LIVE FROM THE PIT: Desolated, Shattered Realm, Bayway and Low Life

With the release of their new album ‘FINDING PEACE’, Desolated thought it only right to pull off two kick-ass release shows to celebrate this new era for the band; bringing fellow Hardcore giants, Shattered Realm, the underdogs, Bayway, and the new band on the scene, Low Life. This show brought together a line-up that let Underworld in Camden know what Hardcore really is, with one of the most aggressive crowds in the scene.  

Starting the night off with ease were Low Life, who gave Underworld a taste of what London Hardcore can do, combining their intense spoken word with unclean vocals to bring in their hip hop influence that floods their music, very clear to see this band have a very bright future ahead of them, with their energy, aesthetic and talent; the scene is going to get to know this band very well. 

Next up we have Bayway, all the way from New Jersey, this band really upped the ante. A massive highlight being of course their vocalist Jayway, who not only was hilarious, but really committed to bringing out the aggression in this crowd; even at one point stepping down to crowd-kill the edges of the pit to get everyone amped.  

Bayway again showed their Hip-Hop influence with lyrics really reflecting their environment in New Jersey as well as mixing rapping with unclean vocals. It honestly sounded like they took Hip-Hop beats and melodies and just make them the heaviest they could, with a killer bass tone, and even heavier guitar tone. The riffs, the drums, the vocals all game together to make them a perfect opener for the next two bands, if you ever see this band, get your two step on because their probably the hardest but funkiest hardcore band I’ve seen.  

Then came Shattered Realm and all hell broke loose, with the nature of the level of hardcore this band bring, the crowd reacted in a similar fashion, the pit filled up with flying fists, some clean as hell fly kicks and just overall chaos. With absolutely the most intense set of the night, majority of the people had to leave the out just due to the pure aggression felt in the room.  

This all fed back into the Hardcore Veterans themselves, giving it their absolute all and showing London what New Jersey Hardcore can do. It seriously did not disappoint, with the most gruff riffs, unclean vocals and drums; bringing an old style of hardcore i’m sure most of the crowd are not used to, but let’s be honest, hardcore of the 90s and 00s was where the genre was at an all time high with the intensity.  

The crowd certainly reflected that with the faster songs making it seem like a bomb of hysteria had gone off, more contact in hits were being made than ever before, the swings got faster and everyone turned into animals it was fantastic. 

Finally Desolated took to the stage, and they proved themselves to be the headliner, first of all announcing to the audience to come closer as the ‘Heavy band just played’, they certainly didn’t hold back either, pulling of a mighty performance and not even with their own gear, due to their van being broken into the night before. They disregarded this fact though, talking about it and their GoFundMe but proceeding to absolutely kill the set with their sheer hardcore dominance; which is just a testament to their insane talent. 

Exploring their discography with their fans to celebrate the new album and new era, with no holding back, more aggression, more intensity and more punches to the face. Vocalist Tony Evans certainly let us know that, with some insanely consistent vocals to couple the bands chemistry to deliver the best set of the night, there was a real sense of community here that was quite beautiful. The fans seemed united by the celebration of the album and the devastation of the robbery, the pain and happiness was shared vicariously through the music, and solidified to me once again that Hardcore fans are the nicest people around.  

Words and Photos: Ben Blisset