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Rating: The Swamp Club in Massa always offers good music, and the evening of Saturday, October 19 was no exception, quite the opposite: on the small stage of the venue, the bands Septem from La Spezia and Menarka from Milan performed. I had the luck and privilege of attending the concert not just as a spectator but as - if I may say so - a "member" of Septem's staff, allowing me to witness the entire pre-concert phase: instrument preparation and sound-check.
The concert began at 11:00 PM, an hour after the official schedule. The Milanese Menarka opened the night with an original Metal sound infused with elements of Thrash, Crossover, Hardcore, and Heavy Metal seamlessly blended together thanks to the diverse backgrounds and personalities of the five musicians.
Kyt Walken's fast and aggressive vocals dominated the beastly rhythmic setup of bassist Ale Umberti and drummer Johnny and the guitar work by Andrea Diamond and Spiddu. Guitar walls, Hardcore outbursts, and almost Heavy refrains delighted the local audience for 40 minutes of concert. Although I am not familiar with Menarka's discography, I'll leave here the setlist of the tracks they played (I'll provide a link to the band at the end of the review for those interested in discovering their music): “Starving Into Wilderness,” “Mischa Wolf Is Dead,” “Ride Home To Crimes,” “One-Eye Therapy,” “Chronic Army Boy,” “Superloud Mouth Blagging Tosser,” “No More Therapies,” “Mountains Pulpebra,” “No Pain No Gain.” A band to discover—go do it!
Ten minutes later, the large audience at the Swamp became euphoric with the appearance of Septem (a band whose debut album I had the chance to review for a metal webzine last April). The first three tracks “Mind Loss,” “The Stranger,” and “Journey To Eternity” drove the audience wild. A breathtaking performance with the rhythm section Albericci-Mariotti (bass and drums) flawless throughout. The dual guitars of Scontrini and Monteaperto delivered powerful refrains, and Armanini's voice did not falter for a second, offering masterful vocal techniques.
Despite some technical issues (quickly resolved) due to the excessive volume of the guitars, which overshadowed Armanini's voice in the first part of the live show, the rest of the performance flowed smoothly with the almost complete rendition of the album: from the hits “A Different Day,” “Keep Metal Alive,” “Purified By The Pain,” to the less-known tracks, “Rebirth,” “Choose Your Death,” and “Cold Dead Heart.”
Heavy Metal at its finest!
An evening that is yet another demonstration of how the Italian Underground scene is filled with musical acts brimming with passion and talent! Thanks again to Septem and Menarka for the splendid music!
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