place has been subjugated to the chaos and legend and you wonder if there will ever be a return to normality for anyone ever again.