LIVE FROM THE PIT: Metal To The Masses Manchester - Quarter Final 4

We're back at Rebellion tonight for the fourth and final quarter-final round of Manchester's Metal To The Masses. The cultural home of the city's local music scene, the venue has hosted some of the best emerging bands, with irreplaceable memories slathered in sticky floors and dripping ceilings. Amongst the lively raucousness of show-goers, there is the unmistakable claim that they made their moment count.

Tonight's entertainment is courtesy of contending artists Phallic Rage, Syntara, Swole Castrati and Technologist, with a headline performance from North West metal legends Divintas. Only two will go through to the competition's semi-finals, based on a crowd vote and the other by the judges for the evening, respectively. 

The competition's finals will decide which band will be playing the iconic New Blood stage at Bloodstock Festival. It’s a battle-of-the-bands style showdown, and the pressure is on! 

Phallic Rage

The arrival of the first band began with the frantic inflation of blow-up cows as the main crowd lingered near the pit, with cow-ear headbands anticipating the Rage. Not just any rage, Phallic Rage.

Now at OOR, we know a thing or two about raging (it's in our namesake, and we know it), but this set was pure hedonistic fun, championed by five blokes and their riff-centric sludgy rock. The vocalist has a Brent Hinds quality to his voice as he churned up the pit, introducing the crowd to their bovine-infused music: He begins as he means to go on: "We're Phallic Rage and this is our song Phallic Rage."

Whilst the connection between crowd and cow had been somewhat lost, they certainly put on a good show and wanted to win, throwing crocheted dicks around as they stormed through each of their hit songs. Fuelled by innuendos, inside jokes and a love of the scene that the crowd seemed to reciprocate, they pushed through the last song, bringing with them a man in an inflatable cow costume. With an impressive final chant of "Phallic Rage" to end the set, they made an impressive effort at making the most of their hometown crowd.

Syntara

Tensions are high. There is a coveted spot at Bloodstock Festival up for grabs. When emo-rock quartet Syntara exploded onto the stage with their metalcore-infused riffs, there was a uniform headbopping, appreciating the band's reaching harmonies as the first song hit its dramatic choruses.

Sporting two headless guitars, the band made the most of the Manchester crowd. Their stage presence was more suited to an indie rock band, with mullets and white t-shirts, but they pulled impressive punches when it came to their riffs. Adding melt-in-your-mouth buttery vocals, it was reminiscent of early 2000s emo (and yes, the resemblance to the iconic Stuff Dylans was staggering). If I were 14, I would have loved this-  but at this point in the set, we were waiting for more-  a scream, some genre-defying moment. The band were tight, well-rehearsed and professional, outsiders to the inside jokes that preceded with Phallic Rage.

Then the pits opened, like sunshine on a rainy day, opening up the possibility of a The Plot In You or a Bad Omens style set. The second half of this set was textured, emotive and looking for a fight. Impressive, especially for a band that looked that young. If they don't capture the hearts of Metal To The Masses, with time and dedication, there could be a category 5 hurricane named Syntara in the near future.

Swole Castrati

If you didn't think there could be a second penis-inspired band, meet Swole Castrati. Bordering on the more violent end of noise, the correct term for this style of music is defribulator punk, instantly shocking the audience with their fast-paced riffs, abrasive beats and loud gang chants.

If their goal is to make the fastest-paced music possible, they're definitely on to a winner. However, the beginning of their set was overwhelmed with noise, and it was hard to truly appreciate the moment. 

When the band slowed down, there was glimmering moments of greatness, wielding a harmonica like there is no tomorrow. One truly empowering factor of tonight's competition is the impressive variation of genres and sounds making their mark on the rebellion stage.

Technologist

Certainly the most 'Bloodstock-esque' band of the evening, Technologist was a band built on wielding pointy guitars and windmilling their impressive hair. Sounding similar to bands like Sylosis and Tremonti, the band leaned into the more melodic style of traditional metal, cauterising the crowd's affection for the band with dramatic pre-choruses building into a swell of emotion as soon as the chorus hits. 

Arguably, taking into account that they were the last of the competing bands of the evening, they also drew the biggest crowd. The band were exceptionally tight musically and loving playing in front of the crowd, who managed to craft an impressive circle pit. The vocalist had wildman energy, with a glint of unpredictability in his eyes, showing off his impressive dance moves. 

Divinitas

The guest headliners tonight were local metal band Divinitas. Having competed in the competition last year, the band were back to show off their new album ‘It’s All Gone Quiet Now’, which was released earlier this year. Incorporating a seamless fusion of prog, screamo and metalcore, they also blend the uplifting elements of black metal to make a truly impactful performance. 

Whilst there were some tech issues at the beginning of the set, the whole unit performed wonderfully, showcasing each member's talents (and a lot of that mid-2010s tapping which should definitely become fashionable again). Vocalist Andy Mac was phenomenal, a real performing talent that made his presence known and was technically brilliant, even having a moment away from the mic to show off his scream. The future of Manchester’s metal scene is bright. 

A great performance from all the bands performing that evening, and an even better demonstration of the dedication of the Manchester underground community coming together to support their scene. The winners of the competition were Phallic Rage and Technologist, who advanced to the next round.