Pitchshifter

It was an ominous start. I arrived at the London Astoria, and there were no queues. Upon further investigation, I discovered that the gig had in fact been downgraded to the much 'cosier’ London Astoria II, formerly the Mean Fiddler.

For the support bands, the venue was at most half full, but that wasn’t due to a lack of quality, more due to the fact that people appeared to arriving from work. That, and hovering around the upstairs bars drinking the overpriced beer that the former Mean Fiddler venues seem to specialise in. This did however lend to the party mood that Pitchshifter used to revel in. However, they have been away for a few years, barring a couple of one-off gigs, and the question had to be asked, were they still relevant, and could they still put on a show full of passion and power?

First to the support bands. Ghost of a Thousand could very well become my new favourite band. They have a deep understanding of the art of 'blasting people’s heads off', as they liked to make reference to throughout their short but passionate set. Specialising in what is termed 'metalcore’, they rock , hard. Heavy beats, crunching riffs, and not-quite-screaming vocals courtesy of Tom Lacey, the only downside to their performance was the fact that the venue was less than a quarter full, and when called upon to form a circle pit for some NY-Hardcore style rocking, the crowd simply stood there and nodded their appreciation. Definitely a band to keep your eye on.

Next up were Brigade. They were , good. Nothing particularly spectacular, their brand of emo-metal is non-offensive. They make a good noise and have clearly built up their fair number of female admirers, judging by the screams around me. Sounding similar to other UK proponents of the form such as Funeral for a Friend isn’t a bad thing, but it also works against them, meaning that they don’t stand out from an already overcrowded market.

That is definitely not an accusation that can be laid at the feet of the headliners however. Throughout their entire career, Pitchshifter have been trailblazers, leaving those wishing to emulate them in their wake. Techno-metal pioneers, influencing bands as diverse as The Prodigy, the aforementioned Funeral for a Friend and American metal legends Fear Factory, they have also always been a formidable live act. The only fear tonight was whether after so long away, and having 'matured’ the band would still be able to pull it off.

All doubts were killed at the beginning of the set. Starting with a riotous 'Microwaved’, the crowd went ape-shit, and it was clear that the band were enjoying themselves immensely too. Onstage banter was limited until halfway through the set, when JS Clayden stated that being up there was 'like coming home for Christmas, but with a thousand degenerative f***ers where your family used to be'. Crowd activity started to wane, and the band were visibly disappointed, but when they played the closing trio of 'Please Sir’, 'WYSIWYG’ and 'Genius’, the moshpit became a dangerous but fun place to be, with the crowd slamming themselves around like there was no tomorrow, screaming every word at the top of their voices.

All in all an excellent night, made that little bit sweeter by provision of a free album by 'This Is Menace’, a metal supergroup comprised of numerous members of Pitchshifter and a host of guest vocalists. It’s well worth checking out, as are the band when they hopefully make their way to a venue near you soon.