#dethfast

Defiled - Infinite Regress CD Release Party 2/8/2020 Daytrive, Shin-Sakae Nagoya, Aichi Photos by Matthew Chima by Travis Finch --------------------- Nagoya is known as an industrial city. It’s in the heart of the Toyota industry. It has metal structures in the center, some towering straight up in a conventional manner and others more uniquely designed against the skyline. Further out there are automobile factories and as you leave or enter the city, you can see a line of smoke stacks. All of these things are a bit emblematic of the modern minutiae in the lives of Nagoya citizens: salary men and women making the same routinely treks to and from work every day on the subway, Brazilian descendants slaving away hard hours in the factories, and other foreigners repeating the same day over and over at an English school or engineering job. It may have earned a reputation as “the most boring city in Japan,” but if you look under the right place you can find worlds of chaos that I would argue are a stark necessity for those living in such a routine society. One of these is the extreme metal scene of central Japan.

Daytrive Trim is a small venue in Shinsakae-Machi that consistently delivers on underground shows. Unlike similar venues it is not actually underground, but on the third floor of a four-story building with other establishments. Every inch of every wall and door is covered with stickers and flyers of some punk or metal band that has passed through. The layout is long instead of square, and has quite a similar feel to Huck Finn but with the addition of a mezzanine you can enjoy the show from. The occasion of the night was a CD release party for Tokyo death metal veterans DEFILED and their latest effort Infinite Regress which was officially released on January 24th. While most release parties are typically just another show, I would say the word “party” was appropriate in this case since there was an all-you-can-drink policy, or nomihodai as said in the Japanese night scene. The presence of a manual beer tap for everyone to crank out their own refills gave the event a feeling that I always imagined the 80’s Bay Area thrash scene had - the sort of “Hit the keg. Hit the pit” vibe.

Speaking of thrash, the opening band Dethfast was exactly that as one can tell from their logo so sharp it could shred as much as their riffs do. Dethfast is fast, brutal, and frankly pure metal. They’re a good way to start off any heavy show and I’m glad to have them in the local scene. The second band on the bill was TROYL and if you’ve been following my reviews or Small World’s involvement with local rock shows you know that we have a bit of history with this band. If I were to describe their sound, it doesn’t quite fit into one of the extreme genres. They’re more of a straight-forward metal band that likes to play heavy and catchy riffs and clearly listens to Pantera a lot. That is a compliment, not a dig. This would mark my fifth time seeing them, and I noticed that their opening song was one that hasn’t been played live yet. If it’s any indication of what their newer material is going to sound like, I can’t wait to hear the rest of it. It might have been Dalton’s last night on the drums (who broke a snare) but I know we can expect good things from both parties.

The following band was Punhalada who made this line-up pretty Brazilian between their members and Troyl’s. It was my third time seeing them lately, but I’ve noticed their flyers since I first moved to Japan in 2016. This is one local band I tend to spread the word about quite a bit and I always use one simple description: non-stop, relentless grind. If you’re a fan of the most extreme forms of metal living in Japan, it is your duty to seek out this band. They also equally dip into the crossover thrash stuff, though. If you don’t listen to heavy music, I cannot recommend it because these kinds of bands probably sound like straight noise devoid of melody and rhythm to you. However, that might not stop you from appreciating them live. I’ve converted a few friends by bringing them to extreme shows and I know some people who cannot listen to death and grind bands on record but love it at a live show. I have never been able to control myself from charging into the pit when Punhalada hits the stage. I support this band’s raw sound of aggression as well as their lyrics and themes of fighting fascism, colonialism, and oppression at all cost.

Following Punhalada was a band that filled the air with darkness and destruction, CLANDESTINED. Clandestined shares members with the legendary, late 80’s Nagoya band Voidd and plays with confidence and precision that you expect from seasoned musicians. When watching them set up the stage, you might expect a traditional black metal band. There are lots of studded spikes, leather, and upside down crosses involved. However, their sound is surprisingly more on the death metal side.There are some black elements but not enough to call it blackened death metal. Clandestined kicked ass. I would say in terms of the mosh pit, they were probably the winners of the night. It didn’t hit me until half way through their set and suddenly I realized, “This is a fucking three-piece band,” because you don’t often expect a band to sound that heavy with that few members.

Rounding out the bill of course was Defiled, the only out-of-town headliner. Defiled have been laying waste to international crowds since the 90’s with pure death metal. They are currently signed to Season of Mist, a France-based black metal label that has been putting out critically acclaimed records nonstop lately. They share the same roster with the legendary likes of 1349, Gorguts, and Mayhem as well as buzzworthy acts like Beyond Creation, This Gift Is a Curse, and Wormed. Defiled’s releases have become more and more technical in recent years and Infinite Regress is one of their heaviest outings yet. I think even non musicians could look at their frequently changing hand positions and realize that it’s hard stuff to play. Defiled played a lengthy set of destruction and it was never boring once. I recommend them to any fans of death metal. I’ve been going to metal and hardcore underground shows in Nagoya for at least three years now and I never really felt like there was an international crowd except for at much bigger shows. On this night, however, I didn’t feel like I was one of only two non-Japanese people, which means the scene is becoming more visible perhaps. I talked to Japanese people, Brazilians, Guatalamans, and Brits. One English teacher from the UK I struck up a conversation with told me she loved seeing this side of Japan. She said mosh pits and headbanging were something she never thinks of when thinking about Japanese people. For me I always knew because metal is an international phenomenon, but I always wonder where these people come from since I never see them out and about on the subway. If you’re a foreigner living abroad, I think it’s really important that you find some side of the community you’re in that you wouldn’t expect. It doesn’t have to be metal, but you should find something that shatters stereotypes about the people of that place.

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All links in the review above lead to the bands’ social media.Defiled’s latest album Infinite Regress as well as their other releases are available for streaming on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6KDc0SB4ero6zAgrafjVrt?si=t4JgDzg3SRevygv1R7xxNQ

Defiled will be playing at Remy’s in Okinawa on February 23rd. They will also be on a European trek with Polish legends Vader throughout the month of March.

For any metal fans in Latin America, Punhalada will playing a handful of dates in later this year while Clandestined has a short upcoming Mexican tour in May. Stay tuned to their FB links for updates.

One of Clandestined’s signature tracks is also available on Youtube: https://youtu.be/8o0_qiPLfq4

You can purchase both of Punhalada’s EP’s at their bandcamp for 666¥: https://punhalada-nagoya.bandcamp.com/ 

You can catch Dethfast at Live Box Unlimits on March 21st at Live Box Unlimits with Alice in Hell, Vertigo, and a handful of other bands.