Death Metal lives...

in the hearts and soulless! and in this case, at Infest in Austin, Texas. The 'No Salvation' Tour, headlined by the death metal band Deicide, made Austin it's last stop on the tour. Lucky us! Although there was no throat slashing at the show in Austin, it was still pretty fucking brutal. With Disgorge, Disfigured, and Necronomicon on the bill as well, there was simply no Hope (no pun intended)!

I will start with Infest (http://www.infestaustin.com/) itself. Located on the corner of 5th and Lavaca in the Warehouse entertainment district. For anyone not familiar with the Austin downtown layout, but has heard of 6th St, Infest is only about 4 blocks from the heart of that vibrant, shot bar, drunken college student area. Pick your poison. The club itself has a sneaky little side entrance, but once inside and up the steps, it opens into a pretty massive rectangle shaped room that would easily hold more than 500. There is even a pretty sweet VIP area upstairs if you are so prissy as to not get sweaty, down and dirty with the crowd. Who am I to call you out. A side stage on the long wall, bar opposite that and the main stage at the end. I love the potential that the dual stage has and can't wait to attend a show at Infest that maximizes this layout.

Tonite was just straight, blistering, melt-your-fucking-brain, death metal, blasting-your-face-off from the main stage. I will sadly apologize to the opening bands for my inability to break free from my prior engagement, but you know what...DEICIDE was hell on earth, worth it!

I have know doubt that everyone was pumped and primed for Deicide (http://www.centurymedia.com/artist.aspx?IdArtist=215) because there wasn't a dry body in the house. Everyone was bathed in sweat and whipped into a frenzy from the moment Deicide hit the stage. Really and truthfully playing like the soundtrack to Hell, horns were raised for the whole damn show. Interesting enough is the pit down in front must have worn itself out with every other band, because I have seen finer mosh pits at a rap show. I know it's not about the size of the pit, but how you use it. There was not a whole lot of talking or storytellers happening, Deicide just turned it on with all they had.

It was definitely apparent that the fans mean a lot to this band. Fans were not only getting on stage for the obligatory stage dive, but towards the end, lead singer and bassist Glen, even allowed a fan to get on the mic for some screams and gutturals of his own. That was very cool to see happen without somebody getting punched or body tackled off the stage. The best way to end the tour in Austin was the greatest way to end the night. Calling the members of the other bands on stage, all joined in for the last blast to send the crowd on it's way.

Outside after the show I stopped a group of people, asking about the show and venue. All 4 were interestingly enough, from El Paso. Probably the best city in Texas for a real metal crowd, and after a previous show, pretty damn dangerous. The concert goers unanimously chimed in about the "Awesome performance" they had just experienced. One of the young ladies in the group did a great job of steering away from any comparisons of the two cities, but stated there was no doubt she loved Infest, loved the Deicide performance and was excited for the next metal show peeking just around the Helloween corner!


I, myself, had the pleasure of meeting Deicide lead guitarist, Jack Owen. Although it was probably all of 5 words from Jack, I will declare it was a pretty awesome moment. Anytime a band hangs out after a show and just bullshits with the fans, has a smoke, or has a drink, it shows massive amounts of respect. From Cannibal Corpse to today, Jack Owen kicks ass as a guitarist and owns it as a human being!

Laters