The Gigraphy Review - Thy Art Is Murder, Manchester Academy, 23/10/2023

With deathcore icons Thy Art Is Murder back in the UK with not only a new album but also a new vocalist, fans all over have been waiting with bated breath to see the start of the new era of the band. To see what the atmosphere and show was like at their Monday show in Manchester, here's some words from Nic:

For a group that just released an album called ‘Godlike’, Thy Art is Murder certainly received a worshipping reception on arrival at Manchester Academy. This tour had previously sold out an arranged date at the Ritz before being upgraded. Based on the crowd at this show, that’s probably for the best. Here’s what we thought of the night:

Spite

Opening band Spite, from California, may have been the biggest beneficiaries of fans eager getting down to gigs as early as possible post-Covid. The crowd they drew as an opener band here was incredible - a lot of people had the chance to check out a very noteworthy act as they stormed on stage, ironically to the song ‘Made to Please’. Frontman Darius Tehrani is borderline Jonathan Davis levels of animalistic, almost like he’s woken up on the worst possible side of the bed, and is a brilliantly intense presence on stage. At times it's difficult to imagine what he may sound like speaking normally, as after the song ‘Caved In’ he speaks to the crowd entirely in harsh vocals, and for the duration of the set. The brutality is relentless from the crowd, as the band demand a Wall of Death during ‘IED’ before moving into ‘Root of All Evil’ which was heavy enough in parts to make the whole venue shake.

The set was rounded out with most recent single ‘Thank You, Again’ and ‘Dedication to Flesh’ off 2022’s album. They finished the frenzy of a set with ‘Kill or Be Killed’ from 2017’s ‘Nothing is Beautiful’. This group are all energy, all ferocity, and one to remember as far as “first on the bill” bands go. These will be one that need to come back to the UK soon.

Fit for an Autopsy

New Jersey’s Fit for an Autopsy takes the stage in polar opposite fashion to Spite. Low and ominous ambience starts things off, with a deep red lighting that momentarily offsets Pat Sheridan’s neon orange guitar. More the seasoned band, the crowd for Fit for an Autopsy came in that bit fuller, and less violent. They started off the set with ‘A Higher Level of Hate’ from the latest album and ‘Black Mammoth’ from 2017’s ‘The Great Collapse’ , drawing large cheers from the crowd early on as they called for a circle pit. The group have a decent track record of UK dates in 2023, having performed with Thy Art is Murder on their London shows in April, as well as a main stage slot at Bloodstock over the summer (as well as Will Putney having been in the UK at the start of the month with Better Lovers).

Their set is populated mostly with songs from last year's ‘Oh What the Future Holds’ album, moving into ‘Savages’ as a powerful follow up. There’s a brief deviation to play ‘The Sea of Tragic Beasts’ from 2019’s album of the same name, as well as this years ‘Hellions’ from joint EP ‘The Aggression Sessions’. This powerful showing was finished with a duo from ‘Oh What the Future Holds’; ‘Pandora’ and ‘Far From Heaven’. This set was incredibly impactful from the NJ outfit, the only logical step seems to be a FFAA UK Headline.

Whitechapel

In terms of names available on this tour, Whitechapel seemed like the one that was a match made in heaven to be on the road with Thy Art is Murder. Whitechapel have very sparingly stopped in the UK over the last 10 years, and it made for a lot of anticipation leading up to this set. For their first time in Manchester since 2016, the band's ability to create an intense and powerful atmosphere is commendable.

The set opened in much of the same vein as Fit for An Autopsy did before them - ominous, ambient and measured, before their usual furious catalogue of music. They demanded intensity right out of the gate with "I Will Find You", "A Bloodsoaked Symphony" and "The Saw Is the Law". As ever, Phil Bozeman on vocals is a commanding presence. This was somewhat marred by the sound mix on the evening, as it was mainly the drums overpowering everything else over the PA. This seemed to remedy itself in time for them finishing 4th song “We Are One”, though it didn’t prevent the demand for a circle pit being heard loud and clear.

Bozeman takes an opportunity to greet the crowd as well as shout out the bands on the bill, rightfully so as this is a stacked line-up for the deathcore community. They followed this with ‘Forgiveness is Weakness’ and ‘Doom Woods’ from 2019’s ‘The Valley’ as a means of restoring that menacing aura that may have been lost during pleasantries. They end the set with Bozeman promising “Some old shit” to the joy of the crowd. It’s an upsetting realisation that the final three tracks of the set, "End of Flesh", "Prostatic Fluid Asphyxiation’, and ‘This is Exile’, are all nearing, if not over, 15 years old this year as Whitechapel themselves approach two decades in the scene.

Thy Art is Murder

Previously meant to be at the O2 Ritz, this sell-out crowd was beyond ready for some TAIM brutality, only to be met with a VengaBoys tune as a prelude track. The interesting ambiance that it created does show how misrepresented the metal community is though, as the crowd lapped it up. This then gave way to Jesse Beahler taking their place behind the kit for a short opening salvo on the drums as bandmates joined him on stage.

‘Destroyer of Dreams’ acted as an absolute explosion of an opener and was really the only choice for how to kick off a set on the ‘Godlike’ tour, followed by ‘Slaves Beyond Death’ from 2017’s ‘Dear Desolation’. Vocalist Tyler Miller is kitted out in cargos and a bulletproof vest, pouring intensity into the mic with a manic range of facial expression to match - this man is a performer. The signature aggression continues with a combo of songs from 2019’s ‘Human Target ‘, ‘Death Squad Anthem’ and ‘Make America Hate Again’.

Andy Marsh & Sean Delander make for an instrumental hit squad on guitars for ‘Blood Throne’ off the latest album. This is followed by sister track ‘Join Me in Armageddon’, where Jesse Beahler & Kevin Butler have a solid attempt at shaking the foundations of Manchester Academy on drums and bass respectively during the monstrous breakdown in the latter half of the song. The band end an excellent trifecta of songs back-to-back from ‘Godlike’ with the track ‘Bermuda’. A step slower and complete with fake snow for a cinematic edge, this was one of the standout tracks of the night, with Miller spinning beneath the “snowfall” as he belts out the lyric “My Bermuda, ever swallowing”.

‘Human Target’ is our final offering from the eponymous 2019 album, and picks things right back up in terms of ferocity before being followed by a personal favourite, 2015’s ‘Holy War’. The biggest throwback of this set (but also an obvious inclusion) was ‘The Purest Strain of Hate’, which was clearly going to be welcomed by the crowd thanks to there being TAIM’s “Purest Strain” shirts everywhere you looked.

The band concluded the main portion of their set with another trifecta from ‘Godlike’, which started with the title track. The opening scream from Miller was demonic here, and the musicianship from Marsh & Delander, combined with the strobing lights, brought an apocalyptic feeling into the Academy. ‘Keres’ felt like it had legions of people singing along with it instead of just the Academy’s attendance, before the band closed things out with ‘Everything Unwanted’ giving them one last test of fans' endurance.

The usual short interlude passes and Thy Art revisit one of their most iconic periods with ‘Reign of Darkness’ from 2012’s ‘Hate’, first bringing an evil and foreboding atmosphere with it before the crushing instrumentals. Final track of the night went to 2017’s ‘Dear Desolation’ with ‘Puppet Master’ as a means of ending things with a bang. Thy Art’s name has been on everyone's lips since the announcement for this tour went up. This set backed up all that hype.

This was my first time seeing Thy Art since pre-Covid. The band haven't lost any sort of a step and feel like they’re entering another iconic period with the release of ‘Godlike’. This gig felt somewhat special for me personally, having seen Miller’s former band Aversions Crown support Thy Art back in 2014. This of course predated Miller’s time with the group, but it feels like the stars are aligning with how he has stepped into the role since just September, as well as the rise the group have had from playing the small room of Corporation in Sheffield to selling out Manchester Academy. This new age of Thy Art is Murder is going to be heavy and not one you want to miss.