Edmonton Gets Heavy with Slaughterfest 2017 and Says Good-Bye to Disciples of Power - March 25, 2016

Dana Zuk March 29, 2017

Edmonton was served a heaping dose of heaviness over the weekend, as Slaughterfest came under way down at The Forge on Whyte Ave on Saturday night. Metalheads from all over Alberta rallied together to get a little crazy, and to bid farewell to our cities heavy metal forefathers, Disciples of Power.

The line up for the 2017 rendition of one of Western Canada's heaviest one-day festivals consisted of talent residing from all over central Alberta, with the likes of Disciples of Power, Display of Decay, Vile Insignia, Widows Peak and Misery Tomb, lending their brands of shred for the evening to make this one of the heaviest nights of local metal that Edmonton will see this year.

This night in particular being extra special, not because of the community banding together to have a good time, but because Disciples of Power flew their flag one last time before moving forward under a new name. Details of the name change and a brief history on the band can be found in their most recent interview with Vue Weekly HERE.

Do you want to play Edmonton's Slaughterfest next year? Check out their Facebook page or submit your band to:
slaughterfestedmonton@gmail.com

DISCIPLES OF POWER

DISPLAY OF DECAY

VILE INSIGNIA

DISPLAY OF DECAY

VILE INSIGNIA

DISPLAY OF DECAY

VILE INSIGNIA

DISPLAY OF DECAY

VILE INSIGNIA

WIDOWS PEAK

MISERY TOMB

WIDOWS PEAK

MISERY TOMB

Loud As Hell Festival 2016 - DAY 3 - July 31, 2016

Dana Zuk August 4, 2016

My favorite time of year has come and gone once again, as the weekend of Loud As Hell festival smashed their sold-out, fifth year running in the badlands of Alberta! I couldn't be more proud of the people who work their asses off, year after year, to bring such a wicked event to the heavy metal community of not only Alberta, but to Canada as a whole. It's truly been an honor to be working with this festival for four years in a row now, and I really cannot wait to see what is in store for the festival in year six!

Unfortunately, due to a system hiccup, my snaps of days one and two have been banished from this life, forbidden to return to the lands of Windows, photoshop and social media. Luckily, however, day three's shots are alive and well, and I couldn't be more excited to show them off to you, the readers and metal lovers!

Despite a soggy morning from rain and unpleasant weather the night before, day number three of Loud As Hell V was the most wild one yet this year. As many festival goers began to file into the venue for the annual pancake breakfast, the spirits within the room were high with anticipation and excitement for Sunday's festivities. With Vancouver's own Unleash The Archers, headlining the third and final day of LAH, the day was sure to be a banger. With the likes of Ninjaspy, Disciples of Power, Without Mercy, Planet Eater, Third Ion, Expain, Display of Decay, The Avulsion, W.M.D, Slaughterhauser, Junkies Rush and Maimed Wolf in tow of Unleash The Archers, Drumheller, Alberta was leveled by the heaviness of this line up, consisting of nonstop double kicks and pure shreddery on all levels.

This is always my most favorite time of year. And for many reasons! It's just like one big heavy metal family reunion. Friends from different parts of the country all reuniting under the same circumstances, and partying like there's no tomorrow; Supporting and celebrating the mutual love for metal and those who inhabit the community which keeps this aggressive, underground music alive. By coming together in this year, we're not only supporting bands and festivals, we're supporting the lifestyle of being metal. We're stronger together than we are apart! Cheers, Loud as Hell! See you next year! LOUD AS HELL, DRUNK AS F*CK!

UNLEASH THE ARCHERS

NINJASPY

DISCIPLES OF POWER

WITHOUT MERCY

PLANET EATER

PLANET EATER FT. ANDREW BAILEY

THIRD ION

EXPAIN

EXPAIN FT. SPENCER BALL

DISPLAY OF DECAY

THE AVULSION

W.M.D

SLAUGHTERHAUSER

SLAUGHTERHAUSER FT. ANDREW BAILEY

SLAUGHTERHAUSER

SLAUGHTERHAUSER FT. ANDREW BAILEY

JUNKIES RUSH

MAIMED WOLF

Slaughterfest 2016 as Edmonton's Kick Off to the New Year at the Rendezvous Pub - January 9, 2016

Dana Zuk January 12, 2016

Choosing Slaughterfest as my first show to photograph of the new year was an excellent choice, as Edmonton's heavy metal community flocked to the Rendezvous Pub on January 9th to get a little crazy on a Saturday night.

After a prolonged hiatus, Slaughterfest 2016 wouldn't have been possible without the planning and preparation of Sean Watson of Display of Decay, Saturday night's headlining band. Part of Sean's hard work behind Slaughterfest was primarily to bring light to those of lesser known metal bands of the Alberta heavy metal community, and he did just that! With a bill made up of 8 bands spanning the Alberta scene, the likes of: Display of Decay, Path to Extinction of Calgary, Tyrant, The Dead Cold, Demise Without Reason of Red Deer, Immunize, Tales of the Tomb and Decrepitation were pleasantly received by all attending the evening event.

As concert goers filed into the dimly lit venue, the audience size grew with such momentum, which only made the experience of this event that much sweeter. Voices could be heard whooping and hollering as each band took to the stage to show Edmonton what they were all about; each bringing a different dynamic to the event, while displaying the diversity within the metal community of Alberta with ease.

It was a pleasant sight seeing so many familiar faces, along with plenty of new ones as well, which makes me so proud to have been a small part of not only this event, but of the heavy metal community in Alberta. The passion and love for heavy metal is alive and well within our music scene, and watching people come together to collectively celebrate the revival of a great festival such as Slaughterfest completely warms my heart! Here's to the strength of our community and to more gigs like Saturday night's Slaughterfest!

DISPLAY OF DECAY

PATH TO EXTINCTION

TYRANT

DEMISE WITHOUT REASON

THE DEAD COLD

IMMUNIZE

TALES OF THE TOMB

DECREPITATION

Display of Decay Demolishes DV8 Underground at "Dust of Existence" CD Release Party - September 18, 2015

Dana Zuk September 21, 2015

One of Edmonton's top death metal extraordinaire's, Display of Decay, celebrated the release of their third self released album entitled "Dust of Existence" on Friday night at DV8 Underground. Metal fans from Edmonton and Calgary gathered in the small basement venue, anxious for what was about to unfold.

Kicking off their performance with the pounding rhythms of "Created to Kill", Display of Decay grabbed their audiences attention with deadly force. Between the screaming guitars of shredders Sean Watson and Jeremy Puffer, the band progressed on to fan favorite track, "Maggot Feast" - a track from their first EP entitled "Blood Borne". The crowd frequently erupted into a frenzy of moshers and headbangers which cracked smiles onto the stone-like faces of the band.

Kicking the set into high gear with the roaring rumbles of bassist, Jacob Maisonneuve, and the delectable double-kicks of drummer, Avery Desmarais, Display of Decay boomed and blasted into the remainder of their 10 song set. Playing numerous tracks from their newest release, along with a handful of others spanning their discography. Closing off their set with the title track of their new album "Dust of Existence", the gut-busting voice of vocalist, Jessy Leduc, could be heard from the street outside, causing people to chant and cheer for more.

With such a positive reaction from their audience, the band wasn't quite finished with their time on stage just yet. After a momentary regroup, Display of Decay said their farewells to their crowd with the earth shattering melodies of "Blood Borne", off of their second EP entitled "The Feasting", as an unexpected encore to put the cherry on top of a great and memorable evening for all.

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Do you want to play Edmonton's Slaughterfest next year? Check out their Facebook page or submit your band to: slaughterfestedmonton@gmail.com

Do you want to play Edmonton's Slaughterfest next year? Check out their Facebook page or submit your band to:
slaughterfestedmonton@gmail.com