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Nile Causes Havoc By The Avon: The Underworld European Tour Arrives In Bristol

If you’re on this site, it’s safe to assume you have at least a basic knowledge of death metal. From the early days of Possessed and Death, it’s a genre that has spawned numerous sub-genres of its own and continues to be one of the most popular forms of metal. Like all branches of metal, it has its legends by now and undoubtedly one of those is Nile. Nile has always made their own path, focusing on the history and mythology that guitarist Karl Sanders has always been fascinated by while creating music which is both intelligence and intense. This year, they unleashed their tenth album, “The Underworld Awaits Us All,” their first in five years and already it promises to go down as one of their best yet. So as always, with a new album comes a new tour and tonight it was Bristol’s turn to welcome the Carolina crushers.

Kicking things off this evening was Belgian death metal squad Pestifer. It’s a shame that there weren’t more people here for this set because these Walloons have crafted a very fine take on the genre, one where the heaviness flows very freely while still writing well crafted songs. Science fiction is the main focus of the lyrics, with vocalist Jérôme Bernard joking to fans at one point, “This is another song about aliens,” but it’s a cool angle to approach the music from, setting them apart from the usual misery and chaos that dominate death metal themes. Pestifer has been around for a while now and in that time they’ve perfected their stage presence, coming across very professional and operating like a well oiled machine. Their time may have been quite short but they really made the most of it, winning over neutrals in the crowd and ensuring that there’ll be a stronger response when they return to the UK.

Next at the bat was Intrepid, who have come from the other side of Europe to be here, proudly representing their home country of Estonia. Like Pestifer, they didn’t have too long to make an impression but they made damn sure that they did, delivering a catchy, yet vicious brand of death metal which really resonated with the audience. Intrepid utilises the old school death metal sound, not dissimilar from say Baest or Frozen Soul, but they put their own spin on it. Vocalist Raiko Rajalaane has an excellent voice to growl out these beastly anthems and everyone in attendance seemed genuinely impressed by the band as a whole. Guitarists Simo Atso and Aldo Jakovlev shine particularly bright with their precise delivery of these nasty riffs, as songs like “Mesmerism” grab the attention of all watching. This was a really impressive set from a young band who have already been around long enough to hone their craft. An excellent example of European death metal.

The main support this evening arrived in the form of Hideous Divinity. Having released their latest album, “Unextinct” only six months ago, it’s a good time to catch them and find out what they’re all about at this point in time. Indeed, most of their set focused on the album, with songs like “The Numinous One,” “Against The Sovereignty Of Mankind” and “Mysterium Tremendum” making the cut on this tour, in addition to set opener “Dust Settles On Humanity.” Having been mightily impressed by the Romans last year on board the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise, I had a good idea of what to expect tonight and sure enough, they delivered the goods by barrel full. Vocalist Enrico Di Lorenzo oozes charisma, striking some poses and getting the crowd going in between his fierce vocals, while everyone is swept up by the sheer heaviness of the music. The band were happy to dig deeper into their catalogue, pulling out “Angel Of Revolution” and “The Deaden Room” before finishing up with “Cobra Verde.”

Finally it was the turn of South Carolina’s Nile to make their impact. Their new album, “The Underworld Awaits Us All” has been well publicised and as one might expect, the record was well represented tonight via “Stelae of Vultures,” “To Strike With Secret Fang” and everyone’s new favourite title, “Chapter For Not Being Hung Upside Down On A Stake In The Underworld And Made To Eat Feces By The Four Apes,” which was the penultimate song. These new tracks all sounded magnificent and fans received them just as warmly as many of the older tunes, so it’s safe to say that the future of Nile remains bright.

By now, Nile are a true death metal institution and so they have a massive selection of songs to pick when it comes to a setlist. The fresher songs were joined by such classics as “Kafir!” and “Lashed To The Slave Stick,” which sound just as good delivered by new vocalist/guitarist Dan Vadim Von as they ever have. Nile is an interesting band to watch for the shared vocal duties in particular, almost like brutal death metal’s answer to the Beatles or the Beastie Boys but it works really well. There’s no pretense when it comes to Nile. These are four guys who just love to play music and they do it so well, which makes them all the more endearing to fans. More favourites followed with the likes of “Defiling The Gates Of Ishtar,” “Sarcophagus” and “Sacrifice Unto Sebek” all receiving a thunderous reception before they finished the evening with the title track from 2000’s, “Black Seeds Of Vengeance.” The night as a whole was an exciting celebration of death metal and Nile were the perfect band to ice the cake as it were.

Ollie Hynes has been a writer for Metal Underground.com since 2007 and a metal fan since 2001, going as far as to travel to other countries and continents for metal gigs.