The upstairs space in the Hope & Ruin forms quite a compact and bijou but open-plan venue, which is ideal for an intimate gig like this. However, while they have a useful website, don’t trust the list of opening hours that it advertises; the bar staff certainly weren’t going to hang around a minute longer than they absolutely had to on this Sunday night. So much for the after-party…
After some initial confusion regarding Doors (bringing the door time forward can sometimes be justified – as long as you tell people beforehand of course), we slipped in just in time to see the short-but-sweet support slot by Mindframe. There was a sparse crowd to greet them but we were treated to a competent set of well-executed grunge rock by this Brighton trio. They have been honing their math-rock skills on the local circuit for few years now and it shows. Their songs seem a bit formulaic at times, in terms of their construction (they reminded me of Tool in a way), but they got heads nodding along and filled the support spot well tonight with their tight musicianship.
It’s been 27 years since Lodestar played their last shows (and 28 years since they released their first album), so to say that their fans have had a long wait would be the understatement of the century! The band was initially formed by some of the members of rap-rock pioneers Senser, back in the mid-90s, as a vehicle which would enable them to scratch more of their metal itch. Vocalist Heitham Al-Sayed graciously granted Moshville an audience before the gig, so look out for that interview for more deets on such things. The band are just playing a small handful of dates in April and May to start off with this year, the Brighton date being the second (after London the previous night), in order to reboot the band and launch their second album Zonen.
Heitham is joined by Alan ‘Lord Haggis’ Haggarty on guitar, John Morgan on drums and (Lodestar newbie) Charlie Beddoes on bass. Collectively, their considerable musical skills and experience shone through to produce a very professional performance, if slightly lacking in audience participation / connection. The latter could be due to nerves, I suppose, combined with the older crowd demographic (we’ve seen it all before, right my fellow old-timers?) Although most of the band have been involved with other acts over many years (I understand that a couple of them are still involved with Senser, playing the odd shows and releasing music in their own time), it could be that they are unsure as to how their new material will be received by older fans, or taken on board by potential new ones? It must be a bit nerve wracking. The result was an uncomfortable silence between some of the songs, after the initial applause and cheers had died down. A bit of well-placed banter would have been welcome to fill the gaps.
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Having said that, there was still a lot of love in the room and Heitham clearly spotted some old friends and colleagues in the crowd as the set progressed. The setlist mainly comprised songs from Zonen, which means that this is effectively an album review, as well as a gig review (as Moshville had been given a sneaky peek). The first track was the instrumental from the album, titled “1983”, and this lead into their ‘cataclysmic, cultish, and crushing’ new single, and album opener, “Surrender to the Tide”. This song very much sets out the stall for Lodestar2.0, with its classic Sabbathian riffs, doomy drums and rumbling bassline, the latter courtesy of nimble-fingered Charlie Beddoes (of Rub Ultra fame and who Heitham says they are ‘lucky to have’). This is all topped off with Heitham’s Ozzy-like tones and mid-paced wailing vocals. The new album has a much beefier sound than their previous material, which could reflect Lord Haggis’ more developed production style, and the songs do come across as a more coherent collection with a much heavier and darker vibe than their older material.
“Be Ready” was followed by “Flame”, which was released as a single and supported by a spooky but very arty animated video online. Both tracks have a sinister, brooding tempo and the fuzzy guitar tones worked well to produce a nicely creeped-out atmosphere in the venue tonight. “Wait a Minute” is a song from back in the day and it is more Senser-like, the cleaner vocals ascending into more of a mash up, with elements of Faith No More springing into my mind. I am not sure if the next track “The Stranger” is actually titled “The Starnger” (as on the first CD pressing and promo blurb) or not?* From a creative point of view, there could be a reason for the second choice to be correct but, from a proofreading point of view, this kind of thing grinds my gears… Let’s hope they haven’t printed all of the CD inserts yet eh? Anyway, the space-rock intro soon descends into a doomtastic plod as the drums and bass stomp through the eardrums, and there’s that dirty, fuzzy guitar tone again. If this song doesn’t help you ‘get your Sabbath on’ then nothing will.
Speaking of which, “Sigils Burning” is subtly evil, and as the thumping intro kicks things off you can almost imagine them stoking the fires in anticipation of your arrival, as you take the (h)elevator down to the hot place. “High Sorrow” continues the theme and leads into the faster paced “The Real World”, which is a cautionary tale, the groove being driven by the guitar leads and crashing cymbals: ‘this is real time… not an exercise…’ Indeed.
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“Hyperitual” takes thing down a notch and the blasting doom metal sections which dominate are interspersed with melodic, almost Zeppelinesque, interludes which emphasise the dynamics of the song perfectly. Now “Another Day” (‘…another disaster!’) is an absolute banger and one of the stand-out songs from the first album. I was very excited to hear this live after so many years.
“Bring me the Head” is one of the shortest songs on the album and is a nice upbeat belter that really shows how much Lodestar understand the need to create dynamics in a song (and check out the accompanying Hammer Horror style video on YouTube too.) There is a driving groove to this track that really satisfies; it reminds me of Stone Temple Pilots in parts and this is a good thing in my book. “Iliac Crest” was one of the more off-kilter tracks on the first album and it may not have been my first choice to end the main set tonight but it does really get going, after a pensive and strange start. Oh yes, and the Iliac Crest is ‘the superior border of the wing of ilium and the superiolateral margin of the greater pelvis’; don’t worry I had to look that up! “Waiting for the Sun” was an unexpected treat for the encore but you can’t go wrong with some classic Doors and this was a great version, Heitham channelling his inner Jim Morrisson as a fitting finale to the show.
Lodestar are most definitely back, and with a belter of an album too, which combines some very tasty flavours but is very much a beefy metal album, full of meaty creative goodness but still with plenty of muscle. Zonen is an essential purchase (for those who baulk at the idea of stealing music from the internet) and deserves your support.
*Update, the band confirmed that it is, indeed, “The Starnger”.
