Previously at Metal 2 the Masses….
Against the Grain and Soul Shredder qualified from Heat 1.
IL and Coyote Mad Seeds qualified from Heat 2.
Terminal Sun and Shonin qualified from Heat 3.
Into the Red and Korsunnuz qualified from Heat 4.
Dominion of Ashes and Killers & Kings qualified from Heat 5.
Tormenta and Sidewinder qualified from Heat 6.
***
This was our final first round heat. Two spots would be decided, as well as finalising who gets the two wildcard spots.
In the run up of the show we had a few drop outs and replacements, ultimately leaving us with a four band event.
Shadow Smile
/Sheffield/
Opening the show were local lads Shadow Smile.
The quartet play a style that straddles the lines heavy rock, contemporary heavy metal and alternative metal. Think elements of Avenged Sevenfold and Alter Bridge, with some rockier licks thrown in for good measure.
Performance wise this was a great opening act! I’d heard good things about the guys, but hadn’t yet had chance to see them. This was slick, professional and full of catchy hooks and choruses. A cracking opening band.
Donestk
/Sheffield/
Next up were Sheffield quintet Donestk.
We’d had the pleasure of having these lads on a bill last year down at The Royal Standard, so knew what we were going to get. These lads play metalcore, and they play it well. This was a solid performance that got some of the crowd moving. The high energy chuggers laid down some cool riffs and left a good impression on everyone.
World Chaos
/West Yorkshire/
The penultimate band of the evening was West Yorkshire’s World Chaos.
These guys were the band we knew the least about going into the evening, and we were quite intrigued to see how this turned out.
This was a bloody good performance. The trio mixed elements of progressive thrash and groove metal together, with a hint of doom here and there for atmosphere. Live, it creates this massive, quick, chuggy sound that really got the crowd going. The monk robes were a nice touch too.
Screaming Ace
/Sheffield/
Finish off our evening was Sheffield five piece, Screaming Ace.
These guys were making a return after five years away from the live stage (and I believe a line-up change or two as well). Quite a decent crowd had come down to see them.
Style wise, this is high octane thrash / contemporary heavy metal / extreme metal, with vocals that edge more towards death and grind than traditional thrash vox. Obviously there were a few nerves in their first show back in such a long time, but this was a high octane performance that the crowd really enjoyed, including a smettering of old fans in the room singing along to the songs as they came along in the set.
My Thoughts
Personally, I thought World Chaos and Shadow Smile pipped it for me.
The Result
Shadow Smile and World Chaos qualified in a close heat.
Wildcards
We went back through all the judge scores and found that the two highest scoring non-qualifiers through the heats were Realms and Kallos. Congratulations to them on also qualifying.
Next Up
With the COVID-19 pandemic on going, all shows are on hold. We will announce in due course what the plans are for the Semis & Final.
To confirm, the 16 qualifiers are:
Against the Grain, Soul Shredder, IL, Coyote Mad Seeds, Terminal Sun, Shonin, Into the Red, Korsunnuz, Dominion of Ashes, Killers & Kings, Tormenta, Sidewinder, World Chaos, Shadow Smile, Realms and Kallos.
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