Music / Reviews
Review: Voivod/Midnight, Thekla
As is the modern metal fashion, Cleveland’s Midnight are masked and hooded – possibly to disguise their identity, as this is essentially a solo project by a chap who calls himself Athenar. In all other regards, they’re very familiar indeed, with plenty of bullet belts, battle jackets and studded wristbands harking back to the metal styles of yesteryear. Musically, they’re agreeably old school too, and almost actionably Motorheadesque on occasion.
“Hey, Jaguar are from Bristol, right? Let’s go Axe Crazy!” bellows Mr. Midnight at one point. But shamefully there’s just a flicker of recognition among the modern metal audience for the only band from around these parts to be an acknowledged influence on Metallica.
They seem to be under the impression that they haven’t played Bristol before, clearly having forgotten about the Exchange. Midnight obviously made a lot of friends then, as a large circle pit opens up and threatens to swallow the entire audience. There’s nothing remotely original about what they do, but they certainly rock – and sometimes that’s all you need.
Voivod have been going for a remarkable 44 years now, and while they are hugely influential and deserve to be playing to much larger crowds, they’ve never made it out of the clubs. But they clearly love what they do – especially founding members Snake and Away, who are now both in their sixties – and reward us for our loyalty with a career-spanning set stretching all the way back to 1984’s War and Pain album (from which Bristol’s Black City record shop took its name, fact fans).
Personally, I’d like to have heard more from 1989’s science fiction-themed Nothingface, which saw the band pivot firmly into prog-metal, but their magnificent cover of Pink Floyd’s Astronomy Domine is a real treat. Little wonder this was Voivod’s most commercially successful period.
The impressive precision of Away’s drumming is undiminished by the passing years, while guitarist Chewy is on particularly excellent form. Indeed, while Midnight struggle to establish an identity, Voivod’s brand of cyber-metal remains totally distinctive and original after nearly half a century. Long may they run.
Main pic of Voivod credit: Catherine Deslauriers
Read more: Bristol’s month in Metal & Prog: June 2026
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