GIG: Hypocrisy (Manchester)

About a week before this gig I found out that Hypocrisy were main support to 'Blood Fire Death' at the Incineration Festival in London during the May Bank Holiday weekend. I was mildly annoyed as this was the second 'festival' I'd found out about recently that featured bands I'd like to see but wasn't prepared to pay the ticket price (actually the other one featured 4 bands I wanted to see over three days and cost about £240!), and while I would like to have seen Blood Fire Death I didn't want to go to London and pay £100. Also B.F.D. seemed to be playing in a different venue to Hypocrisy (both in Camden) and I really can't see how that would work, especially as their stage times overlapped by ten minutes!

But then a couple of days before the gig I got wind of the fact that Hypocrisy were also playing in Manchester the night before (along with two other bands from the festival). However we were supposed to be going to a family party, so I wasn't really expecting to be able to go. But Rose kindly said she could go to the party on her own and so I set off from work at 3:45pm facing down a 240 mile round trip.

V R E I D

I finally arrived at Circle Square  park at 7:30pm, and then it was a good 10-15 minute walk to the venue, where I expected to perhaps catch 1 or 2 songs of Vomitory's set and then see Vreid and Hypocrisy. Indeed, I had been listening to Vreid in preparation for this... but it turned out that it was Vreid on first and so I only ended up seeing 1.5 songs of theirs, which was a bit of a shame as they were pretty good. 

V O M I T O R Y

I'd never even heard Vomitory before the day, and I wasn't honestly expecting much given the absolutely terrible name... but I fired up You Tube and watched their new video (For Gore and Country) and was pleasantly surprised by their Slayeresque Death Metal. I rather enjoyed watching them, but I must admit it was a little difficult to really appreciate their music having not a clue what almost all the songs were supposed to sound like. The next day I listened to their latest two albums and now consider myself a fan. 

I last saw Hypocrisy at the Astoria in London way back in 2003 (supporting Dimmu Borgir). I have zero memory of that gig, except perhaps walking all the way back to Euston because it was too hot to go on the undergound... maybe? The time before was at Rios and Peter Tagtgren said in Terrorizer it was the worst gig they'd even done. I don't remember it being particularly terrible, just not terribly exciting (and headliners 'Immortal' weren't that great either to be honest). So, a shot at redemption then...?

Over the last few months I had been listening to Hypocrisy quite a bit and and even rebought a CD I used to have, but sold. I remember searching for dates and finding out that they had last played the UK in 2022 IIRC but on that occasion they had been supporting someone else. So I was keen to see them and had been listening to the setlist on repeat for the past few days. 

The show seems to have been moved from the Academy 2 to the Academy 3, but it doesn't seem that much different in size to me (assuming it was the Academy 2 where we saw Tarja?), it's certainly not a small venue by any standards and it was well attended, surprisingly so actually... I feared it might be a bit empty to be honest - perhaps Hypocrisy are more popular than I give them credit for?

The band kicked off with 'They Will Arrive' from the latest album and while the sound seemed louder than before it was quite hard to pick out the riffs on the faster songs. The slower songs were easier to get into, but then it struck me how many slower songs they actually played and how un-'Death Metal' a lot of these were.  

Early Hypocrisy was undoubtedly Death Metal, but after The Final Chapter they really started to get a very polished sound and incorporate a lot of melody: not that it's a bad thing, but the contrast with Vomitory (who are definitely Death Metal) was quite noticeable.

I enjoyed the gig as a whole, but Hypocrisy definitely aren't the best live band in the world (despite an impressive light show, some subtle video backing and endless dry ice). Peter Tagtgren does his best but the other guitar player has all the stage presence of a telegraph pole and the bass player may be the original but he also adds about as much to Hypocrisy live as Ian Hill does to Judas Priest! I don't know, this is (sort of) Death Metal after all so I'm not expecting 'theatrics' but somehow Hypocrisy didn't engage me quite as much as I'd hoped they might. 

I don't know, it was very polished and professional, but somehow a bit impersonal (perhaps not unlike Dimmu Borgir in that regard). Peter barely spoke to the crowd and as the show reached its climax I did wonder for a moment whether this was really worth 6 hours on the motorway and a dead foot in the morning, but then they played 'Roswell 47' and I remembered why I came. That is a great song, and they do have quite a few really good tunes, but I don't know if I would rush to see them again unless it was in Nottingham or somewhere.

There were a lot of odd people at this gig, lots of very young people who look like they didn't have a clue who Hypocrisy were. I actually wondered whether some of them got free tickets from the student union or something as some of them seemed to be attending 'ironically'... in particular the two 'Goth' girls who danced through Vomitory like they were watching Aerosmith. Weird. Also there was a girl of about 18 who looked like Sheena Easton (in her '9 to 5' phase), although she had a green rinse... 🤣

It's been a funny year for gigs so far, three very different gigs... quite hard to compare and not much to choose between them. Kreator is probably the best so far, if only because they had Carcass and Exodus in tow (although Exodus were a bit shit to be honest) and their stage show was entertaining. Oh well, it will be interesting to see what ends up being my gig of the year, I hope it's not one I've already seen because that would be a bit disappointing...

HOLIDAY: Oslo, Norway

Way back in February I was trying to find some information on a new Whiplash album that I saw mentioned somewhere, when I happened to notice a Facebook post announcing Zeromancer's first gig in seven years (at the Vulkan Arena in Oslo). Now I had pretty much given up any hope of ever seeing Zeromancer, not least because they pretty much announced years ago that they weren't touring any more and that any gigs they did do would probably be in Norway or possibly Germany (where the majority of their fans live) and when I pointed it out to Rose I had no intention whatsoever of flying 1000 miles to see them. 

But after watching several Boris T videos on YouTube, Rose was already very keen to visit Norway, so it made sense to go there when there was actually a gig to go to, especially since Rose had warmed up considerably to Zeromancer over the last couple of years (having previously only liked selected songs). To be honest, I wasn't particularly keen on the idea, but I eventually figured I was going to have to fly to Norway sooner or later, so I might as well do it when Zeromancer were playing!

And so the whole hoopla of organising the trip began: arranging travel insurance, flights, hotels, concert tickets... and so on, and then suddenly the day came for us to leave. 

MEAL OUT: The George, Great Oxendon

Unfortunately Rose's birthday fell on a Monday this year, which always limits the options for a meal out, and with The Grey Goose doing Italian on a Monday we decided to try somewhere else. That somewhere else turned out to be The George at Oxendon, which we hadn't been to for probably thirty years. In the meantime it was extensively remodelled, so unsurprisingly we didn't really remember the interior!

It was a nice place, great service from the friendly staff. Rose had beef medallions which was very good. I had sirloin steak which was, okay, a bit chewy in places. I probably should have had the sausages really, but the chips were very nice and the peppercorn sauce was nice too.

For dessert Rose had a raspberry souffle which she loved, and I had sticky toffee pudding which was nice too. All in all it was a nice evening, not somewhere I'd rush to go back too, but maybe once in a while (the seats were a bit hard by the end of the night, those wicker pad things really don't do much at all).

GIG: Kreator (Manchester)

We were a bit undecided about whether to go to Manchester (on a Saturday) to see Kreator, or London (on a Friday), but in the end I think we made the right decision. Because a) I think Manchester Apollo is a better venue than Brixton Academy, and b) because we didn't have to catch a fucking train from London on a Friday night!

But that said, the journey wasn't entirely smooth sailing. While scoping out the walk from 'Circle Square' to the Apollo, I noticed that we actually passed the 'Manchester Aquatics Centre' multi-storey car park. Thinking this would save some shoe leather, I punched that in to Google Maps and off we went. Well at least that's what I thought...

We arrived at the Aquatics Centre right enough, but only to the normal 'swimmers' car park, which I'm not sure we would be able to park in. We could practically see the multi-storey from where we were but Google told us that it would take eight minutes to get there as we had to navigate some one way streets. On the way we passed 'Circle Square' car park and decided to just park there as it really wasn't that much further and it was open 24 hours (and also we knew we didn't need a stupid app to pay for parking!).

It was quite a walk to the Apollo, and it would have been better to park in the other car park for sure, but time was running short and patience was wearing thin. Also I really wasn't feeling that well, so that was fun... but never mind, we just kept walking and we got there soon enough. We just had time to visit the tiny toilets before we heard Exodus' intro music start playing and headed into the arena.

Our last visit here was quite a while ago, nearly twelve years in fact... so I had largely forgotten what it was like. It's quite a big venue, certainly the biggest I'd been in for a while (3500 people), but despite that it didn't feel too vast and impersonal, like say the NEC Arena. It's incredible to think that once upon a time places like this were cinemas. Which is why my memories of going to the cinema when I was a child don't tally with modern cinemas I guess!

We didn't see the opening band (Nails) as we checked them out on YouTube and didn't really care for their sub-Entombed Death Metal. Besides, we didn't want to be standing up any longer than was absolutely necessary and we knew we had three bands to get through as it was.

First up was Exodus, who we hadn't seen since March 2020 (the last band we saw before the Covid lockdown kicked in). In the meantime the band had parted ways with vocalist Zetro Souza and re-recruited former frontman Rob Dukes. The band kicked off with the opening track (3111) from their new album 'Goliath' and all seemed well. The sound was a little bit odd, but not too bad and with the assistance of the sloped floor we could see quite well despite being some way back.

For some reason though, once the band ripped into the tracks from 'Bonded by Blood', they seemed to lose themselves completely. It was like they were playing the songs, not just faster than on the album, but faster than they could actually manage. And I have to say the blame would seem to lie with drummer Tom Hunting who seemed to be playing like a lunatic.

In fact, it wasn't until they hit 'Blacklist' from 2004's 'Tempo of the Damned' album that they really started to make a proper impact. But then they played the 'dirgey' title track from the new album and that kinda brought everything down. Thankfully 'The Toxic Waltz' brought the energy back up, but they did the same hokey 'Reign in Blood' false start they did in 2020, which feels a bit lame, honestly. 

'Strike of the Beast' wrapped up the set (as it always does) and thankfully Tom Hunting had calmed down a bit by now, so it didn't turn into a messy blur. All in all, pretty good, but definitely not the best I've seen the band... 

Believe it or not the last time we saw Carcass was in the Wulfrun Hall back in 1994 on the 'Heartwork' tour, so I was quite excited to see them and hear the songs from 'Heartwork' live again. Carcass's slower, groovier delivery served them well after the sometimes slightly messy blur that Exodus fell into, but Jeff Walker's appearance was a bit of a shock: a far cry from the dreadlocked crust punk kid of 1992, he looked mostly like 'someone's Dad'. But he still sounded the same and Bill Steer can definitely still play as well as ever, and he's still wearing flares - bless him. 

Highlights of the set were absolutely the songs from 'Heartwork' and in particular the title track itself, which has to be one of the best metal songs of all time. 

Our last time seeing Kreator was also quite a long time ago, albeit not as far back as Carcass... that being at Birmingham Institute in December 2014. A sizeable venue, but nothing like as grand as this one. Indeed it seems like Kreator have become a lot more popular over the last decade and they definitely don't seem to be a band that trades on the reputation of their formative years. On the one hand I'd like to hear more 80/90s songs, but on the other, this line up has been together a long time and they are really more suited to playing the 'slicker' material from the 00/10/20s. 

Last time we saw them they played the intro to 'Awakening of the Gods' and segued into 'Endless Pain' (which pissed me right off, quite honestly) and this time they gave us the intro to 'Coma of Souls' before breaking into 'Enemy of God'. I still find it annoying, but I knew it was coming and while I do like 'Coma of Souls', it's never been as awesome as 'Awakening of the Gods'.

The thing that was quite surprising was the sheer scale of the show, it was like being back in the 1980s seeing Iron Maiden or Dio or something with the demon statues and whatever the hell that thing was supposed to be that Ventor was sitting on top of. Added to that there was endless flame throwing (just like at Testament last year), two figures setting two other figures on fire and a huge stage-wide barbecue (that I'm sure they must have bought off of Slayer).

Mille's sage green guitar was a bit odd though, and Mille is still trying way too hard (as he has since the mid 2000s really) to get the crowd going. There really is no need for all this 'The Kreator has Returned' nonsense... and asking us how we feel every five minutes. Thankfully, for the most part the music did the talking and it was the newer songs that really came over the best, in particular 'Hate Uber Alles', 'Krushers of the World', 'Satanic Anarchy' (start the fire indeed) and 'Phantom Antichrist'.

All in all it was a great show and great value for three 'headline' bands, it was just a pity I had such a shitty cold and the walk back to the car was a bit of a ballache. Next time we will make sure we get to the 'Aquatic Centre' car park! But still, it was definitely better than going to Brixton... and as (is becoming) 'usual' I got complimented on my awesome Razor shirt by some random metal dude!

SHOPPING: East Midlands Designer Outlet

 

The last day of our week off, and despite feeling tired and achy from our day in London, nevertheless we decided to make the effort to do something rather than just sitting around being tired. So we scooted back up the M1 to the 'East Midlands Designer Outlet' where I hoped to find a) some replacements for my worn out black Skechers trainers, and b) some Lindt Nuxors (since the supermarkets only sell them at Christmas). 

Pleasingly I managed to secure both these items, and while the Nuxors were disgustingly overpriced at £8 for a tiny box, I did get my trainers for about £20 less then expected - so all in all it was a good day!

In addition I got a new dark blue shirt from M&S, though I wasn't 100% sold on the squares... but at least it didn't have white buttons like the last one and it fits me now so it was a slam dunk at £24. 

I also found a (long overdue) replacement for my very thin raincoat at Mountain Warehouse, which I never really went in before because I'm sure last time I went in there (admittedly many years ago) they didn't seem to have anything for less than £400. 

Rose got the usual nail files, books, a top from Crew Clothing and two nice thick hoodies from SuperDry, which she was appalled by the price of (even though they were discounted).

DAY OUT: London

Our day in London began at the Design Museum, where we visited an exhibition about the legendary 'Blitz Club' (birthplace of the 'New Romantic' movement in the early 1980s). It took about an hour to get there from Euston (as expected, with a line change and a walk through Holland Park) and we arrived about 15m before our time slot. They didn't seem bothered and we were allowed to go in straight away, indeed I think most places are pretty flexible about these 'time slot' bookings, especially if they aren't sold out.

It was quite a good exhibition, with a selection of clothes and photographs from the club alongside some background information about fashion/music magazines of the day like 'i-D', 'Viz' (not that VIZ!) and others. There was also a selection of vinyl sleeves and a large screen playing 'Fade to Grey' (Visage), 'The Freeze' (Spandau Ballet), 'Ashes to Ashes' (David Bowie) and 'Vienna' (Ultravox) in rotation.

In a different room there was a semi-animated performance of 'To Cut a Long Story Short' (also by Spandau Ballet - apparently the only band that ever played at the club) and in others all sorts of memorabilia (flyers, invitations, posters) alongside information about the influences that fed into the 'Blitz Kids' creations (Kraftwerk, European Cinema, Punk, etc).

Leaving the museum we took a short walk to Edwardes Square and the Scarsdale Tavern. After two really nice meals out already this week we weren't expecting anything particularly stunning, but the burger and chips were surprisingly nice (even the rolls, which looked a bit dull, but tasted great!).

I would have loved to sample their sticky toffee pudding, but mindful of a lot of walking still to be done, I gave it a miss. Great service here too, and nice loos. Definitely worth a visit if going to the Design Museum.

Finding ourselves with a bit of spare time on our hands, we decided to catch the tube on Earl's Court Rd and look in at Harrods. We hadn't been there in a little while and we had a brief look around at the jewellery, watches and handbags before getting back on the tube and heading to the Elipso VR Experience we had booked..

Our VR experiences have been a bit mixed; often good, but occasionally marred by malfunctioning headsets. This one though was pretty good. Again we got here earlier than planned (we tried to waste some time by looking for the Amy Winehouse statue in Camden Market, but still got there fifteen minutes early - not that it mattered). 

This one was pretty good, telling the story of the Roman Colosseum, from the perspective of a young boy and gladiator who took part in the games. It certainly conveyed the scale of the arena and the VR was quite effective, though as usual it was a bit tiring on the eyes after a while.

There is also a 'Titanic' VR experience which might be worth going back for... 

DAY OUT: Nottingham

 

Last year we had a splendid day out in Nottingham where we did an escape room, visited a museum (of sorts), had a cocktail and finished off with a meal at Marco Pierre Whites Steakhouse. So we decided to do it again (but miss out the shit museum and the shit cocktail).

Truth be told, originally we were supposed to be going to London. But we decided that perhaps St Patrick's Day wasn't the best day to visit London, since that meant every pub we might want to visit would be full of arseholes getting drunk and being annoying. 

So we decided it would be better to swap London to Thursday and go to Nottingham instead, where hopefully the drunk students would be concentrated in the town centre pubs and away from the Crowne Plaza bar and MPWs! 

But first we went to our escape room, this time at 'Escapologic' (a new one for us) where we did the room called 'Curio'. On their website it said the room involved 'motion' and the only thing I could think that could mean was that the room turned around. But, I mean... how ridiculous would that be? 

Well, turns out... not that ridiculous after all. Because as soon as we entered the room and saw it was (almost) round, it was obvious that that was exactly what was going to happen. It was pretty damned cool actually (though it did make me feel slightly nauseous) because every time the room moved and you opened the door you would come out into a different space - genius!

After we 'escaped' (with a couple of minutes to spare) we asked about it and our Games Master 'Kieran' told us that when they took over the basement carpark they found it had a turntable built into the floor and they just had to use it for a room. We will definitely go back to 'Escapologic', it was one of the best escape rooms we've done.

After that we walked back through the town (where St Patrick's Day revellers spilled across the pavements) and back to the Crowne Plaza. We had a drink in the bar and then got changed and headed over to the Marco Pierre White Steakhouse.

Last time we visited we both had steak and chips and I had a sticky toffee pudding (I think Rose had ice cream or sorbet). This time sticky toffee was off the menu, but they had brought back the Hell's Kitchen Blueberry Cheesecake - which was something I had in a MPW in Oxford many years ago and longed to experience again. 

Truth be told, they did do a blueberry cheesecake in the meantime, but it was a baked cheesecake and it was nothing like as good. This one was just like the one I had in Oxford (albeit smaller, which was a good thing because the first one was absolutely HUGE).

For mains I had chicken and leek pie and Rose had fillet steak, both were very nice and just like the night before the chips were great too. 

The service was impeccable too, the staff in there are so nice and personable. So good in fact that I didn't even mind that I accidentally tipped them twice (having not the seen the £11 service charge on the bill).

MEAL OUT: The Bull's Head (Clipston)

 A combined 'Mother's Day/Sally's birthday' meal out with the Mums... and a return to The Bull's Head in Clipston (somewhere we haven't been for a very long time - certainly before we started this blog, so pre 2014!).

Meal was very nice, we had scampi and chips (excellent PROPER chips) and we shared a bit of blackcurrant and lemon cheesecake for afters which was spot on. The Mums liked it too and being just up the road from them made a lot more sense than trolling over to the Langtons honestly.

The only slight hiccup was that both Mums wanted sausage and mash, but they only had three sausages left, so they had one and a half each (which turned out to be plenty).

VALENTINE'S DAY 2026

 

LEGO #17: Boutique Hotel