Do you prefer it when a band makes you feel a) happy, b) sad, or c) like you’re being smashed over the head repeatedly with an iron bar?
If it’s one of the first two, then maybe music isn’t your thing. But if it’s the latter of these choices, then seek out Metz immediately. The Toronto trio played last night at the Bowery Ballroom and rocked so hard that blood was spilled. Quite literally.
Three songs into their set of visceral, pulsating noise-punk, bassist Chris Slorach was forced to leave the stage for a couple of minutes to take care of a nosebleed. The eruption of claret was triggered after he was hit square in the face by a projectile thrown by an overexcited member of the crowd. It wasn’t done in malice- it’s just that Metz’s hardcore onslaught is the sort of music that elicits extreme reactions. And those ones are often the best.
The brutal sound they created filled the Bowery Ballroom in a way that seemed reminiscent of Husker Du’s earliest and most intense gigs. That thrilling racket was topped off by the unearthly screams of Alex Edkins. To look at him, the bespectacled singer seems like the kind of guy who stays at home on Friday nights to do advanced algebra problems for fun. But onstage, he comes across as a hardcore Incredible Hulk, screaming with an inhuman rage on songs like “Wet Blanket” and the aptly named “Headache”- both of which are from their self-titled debut album which was one of the finest of last year.
40 minutes was all they played, but it was long enough to leave a lasting impression- both mental and physical. As a result, watching any other band after witnessing Metz in full-flow is bound to be a let down.