Live Review: Brother Earth / Mower / Cernunnos / Space Witch @ The Bay Horse, Manchester, UK. 2/10/2014

In a murky basement in the Northern Quarter of Manchester city centre, a plethora of brutality is about to unfold. The atmosphere is palpable and there are as many beards and black T shirts in the room as you would expect to watch a band called Space Witch.

Manchester’s own Brother Earth kick off proceedings in splendid fashion, you would never guess this was the bands first gig in the city and only their third overall. Their blend of down tuned doom mixed with psychedelic guitar parts is greeted fondly by the fairly large crowd gathered. Brother Earth also know when to bring the groove as well, and deliver with filthy riffs peppered throughout the doomy onslaught.

Next on is Wigan’s Mower, who are also making their Manchester debut this evening. Despite not releasing a thing, the band are met with an overly positive reaction from the room, many already knowing the words to the trio’s songs. Sounding like the bastard child of The Melvins and Sleep, their half hour set flies by, a blitz of riffs and pummelling drums. The front man Jay is probably the nicest and most scouse man you will ever meet, but you wouldn’t know that when he’s on stage, as he turns into a demented and usually shirtless preacher of bile and aggression.

Cernunnos in truth struggle to follow, their brand of sludge is unnervingly heavy at points and their cumbersome riffs struggle to hit the right mark, in truth it maybe that for this bill they were maybe a little too grim for the crowd.

Rounding the night off in spectacular fashion were the evenings headliners Space Witch, whose brand of instrumental electronic doom creates a sonic wall that entraps all who listen. The use of the electronics laden with riffs, create a trippy as hell vibe that is almost impossible to not space out to.  Played at a biblically loud volume, the 40 minute set merges into one mass of crushing sound that stuns all in its path.

Words by: Dan O’Brien