STEPPING THROUGH THE EMPTY HALLS of the dilapidated skeleton they call ‘La Industria’, we knew the fourth of November would be a night we’d never forget. The broken windows of that once glorious place overlooked the rapids of an urban river that swam with filth, cavernous cliffs rising up and all around its rotting frame. It wasn’t a concert-hall as such, more an old house that time had consumed and some Ecuadorian artist had raped with a sculpture of a giant spider crawling up its concrete facade. Inside, a long, square hall with a cobbled courtyard would be the venue: decaying sofas dotted the walls behind screens of half-smashed glass and paper-mache legs dangled from an unseen upper floor. You couldn’t even call it a shithole – it was simply the most bizarre place we’d ever seen.
The promoters, Destructa and Sargatanas (many thanks to them) had, in only 4 weeks, prepared one of the greatest Ecuadorian lineups in years.
GRIMORIUM VERUM, arguably the country’s first black metal band would play for the first time in 6 years, supported by noise act INFERNO and the black-thrashing might of ALCOHOLIC RITES. It should be noted that all of these bands share (or once shared) members and for some of those involved, the gig would be an incredible effort. People had come hours from Ambato, Guyaquil and many of Quito’s surrounding cities to witness this live ritual, and it was a night when all roads would lead to hell. As ALCOHOLIC RITES took to the stage, they gave their merciless all, with vocalist Lord Devastador belting his wild vocal assaults like an Ecuadorian IMPIETY and GV drummer Lucifeid attacking his drums in perfect stride….It was then that God, or the malevolent spirits of that place (or the power), began to play havoc with the bands. Micophones failed, amplifiers choked and lights flickered [SEE Sudamerica Brutal VI]. ALCOHOLIC RITES strode on, and though he was clearly demoralised with the situation, Lord Devastador opted to play a set without vocals.
Plugged into the sound-desk and monitoring his recorder mic, ZT’s Alex de Moller suddenly became public enemy #1. Leering Indian faces shouted ancient curses towards the back of the venue and after mistaking our chief reporter for the sound engineer, they hurled a mass of insults and commands that rode on a waft of crack and canelazo (a home-brewed drink responsible for some recent deaths).
Grimorium Verum drummer Lucifeid commented in the aftermath:
“I looked into the purpose of the sound people’s conspiracy against us and they would not arrange all of their staff to be available – there were obviously no problems with bad light but they connected [more lights] deliberately. We know that these people (Factory Rock-Pentagram) tried to damage the show and in a way they did because of their envy. They are the mediocre people from the scene who are stupid, childish and fighting intensely against the honour of real metal.”
[Empezado una investigación para saber cuál fue el motivo de la conspiración de la gente del sonido en contra de nosotros ya que no quisieron arreglar teniendo toda disponibilidad de parte de la organización, obviamente no hubo problemas de luz sino de la mala conexión que hicieron ellos a propósito. Sabemos que esas personas (Fabrica Rock-Pentagrama) trataron de dañar el show y en cierta manera lo hicieron debido a su envidia, pues son los mediocres de la escena de heavy estúpido y pueril siempre luchando en contra del honor del Metal real.]
Musicians and helpers moved rapidly, replacing the entire PA in just under ten minutes and after some fiddling, ALCOHOLIC RITES were able to resume their nihilistic carnage. Every mishap that could have befallen them, did…and still, they fought on – storming through their set to the blackened march of four stroke four. “I really feel like I should go onstage naked,” said INFERNO vocalist Transfigurator as he ran off to join his brother Daniel onstage. Fluorescent tubes, an amplified sheet of iron, a gasmask and a number of other strange inventions were imported to the stage, for what purpose, none could guess. Crouched like a rapist ready to pounce, Transfigurator began to hit, smash and ignite these objects, and shrouded in smoke, he proudly displaying his vitals and every other sordid bit of himself. INFERNO created an atmosphere that none could quite explain, a wall of horrible sound so inventive that it should be commended…and all in just 15 minutes. GRIMORIUM VERUM were bound to be the most insane act on the bill as soon as the flyer was printed. Playing for over an hour and a half, they annihilated the audience with songs blackened heavy metal, clearly inspired by the ugly sounds of Thatcher Britain.
Vocalist Equidnos opted for clothing on this occasion, shying from his bare-bottomed antics in favour of silver-white spandex and a home printed shirt. Parading a storm of their unknown anthems, the band inspired a righteous fury from their native fans, boasting a number of props that looked as if they’d been stolen from a movie-set. Battering with relentless accuracy, Lucifeid smashed and screamed while lead guitarist Jhonathan shredded the air with impeccable leads and bassist Demonahuj (also the brain behind LAPIDA) growled out basslines in a flurry of spikes and questionable tattoos. It turns out Grimorium Verum do name their songs, as their setlist can attest, but we’ll be damned if we can remember any of them. Whether named or numbered, the anthems flew like they were going out of fashion and the concert climaxed with the flourish of an Ecuadorian flag. Ex-members of speed metal band ZYDIS became involved in the carnage and suddenly began punishing the front row with a cat o’ nine tails – it was all fun until Echidnos was flung from the stage, helmet and all.
“It’s normal in Ecuador,” said a nameless fan.
TRES PERROS, METALEROS. LOS PERROS DEL METAL.
The crew would like to thank Destructa Evilwrath, Sargatanas Dead and all of the bands who participated at this feast of absolute chaos. Special thanks to Lucifeid, Equidnos, Vanessa Realpe, Dario, Marco Oviedo and Igor Icaza.
For the record: LAPIDA refused our interview.
Words by Alex de Moller
Pics by Ro Cohen
Footage by Jack Latimer
