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Metal & Prog Picks: December 2024
As a foghorn-voiced wise man once observed “It’s Kerrrrr-istmasssss!” and this month brings special festive shows by two prog giants: Jethro Tull at Bristol Cathedral and Rick Wakeman at the Bath Forum. There’s plenty for those who prefer their music more extreme and evil too, including Dying Fetus, Obituary and Eyehategod.
Marble Factory, Dec 2
is needed now More than ever
After Avenged Sevenfold were announced as a Download headliner back in 2013, many punters objected that there were bands far more deserving of the headline slot. Before long, the hashtag #whynotdyingfetus? was trending worldwide, in the way that these things do. This was good news for the Maryland technical death metallers as they were eventually offered an opening slot on the festival’s main stage. Signed to the Relapse label, their latest album is 2023’s Make Them Beg for Death, a follow-up to 2017’s Wrong One to Fuck With, which proved to be their biggest commercial success to date. Support tonight comes from Chelsea Grin, Despised Icon and Vitriol.
SWX, Dec 6
Veteran Florida death metallers Obituary’s previous show in Bristol was a tiddler at the Thekla back in 2023, which sold out instantly. They’re been doing this stuff for 40 years and their eleventh album, Dying of Everything, is out now on Relapse. If you enjoyed Cannibal Corpse at the Beacon, you’ll love this. Fascinating trivia fact: drummer Donald Tardy runs a cat sanctuary named Metal Meowlisha. Support tonight comes from Californian thrash metallers Sadus.
SWX, Dec 7
Remember them? Early ’90s Scottish hard rockers boasting siblings Dante and Giuliano ‘Jools’ Gizzi who grew up in Glasgow’s tough East End, not far from the legendary Barrowlands venue, Gun got off to a strong start with their first two albums, titled, with typical swagger, Taking on the World and Gallus. They even got to support the Stones on the Steel Wheels and Urban Jungle tours. Alas, Gun’s biggest hit single proved to be a woeful cover of Cameo’s Word Up, and much of their audience lost interest when the band decided to pursue a lame pop-rock direction, presumably in the hope of broadening their appeal. The inevitable split and subsequent re-formation followed and they’ve spent the last decade or so battling their way back. This finally seems to be paying off, as their seventh album, Hombres, hit the UK top ten back in April. Original vocalist Mark Rankin is long gone, with Dante taking his place.
Ian Anderson Presents: Christmas with Jethro Tull
Bristol Cathedral, Dec 11
Tull at the Cathedral? Really? Yes, it does seem a tad unlikely given avowed non-believer Ian Anderson’s previous remarks on religion in general and Christianity in particular. And it’s safe to say they won’t be playing My God tonight. But Tull have been recording and playing Christmas songs ever since 1972’s A Christmas Song (“Hey, Santa – pass us that bottle, will ya?”). Indeed, the only album they released during the first decade of the new millennium was 2003’s The Jethro Tull Christmas Album, which meant that they were obliged to play Holly Herald at the Beacon back in April on their Seven Decades of Jethro Tull tour or leave that decade unrepresented. Anyhoo, they’ve just released a new expanded box set of the album, (4 CDs and a blu-ray with 5.1 mix, all remixed by Bruce Soord of The Pineapple Thief). So hopefully they’ll be performing such gems as Weathercock, Fire at Midnight, Ring Out Solstice Bells and, inevitably, Bourée, alongside traditional church and classical music. Tull will also be joined by unspecified guests and the Cathedral’s Director of Music, Mark Lee. The event is a fund-raiser for the Cathedral and, needless to say, it’s been sold out for months.
Exchange, Dec 13
Bristolian melodic prog-metallers make a comeback after a five year absence, with support from the Luke Appleton Power Trio and Mammoth Toe.
The Rick Wakeman Yuletide Christmas Show
Bath Forum, Dec 18
Following his great Return of the Caped Crusader show at the Beacon earlier this year, Rick’s back at the Forum on his ever-popular Christmas tour, which took a year off in 2023. If you haven’t been to one of these, they’re always enormous fun, with a mix of Rick’s patented off-colour/anti-woke jokes/observations and great music. This time, rather than performing a solo show, he’s bringing along two members of his English Rock Ensemble to join in the fun and/or be the butt of the jokes: vocalist Mollie (daughter of Steve) Marriott and his son/fellow keyboard player Adam Wakeman. Expect much family bickering. As a keen supporter of his local dog rescue charity, Rick’s also promising to do The Twelve Dogs of Christmas as an audience participation number. Oh, and don’t forget that he’s back in Bristol in February for the Slapstick Festival.
Marble Factory, Dec 19
“This is the 47th time we’ve played the Fleece,” announced Eyehategod vocalist Mike Williams at one of the NOLA sludgers’ many shows at the legendary Bristol venue nearly ten years ago. Well now they’ve moved up to the Marble Factory. They’re certainly a hard-livin’ bunch of veteran road warriors, as evidenced by the title of their 2001 compilation: 10 Years of Abuse (and Still Broke). Drummer Joey LaCaze succumbed to respiratory failure back in 2014 and crazed vocalist Williams underwent (thankfully successful) liver transplant surgery back in 2016 as a result of what he described as “the ravages of a hard life lived”. (His chum Randy Blythe of Lamb of God deputised for him during that year’s tour.) New-ish album A History of Nomadic Behaviour is out now on Century Media. Support comes from fellow NOLA extreme metallers and Beelzubub-botherers Goatwhore, whose most recent release is Angels Hung from the Arches of Heaven.
Main image of Rick Wakeman: Lee Wilkinson
COMING SOON
Here’s our essential diary of upcoming gigs that should be of interest to anyone of a rockin’ disposition.
The Halo Effect/Pain, Fleece, Jan 21
Cattle Decapitation, Marble Factory, Jan 31
Tremonti, O2 Academy, Feb 5
Mother Vulture, Thekla, Feb 7
Slomosa, Thekla, Feb 8
Gloryhammer, SWX, Feb 9
Steve’n’Seagulls, Fleece, Feb 11
Hayseed Dixie, Fleece, Feb 12
Queensryche, Marble Factory, Feb 14
Green Lung/Unto Others/Satan’s Satyrs, Marble Factory, Feb 17
Uriah Heep/April Wine/Tyketto, Bristol Beacon, Feb 20
Opeth/Grand Magus, Bristol Beacon, Feb 25
Fish, Bristol Beacon, Feb 26
Suffocation, Marble Factory, March 4
Blacktop Mojo/Shaman’s Harvest, Fleece, March 5
Cynic/Rivers of Nihil, Fleece, March 6
Von Hertzen Brothers, Fleece, March 9
Rosalie Cunningham, Louisiana, March 13
Zeal & Ardor, Marble Factory, March 19
Wardruna, Bristol Beacon, March 21
The Darkness, Bristol Beacon, March 24
Bloodywood, O2 Academy, March 26
Skunk Anansie, Bristol Beacon, April 1
Amplifier, Louisiana, April 5
Lordi, SWX, April 9
Bridear, Exchange, April 11
Dewolff, Fleece, April 16
Sons of Liberty, Exchange, April 27
Steven Wilson, Bristol Beacon, May 10
Saxon/Dirkschneider, Bristol Beacon, Nov 13
Clutch, Bristol Beacon, Dec 15
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