Crowded Festival, The Y Theatre, Leicester 30.09.23
Opening proceedings former duo Dead Bird continue on as 5 piece - As Living Arrows. Their set reverberated around the Y and for its duration comprised of heart-wrenching emotion to thunderous encasings of sheer unbridled pace and aggression.
Up next were Leicestershire's technical death meatloaf band Voidwalker pulled the audience closer & closer with an absolute barrage of unapologetic slathering of slam. Lulling the audience in with a false sense of security of slowing things down, they continued to unleash a deluge of ear-pounding soundscapes which didn't end until the final note by whetting the appetites of everyone attending by playing tracks from their upcoming EP
Plymouth's Helpless lathered up unrelenting doom-laden lashings with discussions of Currys & blistering skull-smashing intensity under a cloud of spacey soundscapes & prominent bass lines. The Tracks from Caged In Gold are just sublime in a live setting but along with these were new tracks Doppelganger & Suppression
Up next serving up the sludge were Leicester trio Bile Caster with a brooding yet crushing presence. They become more polished the more I see them yet I don't know how it is humanly possible that they also seem to become more intense too. Taking the stage next were the mighty OHHMS who delivered a flawless performance and suddenly the floorspace of the Y Theatre seemed it was standing room only
An hour break in the proceedings for a much-needed food and refreshment break for reconvening for Bound In Fear who were more than ready to annihilate those who dared to fill their stomachs. Belligerent breakdowns with a wave of gritty sounding elements and frankly if any members of the audience were flagging at this point then the band's performance certainly gave them a prolonged shot of adrenaline straight into the eye sockets
Mellowing the tone with an abundance of atmosphere is the aptly named Blanket who performed a plethora of new material that also came with a real feel of nostalgia
Concluding the first-ever Crowded Festival were headliners Conjurer as well let's be honest, it was nothing short of majestic, heart-rendering emotion embedded in wave upon wave of fury. An absolutely sublime end to what has been not only a really enjoyable day but an incredibly well put-together event which I genuinely hope I will have the please of attending again in the future. 10/10