The first black/death/extreme noise terror assault on the ears that I've had the pleasure of attending in a while, the welcoming fog-lit surroundings of Manchester's Rebellion hosting some of Australia's finest for a very rare western tour. Sadly, thanks to our decision to feed our stomachs before our ears first we missed Derbyshire's own Abduction, and more time is needed with their most recent album Existenialismus before even thinking about reviewing them.

Impetuous Ritual were quite something to witness, however, stripped to underwear and spiked wristbands and shrouded in fog, it would have been near-comical if not for the sheer aural violence of their sound. There was something oddly terrifying about such a shapeless yet aggressive racket, pinning you in your place; and much like their cryptically vague album covers, hard to tell one battering from another. The experience was devastating yet felt like a precursor, a cult preparing you for a ritual through sheer heaviness...

Portal however, are an entirely different beast. Clad in shadows, with the musicians wearing hoods and nooses around their necks, the band rumbled along ominously as The Curator, wearing a particularly curled demonic headset of some kind, made its way to the stage before commencing to choke out hoarse grunts and growls. Songs came and went, the likes of Swarth, Glumurphonel, Phreqs, and Abysmill making appearances, yet the experience overall was like some dark sermon, an occult lecture from a dimension beyond.

The crowd was mostly rapturous, even a few brave or drunk trying to get a moshpit going (moshing! To Portal!) and the small venue was packed making it a little difficult to move around. Yet the evening was unlike any other gig I (or my wife, bravely accompanying and possibly having even a better time than I did!) have been to in a long time, and as a reminder of the power of live music, unsurpassed. We've not had anything from Portal in the studio since 2021, perhaps this rare live outing for the mysterious Aussies will be a precursor.