CREATURE – Ill Vision – Brookehorse – Hollow Bones unload at The Asylum

A brilliant night at The Asylum with CREATURE, Ill Vision, Brookehorse, and Hollow Bones. Four bands of slightly differing rock genres, but together it worked.

CREATURE – Ill Vision – Brookehorse – Hollow Bones

The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023

Words and Photography: Andy Shaw

CREATURE

Creature - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
CREATURE – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Finishing their Haunt Tour with a home town gig, CREATURE sauntered onto the stage with Dan Willet creating sounds on his bass to create a haunting introduction to proceedings. They kicked off with All, from the Haunt EP, and we knew what we were in for, with James Thompson leading the way with his stunning vocals and guitar.

Creature - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
CREATURE – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Next was Lifeless, followed by an older track Witch’s Grip, and you could easily see that their brand of Metallic Hardcore has been perfectly honed over many years.

Creeping, Lunar and Black Dog followed. The crowd were certainly getting into the vibe of the evening, and a couple of members of the band responded by coming into the crowd to feed off the energy created.

Creature - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
CREATURE – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

This was turning out to be a perfect way to spend a Friday evening. New Age Suffrage was followed by another track from Haunt EP, Grey Ghosts.

Hella Rock Festival

In full flow now, Tom Bradshaw on drums was pounding away so hard that a replacement snare drum was required, as he had destroyed it.

Creature - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
CREATURE – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

The set ended with The Sea, then a final one from Haunt EP in Lines. I really hope we see these guys playing on bigger stages soon and that they get the acclaim they deserve.

Creature - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
CREATURE – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Ill Vision

Ill Vision - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Ill Vision – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

With plenty of gnarly riffs and crashing vocals, Ill Vision kicked off with Vulture before a couple from their self-titled EP in Idle Blue and Sunken.

Ill Vision - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Ill Vision – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Under his baseball cap, vocalist Matt Collins perfectly complimented the rest of the band and had The Asylum crowd eating out of his hand. They blasted through Chaser, Soul Sick and Bitter End.

Ill Vision - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Ill Vision – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

The rest of the band, guitarist Jake Murray, bassist Dave Shepherd and drummer Mitch Dornan, created a really tight sound that had everyone moving.

Ill Vision - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Ill Vision – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

They ended with three songs from their Coma Culture EP, Save Face, Coma Culture and Death Glow. Another brilliant set from a band who knows their thing.

Brookehorse

Brookehorse - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Brookehorse – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Taking up the baton were Brookehorse, a four-piece Post-Hardcore band from Birmingham. Kicking off with Cognitive Dissonance, the title track of their latest EP, and, as before, we soon knew what we were in for.

Brookehorse - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Brookehorse – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Next was Day By Day, followed by Not The Same and Brookehorse looked like they were enjoying every minute. Frontman Dan Gilliver was treating us to some brilliant vocal dexterity, from screams to growls and lots of sweat in what was quite a pot-boiler of a room.

Brookehorse - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Brookehorse – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Next was Fed A Line, from their Cognitive Dissonance EP, followed by Suffice To Say, then Complacency.

Brookehorse - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Brookehorse – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

The set ended with Coming Up Short. If the proverbial baton was handed on, then the challenge was certainly accepted as this was a brilliant performance.

Hollow Bones

Hollow Bones - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Hollow Bones – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

First up were local punk band Hollow Bones, who hit the stage and started as they meant to go on, ripping through songs and generally having a good time.

Hollow Bones - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Hollow Bones – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Frontman Jenk didn’t bother with the stage but interacted with the crowd. From the opening song Limb, we knew what we were going to get. Next was Bonz, followed by Snarehips and a song from their Burn It Down EP, Teeth.

Hollow Bones - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Hollow Bones – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

Jenk was prowling, singing and shouting, giving the whole performance fantastic energy. All of the songs were short, sweet and to the point, reeling off Coin, Arrows, Forever Wicked and Mistakes.

Hollow Bones - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Hollow Bones – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

By now, Jenks’ t-shirt was off, and the sweat was pouring from him. The intensity of the music never lets up, and they finished the set with Drag, The Spare and Leech. Boom, what a great start to the night.

Hollow Bones - The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023
Hollow Bones – The Asylum, Birmingham – 19 May 2023. Photo: Andy Shaw/MetalTalk

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