In the depths of Manchester in the area of The Northern Quarter (or a 9 minute walk from Shudehill heading in the direction of east) hidden between a row of dingy alley-ways you will quite easy walk past the unrecognizable doorway of the Kraak Gallery. The only give away- the reassuring sound of drum beats during a sound check, metal heads huddled in bulks if three dressed in hoodies and patched denim waistcoats and a band mobile being unloaded. Yep it's safe to say- this is the place.
The only label signifying what this place was on the dirty black greased and mold-dew ingrained wall was KRAAK scruffly written in chalk. 9/10 for effort chaps! Two narrow dodgy sets of stairs led up to the main stage room. Nicely sized with a factory/underground dingy feel. Drain pipes lined the ceiling creatively like the arches and beams of an old house while crumbling brick walls (attempting to be white) laid bare. A room full of people and a good sized, well stocked up bar at the back was promising. I was already starting to like the place. Sat at the back waiting to interview Jon Davis of Conan next to a girl -who was here for the same reason- gave me comfort in this strange 'foreign' place. But I anticipated that tonight was going to be good!
Three bands supported CONAN tonight. BASTARD OF THE SKIES, BAST and CORRUPT MORAL ALTER.
Doom is a genre I would say you would have to truly understand in order to appreciate and enjoy listening to. It took me a few bands in and a couple of songs into CONAN's set to really warm up to it. Around three songs into the set things really started to pick up in terms of dynamics, variation and tempo. Heads were moving as the crowd huddled tighter and closer to the front -that combined with the heat, the smell and immense sound of treble filling every nook and cranny- I felt a great atmosphere in the room. I felt obliged to have a good head bang.
The night sadly was coming to a close, I must say, I came to the gig open minded to the concept of Doom, and not knowing what to expect, I came out a little bit of a fan!
Good luck on the rest of the UK tour guys and I'll see you at Hellfest!
Check out The Metal Saloon's Interview with Jon Davis (Guitar/Vocalist) below:
Link to Interview with Jon Davis: https://soundcloud.com/the-metal-saloon/interview-with-john-davis
Gig Shots
Conan
https://www.facebook.com/conandoomCorrupt Moral Altar
https://www.facebook.com/CorruptMoralAltar
Bast
https://www.facebook.com/bastmusic
Bastard of the Skies
https://www.facebook.com/bastardoftheskies
By Aine Brewer
