I had the pleasure of watching one of my all-time favourite bands this weekend, Make Them Suffer, perform their first headline show in Scotland which will hopefully be the first of many to come! This gig was at a venue I’ve personally never attended but I can wholeheartedly say I would love to return after Sunday’s antics. This venue has a 550-person capacity so was definitely one of the more intimate shows that I’ve had the chance to see and, in my opinion, it was the perfect size for the bands that were performing.
I had transport troubles [someone set fire to the trains or something – Mosh] so unfortunately missed If Not For Me, a four-piece metalcore band hailing from Pennsylvania, USA. Although I heard great things about their performance warming up the crowd for the heavy hitters Conjurer. Another four-piece band that take inspiration from many corners of the metal scene with elements of sludge and doom metal found in their new album Páthos. These guys did the least amount of travelling for this gig originating from Rugby, England.
Direct came from Resolve, a band completed by two older bands that merged coming from Lyon, . I was luckily able to catch these guys and although I hadn’t heard of them before the gig, I can now say that I have a few of their songs added to my everyday playlist after hearing them live! I recommend listening to ‘‘Smile’’, from their newest album Human (Extended Cut) and ‘‘Forever Yours’’ from their first album Between Me and the Machine. Resolve got the whole room moving with their set, from mosh pits, crowd-surfers and even a wall of death!
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Now for the headliners Make Them Suffer coming all the way from Perth, Australia. These guys from down-under didn’t disappoint and for those of you who haven’t heard of them, imagine Blessthefall but with harsher vocals from both vocalists Sean Harmanis and Alex Reade and more topless riffs courtesy of Nick McLernon. Seeing them headline for the first time really opened my eyes to how Sean can really orchestrate a crowd, he wanted a circle pit? You bet he got one that spanned over half of the venues floor space! They opened with ‘‘Epitaph’’ a song from their newest full-length, self-titled album, Make Them Suffer and instantly the crowd came alive before the vocals had even kicked in with the catchy and recognisable electronic beat that introduces in some great harsh vocals! This song is a great showcase of Alex’s harsh and clean vocals with a mix of both within this track.
They played songs from every one of their albums showcasing how their music has progressed from their first release, Neverbloom, which incorporates more death metal and deathcore undertones, to their self-titled Make Them Suffer, which has some of the meatiest riffs I’ve heard in a while. They played my two absolute favourite songs in this set which are ‘‘Hollowed Heart’’ and ‘‘Widower’’ for the main reason that they are hard hitters, songs with lyrics that mean something and punch you right in the feels. ‘‘Widower’’ was a song I didn’t expect them to play as it is from their first album and honestly didn’t suspect that it would still be an album that they would play from but oh boy am I glad they did! This song was their closer and although not everyone knew it, the people who did brought enough energy for themselves and everyone else in the room (me included). From lost shoes, jewellery and an EpiPen lying on the floor at the end of the night, I think that’s how you could tell everyone had a good time and really lived in the moment.
It’s safe to say my whole body ached and I had lost my voice by the morning, but it was all worth it to be able to experience such an electrifying show! Hopefully this will be one of many headlining shows that Scotland will see from Make Them Suffer in the years to come and hopefully the next time Conjurer or If Not For Me come back here, I’ll be able to catch them!
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Pics by Skull Lens Photography
