Music / Reviews
Review: Overthrust/Obnoxious Concoction, Golden Lion
There are musicians from as far afield as Kathmandu and Botswana in Bishopston tonight, but the World Music audience is conspicuous by its absence, no doubt scared off by the prospect of loud heavy metal. But the adventurous metal audience more than makes up for them, being out in force for Overthrust’s first, crowd-funded UK tour.
Global Metal bands tend to come in two flavours. There are those, like Mongolia’s The Hu, who set out to incorporate their own culture and instrumentation into the genre and consequently appeal to the novelty-fixated press. The alternative, more difficult approach is to take on Western bands at their own game. That’s very much what we get tonight.
We arrive just as Bristol’s Chewing Glass Collective are finishing up. It seems unfair to judge them on the basis of just one song, but the sound mix is pretty terrible though the mosh pit is suitably fired up. They depart with the now-obligatory, cheery “Death to Israel!” That’s their (minimal) chances of ever playing Glastonbury fucked, then!
is needed now More than ever
Obnoxious Concoction from Kathmandu, via Leeds, certainly look the part and play a confident brand of technical death metal. Eye-rolling frontman Omar Raja is a compelling figure and he even takes over the lead guitar quite competently during the last song.
Subject matter ranges from the frivolous (killer reindeer) to the serious (Israel again, including a message of support for those arrested marching in Bristol for Palestine Action) and they almost succeed in stealing the show, though the fact that their debut EP only seems to be available in obsolete cassette format rather suggests a lack of ambition.
Bedevilled by technical issues, headliners Overthrust start rather late. They’d promised on social media to serve up “our blast beats and Anger Management to you” and had posted a number of photographs of themselves in Tourist London on arrival. Now it was time to deliver on that promise on their last night in the UK. Fortunately, the quartet soon get into gear, and whatever problems are plaguing them onstage are not apparent out here in the steaming throng.
Imposing bassist/vocalist and former police officer Tshomarelo Mosaka, aka Vulture Thrust, is one of the leading figures in Botswana’s surprisingly large metal scene and is clearly delighted to finally be playing in the country that invented metal. He also deserves kudos for performing in the sweltering heat in full cowboy gear.
One of Overthrust’s two guitarists prowls the stage gurning furiously, while the other is rather more impassive and watchful, and their drummer keeps up a ferocious beat. This is death metal of the old skool, with lyrics tweaked to address contemporary concerns in their home country, such as dodgy preachers.
It’s impressive stuff, augmented by the band’s likeability and evident delight at finding themselves playing in Bristol to an enthusiastic throng on a rainy Saturday night. Don’t be surprised if their enterprising gamble pays off as they sign to one of the bigger indie metal labels and return to play much larger venues.
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