Suburban Nightmare Festival 2012

The Apex Masonic Lodge, although not your typical show space, had a great turnout Saturday, October 13th, for Suburban Nightmare Festival. This event was thrown by David Baird (of Asheville's Drunk In A Dumpster) as his own pre-birthday gathering. Although this is the first time Baird has put on Suburban Nightmare fest, he wishes to make it a yearly event!

Raleigh's Last Words opened with a display of their own brand of purely viral piercing screams and crushing high-speed hardcore punk riffs. This female-fronted act set the mood for the night as their mosh parts commanded a handful of the individuals present to stomp violently from one side of the room to the other.

After Last Words was Baird's band, Drunk In A Dumpster, based out of Asheville. Their punk rock assault induced fear in the audience as David moved along the front of the crowd, pushing away anyone who dared stand in his path. I really enjoyed Baird's stage presence.

Just Die! - picture by Alex Altgibers

Next was Just Die!, another band from Asheville. Just Die! plays melodic hardcore yet stays true to hardcore punk roots - a good mix of styles! The vocalist made a point to explain the meaning of each song before played. It was definitely inspirational, anything but preachy! Nice dudes playing good music - awesome! Really enjoyed their set.

After Just Die! were punk rockers Commonwealth of American Natives (Tennesse) and oldschool punk band Random Conflict (Alabama). Both played high-energy sets with decent crowd interaction. I unfortunately missed a large portion of C.O.A.N.'s set, but what I saw I enjoyed! As for Random Conflict, you've really got to respect them for still playing music after all these years.

Abuse - picture by Mike Deloatch

Raleigh's Abuse unleashed hell with their brutal onslaught of truly devastating fastcore/power violence. These guys seriously get better each time I see them! Can't get enough of their unforgiving blast beats and fresh riffs. They ended their set with their infamous Infest cover.

No Tomorrow (Wilmington) shed blood with their soul-churning d-beats and deep, groaning vocals. No Tomorrow's absolutely filthy crust destruction was relentless and crushing. After having seen them a handful of times, I can honestly say this was my favorite time seeing them!

Mutilation Rites - picture by Alex Altgibers

Last, but not least, was Mutilation Rites, a black metal act from New York.  The drummer's blast beats did not cease for a single second. The vocalist's high-pitched, strangulated vocals cast a grim shadow over the audience as a wall of tremolo-picked madness violently moved in on the crowd.

Overall, I had a great time at this festival! I'm glad so many people from Raleigh, and surrounding areas, made it out to Apex on a Saturday night. Would love to see shows at that space more. Let's hope that Baird has another Suburban Nightmare fest next year with equally crushing bands!