Deliciously brutal UK Hardcore Thrash band Fates Messenger wasted no time unleashing their fast, vicious sound on the crowd at The Black Heart in a recent appearance with earthtone9. Formed from the ashes of Above All, Romeo Must Die, and Dishonour the Crown, this newly formed 4-piece have taken the best from their collective experience and built a raw, heavy sound that I have no doubt will soon be storming through venues.
Fates Messenger – The Black Heart, London – 4 August 2024
Words: Lucy Dunnet
We were transported from the black depths of the venue to the fiery pits of hell, with red lights and smoke machines engulfing the stage and such fast riffs and drums that the hounds of hell themselves were summoned. I found myself locking eyes with guitarist Ron D, whose perfect death stare made it impossible not to be absorbed in their performance.
The break in my reverie came when vocalist Tony Maddocks smashed the mic back and forth against his mouth, creating a sound I can only describe as “guttural reverberation that transcends metallic expectations.”
He later informed me that he had witnessed Vincent Bennett of The Acacia Strain do something similar and fancied giving it a shot. A shot he practised for the first time THAT MORNING. Uncertain if the technique has an official name, I am henceforth referring to it as the Tony Scream.
“It’s bloody roasting in here,” exclaimed Tony, before diving straight into one of their first singles Bonechapel, which aptly starts with the line “each step we take, towards the flames..move!”
With the temperature rising, it was not only our heads that began moving at the command but also the visible sweat on most of the band’s foreheads. The wild speed of their riffs and thunderous drum beats made it a real neck ache to keep up the headbanging pace, so helicopter headbanging became the preferred technique for most of the front row.
They may not have gotten a pit out of us, but heads were banging, legs were twitching violently, and screams erupted from even the most unmoving figures at the back of the venue.
One such figure could be overheard discussing the brilliant savagery of “Fates Fury”. He may have gotten the band’s name wrong, but can you blame him? Fast and furious, Fates Messenger certainly delivered the message that they are a feral new force to be reckoned with.
Fates Messenger released their new single, Serpents Coil, in June, a song that “compares humans to snakes and protection with family and friends,” says Tony Maddocks. “When we are isolated and alone, we are vulnerable, but when tightly coiled together, we are strong. So many are affected by pain and trauma. As snakes shed their skin, we want to shed this pain and trauma to become stronger.”
Their debut single Scars, an unapologetic hailstorm of noise, was released earlier this year. “The lyrical theme to this song came to me while I was reading a heartbreaking story in the media about a teenager who had taken their life due to the ongoing bullying and abuse they had suffered online and physically within their social circles,” vocalist and lyricist Tony Maddocks said.
“A cruel and sad reflection on just how inhumane and vicious humans can be in this harsh new world which we have created, where there’s no escape from this kind of mental and physical abuse and how the smallest comment can have a long-lasting effect on a person’s life whether it be face to face or online.”
