Back on the boat, with most of my orifices filled with white sand, I ran to catch my new buddy Andrew’s band on the pool deck: MONSTROSITY! I am ashamed to say I never had the chance to see them live and it was one of my priority on da boat to hell… disappointed I was not! Solid from start to finish, crushing in every possible ways. They are amazing musicians (you too Andrew! There you go, I said it!) and they should be a much bigger band in my opinion. If you have the chance to see them live, just go! I managed to catch a few songs from MORGOTH on the small stage at the Spectrum Lounge and they were killing it again… went for a quick shower and came back to see GRAVE, again, at the spectrum. Killer set and it was sounding great this time… this band is just fucking awesome, the new album is great and I needed to see them on the boat. GRAVE is god… they made me a happy sailor that night for sure. I also caught PARADISE LOST at the Chorus Line… I have been a fan of this band for ever, saw them live a few times and I was not going to miss the opportunity to see them live again… I also got myself a nice shirt the day before, so I am thrilled and anxious to see them. I am sorry to say that this is my disappointment of the cruise… I will not go into details as I am not into slagging bands off… but this was not up to par if you catch my drift. Totally disappointed. I will keep the shirt and keep listening to the albums. I felt fortunate to see SANCTUARY again, they played another new song and again, I just can’t wait to get that new album, it is going to be great for sure. I went on to catch a few songs from BOUNDED BY BLOOD and they were great. I couple of drinks later I went to my bunk, once again very happy to be there.
MORGOTH: The art of sinking
SANCTUARY...Soldiers of steel
Day 4 (December 6) was going to be brutal… and it started with a bang with SOLSTAFIR. They were the right band to start this great day. You do not want to see KRISIUN at 10 in the morning (Well, I do, but not everybody!) and did they woke us up in a great way! I love the new album and they are very cool to see live… The stage look like a natural thing for them (looks easier for them than riding a Jet Ski! LOL! Sorry I will not go into details on this!) and they were the perfect band to enjoy with a glass of milk and a glazed donut beside the pool on a beach chair. I am a SOLSTAFIR fan more than ever. Went on to see DARK SERMON at the spectrum and I must say they were great! Not really my style (modern Death Metal mixed with Deathcore) but they have a killer stage presence, very intense. Pretty cool, I suggest you guys to investigate them a bit further. I ran to the pool deck to make sure not to miss a second of one of my favourite bands… the godly NOVEMBER’S DOOM! Paul is god… the guy sings like a fucking master! Solid is not even getting close to describe this band’s amazing live performance. I have all their albums, and I know their songs by heart, this band was one of the highlights on my trip to the Barge to hell… so heavy, so dark! They also played a great cover of WOODS OF YPRES… fucking magical moments. I wish they could play another 2 hours. AMAZING! I will do everything I can to see them live again. After this show, I managed to catch HACKNEYED which I thought were pretty cool if not necessarily my thing. I caught a few songs from HOLY MOSES, they had a lot of fans on that cruise but I am not really into their music. Still, they are good musicians and we could see and feel they were enjoying the whole thing as much as their fans in front of them. Kudos for this alone! We went to JOHNNY ROCKET for a quick burger (man, this burger joint is just great!) and came back to see HEADCRUSHER at the Spectrum. This band did kick my ass fair and square… Great band, great presence, musically similar to AT THE GATES mixed with some good old SEPULTURA… very intense. Check them out! At 2H30 I went back to the pool side to catch ROTTING CHRIST. They did well and they were well received by the crowd. The Greek’s discography is a hit and missed as far as I’m concerned but I must admit they really put on a great show, I am happy they were there and they deserved their spot on the cruise. I was curious to see VITAL REMAINS live, and since I never really was a big fan of their music, I will admit I was not expecting much and I was surprised they were actually playing the chorus line. Well, I never felt so dumb in my life… how the hell did I miss this freaking tornado for so many years? Shame on me! This was an unbelievable concert from A to freaking Z… The singer is redefining the term frontman in my humble opinion… fucking intense dude, he is a show on his own. It was a great (dark and evil!) moment of the cruise for me… I just ordered the last 2 albums a few minutes ago to make amends. AWSOME fucking band!!! I couldn’t live with the idea of not seeing POSSESSED live again and so I went to the pool deck to see if they could top their first show… They did more than that, it was even better! Fucking impressive… Please tell me the fuck why they are not signed on a label and kicking ass around the world right now? Holy fuck, for the sake of the metal scene, we need another POSSESSED album pronto! Totally exhausted (in a good way) by what I just saw, I decided to go back and check on KRISIUN… I knew what to expect and I was not surprised to see them slaying on stage… super tight, great sound, great songs by great people. For some reasons they always come out better live than on disc for me... it was a great show. I went to see ENSLAVED, and they did great, again... fucking impressive band. Went to the spectrum to see LOCK UP, too many people, couldn’t see anything and the sound was horrible... that bar sucks. I hate myself for not being able to see them at the Chorus Line, but hey, it’s impossible to be everywhere at the same time. I managed to catch HAVOK for a few songs after a nice supper and a couple of beers. At this time, I was exhausted, spent the entire day watching bands and I needed a break. So I went to my room for a quick shower and came back for what was going to be my last show of the festival... the second concert from BEHEMOTH at the pool deck. They were nothing less than fantastic once again. What a cool way to finish an amazing week of extreme metal. More bands were playing later on but we saw them all or were just too tired to see more. Plus, we had to leave early the day after... We all pretty much went to bed with the conviction that we accomplished our mission.
SOLSTAFIR: Proper nautical style.
NOVEMBERS DOOMunder the jealous sun
Passage to Arcturo: ROTTING CHRIST
Divine in fire: VITAL REMAINS
To sums up such an event in a few lines is pretty much impossible. I am happy with what I got for the money I have paid for. Few things are not working as far as I am concerned... First, to give the chance to unknown bands to be part of such a festival is a great idea... but to have them play at 4H30 in the morning is nonsense... It is ridiculous. I wanted to see KAMPFAR at the pool deck but at quarter to 4 in the morning? Who wanted to see ABIOTIC at 4:30? The spectrum Lounge is not the best option but since you have to work with it, I suggest you take off the damned fence in front of the stage... and maybe the bands should play on the floor in front of the stage, they would have more room and we could see them seated without any problems... I know the logistic for such a festival must be a pain in the ass to deal with and overall it went well, delays are inevitable in such an event but I know a few guys that were royally pissed off waiting for an extra 2-3 hours for the merch store to open... I mean, we were all on board when the ship departed, so why not putting the merch store together the day before opening the store? Just a thought... The restaurants and buffet are just great. You are tired and want to fuck off into your room? You will sleep well, no worries! The staff is great, polite, and helpful in any possible ways. Checking in was bliss and checking out was even easier... I just loved the experience and I already decided to go next year. So if you wish to get in touch with me for next year or if you were there this year and want to chat, please feel free to e-mail me at prc_music@yahoo.ca Let’s talk metal... and see you all next year! - REMI
Huge thanks to Remi for letting me use this report.
I raise my glass in your honour - cheers!
TEXT: Remi Cote
CORRECTIONS: Jacinte Pearsons
PHOTOS & VIDEOS: Jean-Philippe Beaulieu
BARGE TO HELL:
My name
is Remi and I am a 43 years old metal fan from QC, Canada. I have
been involved in the scene for close to 30 years, I did various
labels, I still run PRC MUSIC (www.prcmusic.com
– home of Negativa, Beyond Creation, Stalwart, Gorelust, amongst few
others) and I started a record store called PROFUSION in 2003 which I
sold in late 2011... I live for this music. It is in my veins. I will
try to give you an idea of the day to day life on the first BARGE TO
HELL as a metal fan, not a journalist, which I am not and have no
pretention to be. I actually have no idea how to really do this… I
sell music and distribute music, that is what I do best, so please
bear with me if my article is not up to par with anything you will
read in TERRORIZER or DECIBEL!
Can’t
actually say how and why but we finally managed to survive this trip
and made it back home safe… Why “Survive” you may ask? There
were no tsunamis or plane crashes or Titanic-like catastrophes… But
how can you think going to such an event with some of the best bands
on earth, surrounded by friends, bars and drunken metal heads, and
not get into the mood and shit faced?
This is actually the best fucking festival I had the chance to
experience, and for numerous reasons, and I am already getting
anxious for BARGE TO HELL 2… I will be there, and you should too.
Hell, we should go together.
We flew
(me and 6 of my buddies) from Montreal and we could tell it was going
to be a fun week because we were already (quietly) causing mayhem and
laughing our butts off at the airport while checking in… the party
was on, at 4:30 AM. After various body searches on myself and metal
bro Eric by the very cool and chatty guy at the boarders (let’s
call him Dick), we finally all boarded the plane… direction NY and
then Fort Lauderdale, Florida. We flew out on December 1st
in order to enjoy the sun, beaches and buckets of beers before the
cruise… mission accomplished. We all had our proud moments.
We were
all pretty anxious on D-DAY, December 3rd,
and woke up early for a quick continental breakfast (meaning muffins
and cereals) and shower to finally leave for the port of Miami…
We
arrived there with a private shuttle. We saw black shirts and tattoos
all over the place - Shane from NAPALM DEATH with his bass and
luggage, the dudes from KRISIUN getting in line, the guys from
ENSLAVED taking pictures with fans… we knew we were finally home…
Home sweet home.
EXODUS - Bonded by blood
After
checking in and finding our rooms, it was time to run around the boat
and meet some cool people… EXODUS was scheduled to start the
hostilities at the Chorus Line Theater. This is a cool club, actually
my favourite place on the boat to watch a show, very comfy seats, the
sound was always great and you have a perfect view of the stage where
ever you may want to sit.
ENSLAVED - The Space Odysseyof the longships
It was
unfortunately impossible to see every show, as some bands were
playing while others were already on stage but on the first day I saw
EXODUS (solid as usual), SOILWORK (Dirk is god and yeah, Speed was
impressive), a bit of HOLY MOSES, I literally was blown away into
very small pieces by ENSLAVED (incredible show!), SODOM killed
everything on the pool deck… but nothing could actually prepare us
for the unreal, incredible awesome first concert of the festival from
my favourite band from Poland BEHEMOTH! I saw them numerous times and
I swear on my wife’s head that I never saw them like that… evil
was fucking dripping from the walls around us… it was incredible,
magical. BEHEMOTH is way above everybody else as far as stage
presence and precision… this show actually killed me several times
in the process and since I slept a mere 5 hours in the 48 hours
before, I decided it was time to hit the bunk bed for the night. I
went to my room with a smile on my face.
BEHEMOTH - Here and beyond
Day 2
(December 4th)
started at 10 with ARTILLERY… which I missed as we were already in
line waiting for the merch store to open… yeah, I’m a 43 years
old kid and I need my goodies. Unfortunately for me, it was a hard
fucking task to find XXL size shirts… No BEHEMOTH dammit. No GRAVE.
No ENSLAVED… Still got a kick ass POSSESSED shirt, a cool
MONSTROSITY shirt, the Barge To Hell shirt and baseball cap… life
goes on. Went back to the pool stage in time to catch MORGOTH and
they were fucking amazing… loved their set. Afterwards I got my
ass kicked by LOUDBLAST, a pleasant surprise as far as I’m
concerned as I didn’t hear anything new from the band since
forever. Then SACRED REICH killed everything. It was fun to actually
enjoy the band in the pool with the guys from MUNICIPAL WASTE… They
had as much fun as we did for sure, SACRED REICH killed it, it was
great seeing them live again after almost 20 years in my case! I went
to the Spectrum Lounge to see NECRONOMICON (the Canadian one!) which
I usually enjoy, I saw them live a lot and they deserve their new
success in my opinion… but playing on this stage didn’t give them
much of a chance. The sound was bad and we couldn’t see much of
them on stage because first, they had quite a lot of people showing
up which is cool, but there was also a barrier in front of the stage,
which made things a bit weird and difficult to fully enjoy the band’s
presence… please take that fence off next year, it’s annoying and
absolutely not necessary.
Next we
had the chance to see BRUJERIA in action, which didn’t do much for
me I’m afraid. The next gig was some sort of trip back to school
for me, seeing CORROSION OF CONFORMITY in full force with their
original line-up, like I did in the mid 80’s in a crappy bar in
Montreal, was pure bliss… they were amazing. Pure gold for an old
creep like me.
LOUDBLAST the Caribbean Sea!
SACRED REICH...time to surf!
La BRUJA
COC - 'Why Are We Here?'
Still on
the COC buzz, we ran to the Chorus Line to see NAPALM DEATH… I saw
them numerous times, again and again, I love them to death but this
concert was beyond fucking sick… I never saw Barney so fucking
intense before. The set list was amazing; they played material from
all their classics. Incredible gig! We skipped MAYHEM and went to
grab a bite, we came back just in time for SANCTUARY. They were
great, as if the band actually never stopped for 2 decades or so…
can’t wait for the new album. Next, AT THE GATES were playing the
pool deck. The set list was cool. MOONSPELL went on stage next at the
chorus line and did a killer set too… from what I heard, the singer
as a weird effect on the ladies… I took a peek at the MUNICIPAL
WASTE show at the Lounge; we could barely see the singer on stage as
they were too many people enjoying a solid fucking gig in front of
him. I can’t understand why this band was not playing the bigger
room… SEPULTURA was next on the pool deck. They played some
amazing songs but I don’t know… I am not a fan anymore. It was
like seeing a good cover band. Those who had the chance to see
SEPULTURA with the (almost) original line-up will understand what I
mean. POSSESSED were scheduled to destroy the chorus line and they
did… I saw them in the mid 80’s and they were good. Fast forward
20 something years later, they were amazing… Everything they played
on stage was obviously a classic. It is cool to see Jeff Bercera on
stage again. This was my last concert for day 2. I was barely
standing on my feet.
AT THE GATES of the loud memory
MOONSPELL: Portugal ruling the seas oncemore
Day 3
(December 5) was our day off within our vacation… we left the boat
for Nassau. Went to the closest Starbucks for WI-Fi and a
well-deserved coffee. We took a cab, died about 25 times on our way
to the beach… barely alive; we went and find ourselves a nice spot
to hang out. The weather was amazing, we had a blast. I am used to
travelling in the south, I go at least once or twice a year, and I
can’t say I would recommend Nassau… it is ridiculously expensive
and you get the same treatment as if you were to go to a Mexican
resort, weather and beach-like. And Mexico is much cheaper. Our taxi
driver told us Michael Jackson stayed on Paradise Island and paid
25.000$ a night to stay there… I told him Uncle Tom was staying on
our boat for free.
At first sight those looked like CORONER shorts to me...
Part 2 of Remi's metal adventure will be posted tomorrow, Dec 12th.
Meanwhile you can check out all photos and videos shot by Jean-Philipe on the following locations:
A passionate homage to 'The Father of Death Metal', by Andrew Oliver.
Everyone
has at least one real defining moment in their life. One instance
that comes out of nowhere and, whether it be subtle and cause gradual
change, or abrupt in its delivery unto oneself, helps shape who you
are for years to come, help makes you who you are. One moment that
hits you from out of sight and makes you change gears completely,
open your eyes, and assess your situation in a whole new light.
Now,
let me start by saying that when I was young, my exposure to music
was limited to boring singer-songwriters, your James Taylors and John
Denvers, etc. And, even being as young and impressionable as all
children are, this music bored and annoyed me, therefore, leaving me
to dismiss all music altogether as being frustratingly simple, and
plain. In my house, it was all acoustic, all the time.
Then
it happened. Out of the blue and completely unexpected as all of
these moments tend to be. I was eleven years old at the time, and
staying at my cousin’s house while my parents were away. My cousin
always had some sort of program on his television playing music, but
I never really paid any attention to it when I was over there, and my
distaste for music had not yet changed, but on that day, my cousin
actually made a point to call me into the room and show me what was
on the T.V. What I saw was none other than Chuck Schuldiner himself,
playing a live show with Death, shredding a solo on his sleek, sharp
B.C. Rich Stealth. It was like nothing I had ever seen. A guitarist
playing notes so high and so fast, and on an electric guitar that was
slick and sexy, not some big hunk of hollow wood.
That
moment, something clicked in my head. I wanted to do what this guy
was doing. Playing this incredible fast music, so loud and distorted,
and have it enjoyed by huge crowds of people while I did it. It was
an epiphany, a revelation. I was to be a heavy metal guitarist. And
it was all thanks to this man, whose name and identity, at the time,
was unknown to me. So I went home, and got my hands on as much metal
music as I could. CDs by Metal Church, Nuclear Assault, and Flotsam
and Jetsam soon graced the shelves in my room. I had found a music
that inspired and liberated me, and it was all thanks to that one
video of Chuck playing his solo.
Eventually,
and to no real surprise, I found out about the legendary Death metal
band, and who Chuck Schuldiner was, the visceral lead guitarist and
vocalist behind the first real Death metal band, the man who inspired
me to take up guitar and join a band, both of which are activities
that I am very active in to this day.
It’s
true, in a very indirect way, Chuck Schuldiner changed the way my
life was headed, but my life story is not what I’m aiming to write
here, so I’ll expound upon myself no further. December 13 was the
tenth anniversary of Chuck’s untimely death due to brain cancer,
which he fought through violently to the bitter end, always
continuing to write and play music for his fans, and for himself, but
what I want to accomplish with this article is not to write yet
another sad story about the death of Chuck Schuldiner, but rather, to
focus on how great he was while he was still here. How important he
was as a musician, as a vocalsist, a guitarist, and as a person as
well.
When
Chuck formed Death, I’m sure he had no idea the influence he would
have on Heavy metal, and really, on music as a whole, by inventing,
unknowingly, one of the most infamous forms of music around still to
this day. Many people, including myself, consider Death to be the
first Death metal band. Some may say Possessed came first, but I
disagree, and find them more on the Black/Thrash side of metal, but
Death was the real deal as far as Death metal was concerned.
Spear-headed by the young and talented Chuck, he created a debut
album, Scream Bloody Gore, that was raw and visceral, taking
influence from the early works of Metallica, Anvil, and Motorhead,
and taking it ten steps further in the speed and aggression
departments. It was like Thrash, but faster, like Black metal, but
more raw (at the time), and with Chuck’s guttural growls,
down-tuned riffs, and frantic, speedy solos, it was like nothing
before it.
Chuck
had come from humble beginnings, taking these classic metal
influences that he so loved, and wanting to add his own chapter to
the book, with his own music, and in the process, created something
entirely new and innovative, but of course, this music labeled Death
metal, a label Chuck himself never liked, a name like Death, and
campy, gory lyrics, the music, and the band themselves, were met with
obvious scorn by those who didn’t listen, and didn’t understand
what the band was trying to accomplish.
“I
consider the name to definitely be just a name,” Chuck commented on
the band name during an interview in 1991, shortly after the release
of Human. “I wanted a name to describe the music. An extreme
name for extreme music.” While he held this belief firm, he still
garnered many stereotypes to the Heavy metal genre, but did his best
to smash just as many or more than he attracted and created.
Chuck
was a damn good musician and songwriter, as we all know, but he was
just as good a person. He tried constantly to show the public that
just because you’re a heavy metal musician, it does not also make
you some Satan-worshipping delinquent who wants to kill babies and
burn down churches (unless you’re a Black metal musician in Norway,
that is). He was always trying to make people see deeper than just
the name, to try and make people see that judging based on aesthetics
is not the way to go.
“I’m
a very positive person,” he said in an interview with MTV. “Towards
life, towards friendship, towards love, towards, you know, all
certain things that we’re made up as, as being human.”
It
was always important to Chuck to believe music, not rumors (his own
words, there), and tried to clear up the ever-popular negative
connotations associated with his the type of music he played. His
music, extreme as it was, was a positive outlet, a way for him to
create art, and just because the lyrics are growled, and the guitars
are fast and distorted, does that make it wrong? Chuck certainly
didn’t think so, and he wanted to voice his opinion.
“I’m
not satanic because I’m in a band called Death. I’m not a violent
person or anything. I’m just a person who has a name of a band, and
I’m trying to just make everything fit together, you know? It
wouldn’t work having a band called Pink Flowers.”
“We
did write gore lyrics, but it was more like kind of tongue-in-cheek,
horror-movie type level. Nothing like encouraging people to go out
and hurt themselves or anything stupid like that. It's pure
fantasy-movie type, scary stuff.”
To
make matters better for himself, after the release of Leprosy
(1988),Spiritual Healing (1990), which even contained a controversial
track on his stance on abortion, and of course, the album that
launched Death into the spotlight, Human (1991). Chuck began abandoning his humorously gratuitous
and gory lyrics for the politically and morally charged verses on
But
it Death wasn’t just evolving lyrically. Chuck was a creative
genius, an artist who wanted his art to grow and change and evolve,
not at all content with an interchangeable discography of boring
musical consistency. With every passing album, the music started
becoming more technical, “more musical,” as Paul Masvidal (former
Death guitarist during Human and long-time Cynic guitarist)
said in an interview. Riffs became more complex, and time signatures
started getting crazier as Progressive influences started finding
their way into Death’s music and Chuck’s songwriting. Intros and
interludes were starting to be introduced, and melody was becoming
more and more prevalent in the riffs and solos.
By the time Symbolic was released in 1995, following the frantically
technical and wildly melodic Individual Thought Patterns
released in 1993, many thought Chuck had reached a creative and
technical peak. His songwriting was superb, a perfect balance of
extremity and melody, raw speed and memorable hooks, but despite the
seemingly unbeatable brilliance of this release. Chuck kept writing,
and kept evolving his music to new heights when he released his final
album, and his most ambitious and progressive work to come, in 1998,
The Sound of Perseverance, released a year before he was
diagnosed with brain cancer on his 32nd birthday.
After initial treatment, Chuck was in recovery and looking good, but
the cost of the operations were more than he and his family could
afford, and they were put in massive debt, and they were, as a result
of their financial issues, unable to continue the treatment that
could have saved Chuck’s life.
Now, I know I said that I wasn’t going to focus on the sad stuff
here, but what, if any, positivity you can take from this is that, at
the first notice that Chuck’s life was in danger, bands in the
metal community, as well as bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers
began hosting massive fundraisers and benefits to raise money for
Chuck and his family.
In 2001, however, his cancer returned, and the chemo-therapy drug he
was given weakened him greatly, and he soon took ill with pneumonia
as well, leaving him dead on December 13, 2001, leaving behind him a
legacy that can be matched by few others as musicians, and as people
as well, for Chuck was not only striving to push himself musically,
but was always trying to better the lives and conditions of his
fellow musicians, disparaging the negative stereotypes placed upon
them, and actively trying to encourage the idea of equality and that judgement was the real evil, not the music.
While Chuck may be gone, we still have him here with us in the music
that he created while he was alive. Even after his death, he
continues to inspire people, such as myself and countless others with
his music. Like so many before him, Chuck was an innovator, who was
able to create so much in his short time here, to crush stereotypes
and break boundaries never before crossed.
This is how we should remember Chuck Schuldiner when we think of him.
Not just as the raw and guttural frontman of the very first Death
metal band, and not just as the Father of Death metal, but as a
positive lover of friendship, love, and animals, someone who believed
in the power of creativity and art.
“Believe in music, not rumors.” That’s what he would be saying
if he were still here, and while I’m sure, if you’re reading
this, that you know who Chuck Schuldiner and Death is, and that
you’re probably not someone who associates metal music with such
negative stereotypes, maybe, in remembrance, of Chuck Schuldiner, you
can help carry on what he tried to do until his dying day. Show this
to your family, your friends, anyone who may look upon these
musicians and artists in distaste, and show them that their judgment
is skewed, that playing music that’s faster, more extreme, or
different than what they’re used to hearing doesn’t make it bad
or wrong or evil. Help them open their minds the way Chuck tried to
get people to.
