Mdf 2015

[BlutAusNerd]

Funebrarum had already started while we were still waiting to get through the line, but we did manage to get in for their last few songs. I'm glad that we did, because they were nailing it. A great first band to kick off the weekend, as Thursday's lineup was pretty weak this year.

[BlutAusNerd]

Next up was Cianide, another band that I was pretty excited to see. Unfortunately, for the first few songs, the mix was pretty horrible, with the bass completely burying the guitar. This was corrected for the last half of their set, and they crushed it.

[BlutAusNerd]

Vallenfyre hit the stage next, and I wasn't sure what to expect from them. I thought A Fragile King was a decent enough retro death album, but I hadn't heard the new one, and didn't know how they would fare live. Well, aided by some excellent production (this stage had a much better sound overall for the bands playing), they played a heavy and enjoyable set. Not my favorite of the weekend, but they surpassed my expectations and I have no complaints about their set.

[BlutAusNerd]

Master was the next band up, but I only stuck around for part of their set, as they were one of the few bands on the bill that I had seen before, and I didn't know when else I would get a chance. Unfortunately, our friend Scott (that should have been our designated driver) had the bright idea to buy shots from some sketchy looking addicts in a van, pouring Old Crow bourbon into the cut off bottom of a water bottle. Never one to say no to free shots, I obliged, but having had a couple of beers in the parking lot prior to heading down, then a couple on the lot, and Scott then buying us rounds of Jäger bombs, I sort of lost track at this point, so I don't recall how Master actually sounded. Honestly, I couldn't even remember what I had bought from the merch area during their set until I opened up my bag at the room after the show that night. I spent long enough in the merch area to miss Lock Up as well, who were not a major highlight on my list, but one that I do regret missing, as I don't remember what they sounded like from the merch area in my foggy state.

[BlutAusNerd]

I started to sober up a bit by the time Aura Noir came on, and do remember them tearing it up. I couldn't get as close as I would have liked with having to jet out of the merch are when they started to catch their set, but they played a tight set with some great songs. One of my Friday highlights.

[BlutAusNerd]

Next up was Suffocation, but as I had seen them before, we took the opportunity to go back to the car and drop off our merch, and have a beer before heading back for Obituary. And yes, I'm glad we did, because Obituary fucking killed. They sounded amazing, tons of energy, heavy and tight, had the whole crowd moving. I'm not much of a mosher, but even I jumped in the pit a couple of times, their energy was that infectious. Even their songs from the albums that I'm not as fond of sounded great, they were really on for this set. My pick for best Friday Edison band.

[BlutAusNerd]

Next up was the headliner, Bloodbath. Like Vallenfyre, they put out some decent albums, but their last couple didn't do much for me, thanks to Nick's vocals (on the last one anyway, the music was the my detractor from the prior album). We were going to wait to see how they sounded, and if it wasn't any good, we were going to go to Ram's Head for Drawn and Quartered. Much to our surprise though, Bloodbath sounded pretty great. They pretty much stuck to their first EP and first couple of albums, but that was fine with me, and their live sound was massive, much better sounding than on the recordings. Nick, while not totally impressive, delivered remarkably well considering how he sounded on the album. He definitely doesn't sound like he used to, employing more of a morbid mid-range rasp than his formerly huge low growl, but it worked and sounded good with their songs. The band even closed with an homage to Entombed, transitioning from their last proper song, Cry My Name, into the last half of the title track from Left Hand Path, starting with the spooky Phantasm melody. All in all, very cool performance, I'm definitely glad that I stayed.

[BlutAusNerd]

My friends went back to the car again for another beer after seeing a few Bloodbath songs, and when I went to join them, our buddy Scott had passed out in the parking lot. He had been having more Jäger shots, sent a few indecipherable texts to Bob regarding his location, and decided that the 7th floor of this parking structure was a good spot for a nap. We had to pick him up and lock him in the car before we could go to Ram's Head.

[BlutAusNerd]

After that was dealt with, we arrived at Ram's Head right as Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult was starting, and I can't say that they did much for me. They seemed to play their brand of generic black metal well, but nothing about it stands out in my mind as memorable. Oh well.

[mindy6158]

This is what the line looked like when we arrived, definitely worse than last year. While in this line, Artificial Brain was kicking things off on Friday, and the sounded pretty good through the fence, but I don't know that I would call that actually seeing them.

I would like man with long ponytail to turn around................

[BlutAusNerd]

Aeternus was one of the cancellations last year that I was most annoyed by, as I know you've all heard me rave about their status as one of Norway's most underrated black metal exports. They absolutely did not disappoint in that regard, as they sounded absolutely devastating. They played a coupl of newer death metal tracks to start with, which sounded great, despite not being quite as much to my liking as their black metal material. This shouldn't deter anyone from checking them out though, as I feel that they are still good and they certainly made the transition more gracefully than others, like Zyklon, for instance. After that though, the black metal came out and my jaw hit the floor. They didn't have a bass player, yet still sounded absolutely massive with two guitars and one drummer, all playing magnificently. They captured that dark, folky feel from the albums, and the juxtaposition between those elements and the more savage black/death metal ones sounded every bit as amazing as when I first heard their albums. Top notch performance, one of the best of the fest.

[mindy6158]

Really good photos Blut, looks like a nice size crowd and you were pretty damn close to stage.

[BlutAusNerd]

Really good photos Blut' date=' looks like a nice size crowd and you were pretty damn close to stage.[/quote'] It did seem like there were more people than last year, and I was really close for some of the bands. Not so much on Friday, with a bunch of running around, I have some much better and closer photos from the next couple of days. I don't know if I'll post them today or not, but I will soon.

[RelentlessOblivion]

MDF is looking more pheasable then ever now. Thanks to a nifty little navigation app for iPhone and Android tailored specifically for vision-impaired people getting around unfamiliar locations should soon be much easier.

[BlutAusNerd]

MDF is looking more pheasable then ever now. Thanks to a nifty little navigation app for iPhone and Android tailored specifically for vision-impaired people getting around unfamiliar locations should soon be much easier.

Glad to hear it dude, hope to see you there next year.

[RelentlessOblivion]

2017 is the goal actually

[~Mere~]

Thanks for sharing BAN. I would really like to go. It's not very far from where I'm @

[BlutAusNerd]

If my enthusiasm hasn't shown enough, I highly recommend it. I've never experienced anything like it, but we don't really get many other festivals in the US.

[~Mere~]

It's def something to think about for next year. A friend asked if I wanted to go with him to Mayhem Fest, which is taking place real close to here, about 8 miles away. But I am less than enthused to take him up on his offer.

[FatherAlabaster]

Because of the person, or the music? (Nunyabidness!) There's a chance I could make it next year. We'll just have to see. Time, money, childcare, etc. Would love to see some great bands and meet some of you folks.

[Iceni]

Mayhem's kinda sucky. You can tell because it, like Summer Slaughter, actually comes to New Mexico...

[BlutAusNerd]

Saturday: On Saturday, we arrived as Twilight of the Gods was finishing out their set. It sounded decent enough from across the lot, sort of a viking/heavy metal sort of sound going for them, but it also didn't sound like I was missing out on them either. The reason why we arrived when we did was to catch Morpheus Descends. These guys are one of the unsung heroes of New York death metal, with a very dark and brutal sound that was quite different from the more polished works coming from their scene mates at the time. Crushing grooves, awesome riffs, and very guttural vocals, this band was very much a highlight for me. One of my favorite sets of the weekend.

[BlutAusNerd]

I was starving at this point, so I hit up the Indian food truck to grab some curry while Einherjer was playing. I didn't actually see any of their set, but they came through clear as a bell from the food area and sounded great. It sounded like most of their material for the day was culled from their Blot album, which is my favorite of theirs, and while I'm disappointed that I didn't make it to the stage, you have to eat at some point, and the curry was pretty good.

[BlutAusNerd]

I believe that Blood Red Throne went on next, but I can't recall specifically, some band that I enjoyed early albums from but haven't cared about them much since. The next band that I actually caught was Vulcano, who brought some serious first wave black metal action to the stage. The guitar player suffered a few minor fuck ups, they were on fire, loaded with energy and conviction, and that vocalist just sounded wild from start to finish. I'm really only a fan of Bloody Vengeance, and those were the tracks that sounded best (then probably the tracks from their demos), but even the songs from the other albums sounded pretty good, though certainly less savage and entertaining. The first wave black metal would roll on from here.

[BlutAusNerd]

Also, so you guys are included in some of the non-band related fixtures of the fest, Captain Speedo decided to make another appearance this year. Not sure where he got it or if he made it, but he wears only a Death Symbolic Speedo and sun glasses throughout the fest. Another time honored fixture is chicken man, who I did see again this year, but he spent most of his time at the Soundstage this year and I did not get a photo of him. I believe it was my roommate that commented about the Captain, "that guy makes me feel really bad about my physique, but great about what I'm packing in my pants!"