Heavy Montreal Roundup 2015 - The review

Heavy Montreal came and went again this year and it was a pretty awesome ride.  In addition to doing a live broadcast from the grounds on Sunday and having bands like Exes For Eyes, Sandveiss, Coal Chamber, and Dig It Up stop by to talk with us, we on the CJLO crew got to see a ton of bands and enjoy the hospitality of the Heavy staff, supplied by Evenko.  Here's a list of what we all saw:

Friday - August 7th
The Flatliners
Andrew (Grade A Explosives) - The Flatliners started off with some raucous punk action.  They definiteely did the big stage justice and looked pretty at home for a band that played at the now defunct Underworld a couple of shows ago.

Gorguts
Andrew - Gorguts is a Montreal classic, and getting to see them really flaunt their talent in the faces of everyone was a great treat.  If you are not familiar with them, you definitely should be.

Cattle Decapitation
Phil (Turn On The Darkness) - While watching Cattle Decaptiation in the front row, I was blown away by their tightness and how much musicality they have in their arsenal of songs.  The speed, the energy, the riffs were all mindblowing, to think that only now I am slowly getting into more and more grindcore, makes me wonder, that I really need to get into more grind bands, I was blown away of Cattle Decapitation's performance, after the set I immediatly went to the merch booth and bought their new album
Angelica (BVST) - There's nothing like brutalizing grindcore in the cool, dappled shade of the woods to put you in a good mood. 
Andrew - Cattle Decapitation were excellent as always.  I'm always down to hear some brutal stuff in the middle of the day.  I think it definitely set the mood for the rest of the day pretty well.

Extreme
Angelica - After Cattle Decapitation, I then walked to the main stage, and thirty years back in time, to catch Extreme, who were excellent. Famous for their ballad 'More Than Words', which they played after several (unnecessary) apologies, I was also super excited to dance along to their hit 'Do You Wanna Play?' from the Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey soundtrack! 

Meshuggah
Sean (Sublime State of Doom) - Meshuggah’s set of selected classics and newer cuts could not be missed. The sound was, however, pitifully low in the first chunk of their time onstage, and so the entire crowd watching took the time to chant “turn it up!” to the sound booth. The sound guys obliged.
Phil - The band I was also looking forward too the most, because I had a hard time getting into them at first. I was only getting into Meshuggah around 2012 when their album Koloss came out, I was shocked and amazing by their sound which got me into them in the first place, I was curious to what guitars they used, I discovered then that they use 8 and 7 string guitars, which in my mind was quite insane for playing guitars. I then was scouring around for a 7 string guitar to play, my brother purchased one for himself, and I started to play guitar then back in 2010.  The performace at Heavy MTL was really tight, even though that their was MASSIVE sound problems, the crowd kept on chanting LOUDER, LOUDER, LOUDER. Overall though, I really liked the set for Meshuggah. It was really badass. 
Angelica - From Extreme, to extreme metal, Meshuggah were up next, and while it was a damn shame that they seemed to be playing at half volume, their set was extremely technical and engaging.
Andrew - This was the scecond time I had seen Meshuggah perform, the first opening for Tool, which I was not prepared for.  They still aren't a band that's it's really possible to headbang to, but I appreciate their stuff way more than I did back then.  Even with their sound at a quarter volume, they still put on a hell of a show for a crowd which was hungry to see tham after a long time of them being absent from the city.

Alexisonfire
Sean - I ended up catching some of Alexisonfire as they were playing while I was walking toward the stage where Neurosis were playing. They certainly sounded like Alexisonfire. 
Andrew - I cought the first coupld of somgs from Alexisonfire, who I was told a million times by countless people that this would be the "last time I ever get to see them."  Based on what was said during the show, I'm not sure how true that is.  It looked and sounded as though they had no hiatus as they were solid.

Neurosis
Sean - Neurosis, however, were amazing. Their sound meshed incredibly well with the lights display at the De L’Apocalypse stage. Those who left their set early to make the walk of poseurdom to go see Korn missed out on a performance of the song “Through Silver In Blood,” which was nothing short of godly. 
Angelica - Through the woods again, now in time to see Neurosis just as the sun was setting. I loved this performance perhaps best of all, and watching them deliver a smattering of songs from across their many albums under a hazy summer sky was nothing short of magical.
Andrew - Neurosis performing on the Apocalypse stage, which had an AMAZING light show, was truely a highlight of the festival.  Having the sun set behind us and Neurosis throwing more bass at us than any human being should tolerate was just a stellar experience that if you missed you were a fool.

Korn
Andrew - This is actually the fourth time that I've seen Korn, and were they not playing the first album, I might have skipped out on it.  But I couldn't really pass up the opportunity to see these guys do an album which introduced them onto the stage.  Johnathan Davis' voice is definitely not what it used to be, but all in all, I can't complain.  Plus, who can say no to a Geiger mic stand?
Sean - I was saddened that Jonathan Davis did not, in fact, cry at the end of “Daddy.” There was some discussion amongst the CJLO crew as to whether or not this would happen. 
Angelica - I can't call myself a Korn fan by any means, and while the bulk of their set was lost of me, closing the show with a couple of 90s radio rotation classics was just the ticket, and then I headed back to the VIP where CJLO was DJing the afterparty! An incredible end to what was only the beginning of a jam packed weekend.

Saturday - Augsut 8th
Mass Murder Messiah
Andrew - Now featuring the former singer of Neuraxis, Mass Murder Messiah showed that they could bring the tech brutality.  Their new album is coming out in October and after this set, I'm anxiously waiting for it.

Deafheaven
Angelica - Somehow, I managed to watch most of Saturday's bands from a semi private cabana, and somehow starting my day off that way while watching the much debated band Deafheaven was particularly fitting. I enjoyed them, although lead singer George Clarke only violated his mic stand once, which was somewhat disappointing. 
Phil - I was really skeptical when I heard that Deafheaven were gonna be playing at Heavy MTL. I was wondering what they were gonna be playing. Shockingly enough their was a huge turn out crowd for them, and that made me extremly happy.  They played most of Sunbather,and a new song. Overall tight performance, and now I can see these guys being more professional than ever. 
Andrew - Deafheaven in particular isn't my cup of tea, which is odd, because the "post-black metal" (AKA shoe gaze mixed with black metal) is something that I find pretty intriguing.  All in all, it was a good set, but I can't get over how little I'd be surprised if I found out that the lead singer was into some depraved things.

Rocket From the Crypt
Matt (Radio Fun) - One of the bands I was most excited to see having never seen them before. Was good, but I would have much preferred to see them do a full solo show. They have a reputation to be a great live band, but this came across as a very standard 45 minute festival set.
Angelica - Rocket from The Crypt  somehow only attracted the most die hard fans, but there's no question about their importance to underground rock history, and I enjoyed their sunny, brass-heavy riffs from my spot in the shade.

Lita Ford
Angelica - I've been lucky enough to see metal queen Lita Ford before, but she was in fine form at Heavy Montreal, with her voice sounding stronger than ever.  She definitely nailed all the hits, and her red leather jumpsuit, electric yellow guitar combo beat out even the corpsepainters in on stage flash.
Matt - Only caught the end, but I did get to see her do “Kiss Me Deadly”, her big hit from the 80s. I was satisfied with this until I found footage online of her doing The Runaways “Cherry Bomb”, and I then kicked myself.

Abbath
Matt - Highlight of the festival. Like a black metal version of Motörhead. So much fun to watch… great music, great stage banter, and a refreshing lack of seriousness. It made my day to see Abbath craw-walk off stage at the end of the set.
Angelica - Abbath from Immortal was up next... did you know the correct pronunciation of his name is Ay-bahth? I didn't. Anyways, that man knows his makeup (link to: http://www.cjlo.com/articles/easy-breezy-brutal-three-major-movements-in...), and his riffs, and it was amazing experiencing both, even if under the 4 o'clock summer sunshine.
Andrew - Abbath proves, if nothing else, that black metallers can actually have fun and enjoy themselves.  From that, it's hard to level the "untrve" label at one of the forefathers of the genre, so maybe black metal can stop acting like it's the most serious thing that has ever existed.

Gojira
Phil - I was surprised that Gojira was gonna be back for Heavy MTL, this year. They had an amazing performance, playing mostly stuff off from From Mars To Sirius. It was my fifth time seeing Gojira. Seeing them in a festival setting just made the roof blow up, everyone going crazy, and moshing like no tomorrow. Overall: great performance.

Dig It Up
Matt - Local punk band that always put on a good show.
Angelica - Deciding to skip both the classic metal of Testament and the modern riffage of Gojira, I wandered back to the woods for local heroes Dig It Up, who were tearing it up under the trees to an appreciative audience. Hopefully this won't be the last time we see them on this kind of stage.
Andrew - I've seen Dig It Up a handful of times, and every time I know it's going to be a fun time.  These guys know and embody the spirit of punk in a way that most bands, at least from Montreal, don't seem to understand.  Keep up the good work gents.

Testament
Matt - Only caught the end of the show. Disappointed that drummer Gene Hoglan couldn’t make the trip to Montreal, and that they didn’t play “Practice What You Preach”. Otherwise, it was decent. It’s always entertaining to watch Chuck Billy, the king of air guitar.
Sean - The second night started for me with Testament, where I marveled at how craggy vocalist Chuck Billy’s face has become over the years. They played “Into the Pit,” so I was satisfied.

B.A.R.F.
Phil - Right before Devin Townsend, I managed to catch B.A.R.F., a French grindcore metal band, which took me by suprise. They had songs about hookers, French food, and even fish dicks.... Yes, that's right. Fish dicks. It was really awesome to see a grindcore band like B.A.R.F take the stage. Really cool guys: energetic, crazy and fun. Highly reccomended.

Billy Talent 
Sean - Billy Talent played several songs that I knew from all the times that their music was subjected to me.

Devin Townsend
Angelica - Devin Townsend Project followed a few steps away, and while it sure ain't Strapping Young Lad, Hevy Devy sure knows how to get a crowd going with his between song banter and silly antics. It was great, but I coulda killed for some 'AAA'.
Phil - Devin Townsend always puts on a great show, but never like this before. I've been a huge fan of Devin's work since I was 14 years old. This was the second time seeing him. I was absolutely brought to tears with this moving and hard hitting performance, because of the amazing crowd interaction and Devin's songs that mean so much to me. He played Rejoice, Night, Namaste, Storm, March of the Poozers, Supercrush!, Grace, and Kingdom. All of those songs had me energetic, headbanging and jumping around. It was quite possibly the best set at Heavy MTL this year.
Andrew - What can one say about metal's crazy uncle Devin Townsend?  He's a riot to watch on stage and a consummate showman.  I was there to see Ziltoid stuff, and he delivered it to me.  Definitely a fun part of the Saturday.

NOFX
Matt - First time I’ve ever actually “seen” the band play live as all the other times (twice at Warped Tour) there was a huge dust cloud from the mosh pit that would obscure the stage. Song choices were safe, but they made up for it with an entertaining stage show. Fat Mike wore a pink dress, and it was guitarist El Hefe’s 50th birthday which they celebrated with having him hit 2 piñatas lowered from the scaffolding.
Sean - NOFX were a lot of fun, as frontman Fat Mike antagonized the crowd between songs. There were a lot of comments about how all of the punks in the crowd should beat up the metalheads, and how much Dokken and Warrant sucked. You might have heard about how he recently offered a bearded hipster $100 to leave the show in Halifax, and here he kept with this practice by admonishing a man in the front for wearing sunglasses and a Korn t-shirt.

Iggy Pop
Matt - Still kicking myself for not seeing the Stooges at Osheaga in 2008. I’m happy I finally got to see Iggy live, but it was admittedly tough to watch him perform. It really looked like he was struggling to perform; he was limping very badly and had to sit down a few times. Music was good, although it really dragged at the end (although by that point, I was really looking forward to seeing Faith No More)
Sean -  Iggy Pop’s set was a nonstop parade of hits and great tunes. I am so glad that I got to see it. 
Angelica - After that, I took a little break under the trees to have some dinner and drinks with friends, but before I knew it, I was getting sweaty dancing fifteen feet away from Iggy Pop... a sentence I never thought I'd type, and an experience I could never imagine I'd have. He hammered out all his hits right off the bat, and it was incredible to experience a performance by a man that has changed music so much.
Andrew - Iggy Pop is a classic and I'm glad I got to see him, though since he front loaded his set with all the hits, by the end I didn't feel as invested as I did when he started out.  

Faith No More
Matt - 23 years later to the day they last played Montreal (opening for Metallica and Guns N’ Roses at the disastrous Olympic Stadium show), Faith No More returned, and they were amazing. I’ve been a huge Faith No More fan since the early 90s (when “Real Thing” came out), and only got to see them at that stadium show (if you can call that “seeing” them), that I was beyond excited for this show. So excited that I also went to see them the night before in Toronto (with Refused) and then rushed back to see them again at the Heavy Montreal festival. Happily, there was enough of a difference between the 2 set lists to not make the repeat shows redundant. I honestly can’t tell you which show I preferred; they were both great. The band genuinely looked like they were having a good time playing, and not just going through the motions. Mike Patton, one of my favourite vocalists of all time, was in fine form. New songs from “Sol Invictus” sounded even better live, especially “Matador”, a song I found somewhat plodding on the album. I walked away from the 2nd day of Heavy Montreal very happy.
Andrew - Faith No More is a band that I never really got into, but I was pretty impressed with the amount of effort that they clearly had put into their set and show in general.  Don't know even after seeing them if I'd go out of my way to see them, but I did get to see "Epic", so I can cross that off my list.
Sean - The real highlight for me, though, was seeing Faith No More. The members were entirely dressed in white, and the stage was laid out with white furniture with generous floral arrangements. They then launched into a set full of classics, as well as songs from their newest album. I just about shat myself when they played “From Out of Nowhere” from their classic album The Real Thing. As per usual, the performances were tight, and Mike Patton’s voice in top form. 
Angelica - The night ended with Faith No More, and their beautiful whitewashed, flower-laden stage. They played all the hits and brought Saturday night to a blissful close.

Sunday - August 9th
Omnium Gatherum
Phil - A Melodic death metal band that blew me away with their rich solo's and complex song structure, It was a shock to see them play at the festival, and that it was their first time in Montreal. It was a real treat to see them, They're now one of my new favourite bands.

Coal Chamber
Andrew - Though I only got to see this away from the action while we set up our live broadcast from the grounds, Coal Chamber was genuinely one of the things I was looking forward to the most during the weekend.  They played a good chunk of stuff off their latest album, and I got to feel like I saw a band that was complete and together after a tumultuous, to say the least, breakup.
Sean - Sunday began a little earlier for me, as I had the entire day free. I managed to check out an early set by Coal Chamber, who mostly went to see if they were to play “Loco” and “Big Truck.” They did. Of course they did. 

Sandveiss
Angelica - I was psyched to start Heavy Montreal day 3 off with a small taste of Quebec stoner rockers Sandveiss in the forest, the perfect stage for their heavy, vintage sound. 

Warrant
Angelica - My time in the forest was cut short in order to catch Warrant, who, despite not having their original lead singer Jani Lane, were still sounding pretty freakin' good, even all these decades on. All the hits were there, of course, and 'Cherry Pie' capped off the set... finger lickin' good!

Dokken
Angelica - The throwback vibe continued with Dokken up next, and while they were technically excellent and sounded really great, I realized in that moment that my 80s metal knowledge wasn't deep enough to include them... a mistake.

Pig Destroyer
Sean - Pig Destroyer, as it would happen, were freaking amazing. Theirs was probably one of the most violent mosh pits of the entire weekend. Additionally, their choice to play “Jennifer,” the intro track from Prowler in the Yard, before launching into “Cheerleader Corpses” was one of the all-time great moments of the entire weekend for me. 
Angelica - The 80s came to an abrupt close with Pig Destroyer, who laid down an absolutely punishing set under the afternoon sun. 

Marky Ramone's Blitzkreig W/ Andrew W.K. on vocals
Angelica - Running back through the woods, I caught a few tracks from Marky Ramone's Blitzkrieg with Andrew WK, which was a bit of a "been there, done that" on both fronts, but still a fun dance party.
Matt - Very solid 45 minutes of non-stop Ramones songs (well, besides “R.A.M.O.N.E.S” which is a Motörhead song). Andrew W.K. put his own stamp on the songs, and didn’t just try to emulate Joey Ramone. I sang along to every song and walked away very happy,

Sanctuary
Matt - Meh

Ihsahn
Sean - Ihsahn’s set was notable for the inclusion of a medley of Emperor songs at the end of their time on stage.
Matt - Ex-lead singer of Norwegian black metal band Emperor. Only saw a few songs, but I was quite impressed with a musical diversity I wasn’t expecting. I will checking out his albums.

Upon a Burning Body
Matt - One of those bands that the metal community either love or hate. Musically, it sounded like late 90s Nu-Metal, and it was ok. However, this was by far the most insane crowd I saw all weekend. The forest stage (the smallest of the stages in the woods) was packed, and at the lead singers request, they were doing circle pits around each of the trees. Insane.

Wilson
Sean - Wilson broke new ground in stage theatrics as their guitarist decided to hang from one of the trees in the Blabbermouth stage while playing guitar. I’ve never seen that one before. 

Nuclear Assault
Sean -  Nuclear Assault wowed the audience with a selection of mosh-friendly thrash metal tunes, and also with bassist Dan Lilker’s presence. They played “Sin” from the Game Over album, so I was pleased with what they did. 

Lamb of God
Matt - I’m a casual fan of their albums, but I was looking forward to finally seeing them live. They didn’t disappoint. Great stage setup with 2 video screens flanking the drumset, with disturbing imagery to complement the songs. They didn’t play my favourite song of theirs (“The Faded Line”), but I did get to see my first “wall of death”!
Sean - There was enough time after Nuclear Assault finished to catch some of Lamb of God, who are still cranking out the metal with the best of the lot. 
Angelica - Also fun? Seeing Lamb of God again. This might be my 5th? 6th? time seeing them, but I still can't resist their big riffs. I'll never not see them if I have the chance.
Andrew - Lamb of God's performance is always something that everyone can enjoy.  It's high energy, full of stage theatrics, and no nonsense metal.  I never buy a ticket to see Lamb of God, but when I do see them, I'm never disappointed.

Slipknot
Matt - So ya… Slipknot. I’ve been listening to this band on and off for years, and was always to curious to see them live. They definitely put on an interesting show, but after watching some live clips online, I get the feeling that they just go through the motions. The banter is always similar (and uncomfortably close to Juggalo-territory with all the talk of the Slipknot “family”). The schtick is always the same, whether it be a drum kit or percussionist on a moving platform, or the whole “jump the %&$ up” bit where Corey Taylor gets the entire crowd to sit down and then jump up in unison. In the end, I’m happy I got to see a few songs that I like played live, but I don’t have expectations to ever see them live again.
Angelica - The festival closed with Slipknot, which, while far from my favorite band, manages to put enough crap on stage and on their heads to amuse and delight for at least a few songs. I may have left early on in their set, but I wasn't there for them... I was there to enjoy three days of music, and I absolutely did. 
Sean - Slipknot provided the final set of the weekend. It was unbelievably packed for Slipknot, more so than the entirety of the rest of the festival, and people lost their minds for this band. I remember hearing stories about how people used to get carted out of their shows with broken limbs, and I can now definitely see that. I was standing fairly far back in the audience, and a mosh pit broke out behind me when they played “Wait and Bleed.” It was hit after hit after hit with these guys, and the crowd was loving it. It pleased me when they played “People = Shit” as one of the encore songs. In all, a worthwhile time. 
Andrew - I never really got how people lost their minds over Slipknot.  I mean, it's just 9 guys in masks right?  Well, after seeing them do what they do live, I think I have an understanding of why people like this band so much.  They still have more people than they need, what with two "custom percussionists" and one guy who just runs around the stage, but it was impressive to see a band put on a show rather than just play songs.  
Phil - Slipknot has had a huge reputation over the years.  Back in 2012, I saw Slipknot at Heay MTL. It was not a good performance. However, this year they blew me away with their crazy setlist, promoting the new album, and as well throwing in a few classics that I have not heard in years! I was amazed at the amount of energy they had on stage and the pyro was pretty bad ass. Overall that was the best I've seen Slipknot perform.

Other
Matt - Special mentions to Le Smoking BBQ for their delicious pulled pork and sausage poutine! So good, I had it 2 days in a row. Also, was very impressed with the refundable beer cup system they had in place. It made paying 6.50$ for a Molson Canadian a little more palatable.

In Closing
Matt - This year marked the 1st time I’ve attended Heavy Montreal, and now I’m wondering why I waited this long. I’ve been to a few of the Osheaga festivals, which have a very similar setup to Heavy Montreal, although the band line-ups for the last few years have really not done anything for me. When I have gone to Osheaga, there are always parts of the day where I don’t want to see any of the bands, and there’s nothing for me to do.
The thing about Heavy Montreal is that there’s a never dull moment. The truth is, even a mediocre metal or punk band is more interesting to watch then a mediocre alternative/indie/electronic act. And if you happened to have time between shows, you could always catch a pro-wrestling match, presented by the International Wrestling Syndicate (IWS) at the Heavy Mania venue located between the Forest and the Apocalypse stages. Spectators were treated to some rocking pile-drives, faces-vs-heels drama and all-around fun and excitement.
Sean - Would I do it again? Sure. It was a fun-packed weekend full of metal, beers, pulled turkey sandwiches, and stories of a nacho cheese fountain in the bands area. I can only hope that Heavy Montreal 2016 is just as, if not more, majestic in its metalness and scope.
Andrew - This is the third year I've been to Heavy Montreal, and every year it seems to be improving upon itself.  Though this year didn't have Metallica, it had something for everyone, no matter what type of music you're into.  80s hair, black metal, punk, it's all there for people to enjoy.  I'll be there next year, and you should be too, so mark your calendars for August 5 - 7 2016 and keep checking the Heavy Montreal website (heavymontreal.com) for info about other shows their hosting this year.

Check out our schedule for these and more heavy sounding shows