On Saturday G.U.M (Greek Underground Music) presented the first of (what we assume to be) more fests, consisting of four bands that roughly played between 40-50 minutes each. Two, I knew already: Mahalaka have been high profiling my musical preferences for some time now, and having released their new concept album two months ago, I could not resist paying close attention to the occult thematology which I find mischievously engaging. Black Hat Bones I had seen once before, receiving their promo four track teaser (from their upcoming album) in late 2011. The album is still under construction two and a half years later. The other two bands Burn the Sun and Forsaken Memoriam were new additions to my Greek band database.
Burn the Sun played a continental take on the Desert rock foundations with high tempo power trips amidst all the sand blow back and instrumental parts that brought about something refreshing to a genre that has been played and played since the late 80’s. I heard decent compositions that did not verbatim resemble their sources of inspiration (Kyuss, Unida, Slo Burn, Hermano), impressive high pitched sustained notes, and these were enough to secure a good first impression. The front man’s timid nature whilst addressing the audience in between tracks in contrast with the fervency of his playing was also a winning factor on the modesty meter, as opposed to bands that have offered a lot less on live performances, yet interact in a way that does not do their mediocre music any good. All in all, Burn the Sun are a band I would like to see again, given a taste of their classic Desert riffs rendered with a relished burning desire to differentiate from others of the same musical field. To read the full article click here
Helen Marie Joyce 