Hell is hot. Hell is very very fucking hot. I now know that if my anti-god belief happens to be wrong and I do go to hell that not only can I stand it but I'll actually enjoy it because Deathfest 6 was an inferno. 9 hours, 450-500 people, no air conditioning in an underground venue painted entirely black and an ambient temperature in the 30's is not good for those of us too cheap for drinks...

Inspite of being surrounded by bratty trendy kids and being virtually alone in the blistering sunshine while cuing (Gib finally turned up at 2... when the doors were due to open) and then being too broke to buy anything inside, Deathfest 2005 was amazing on every level, good laughs, good bands and some great snaps for the album.

Opening the days proceedings were Brummies Endless Torment, recently having added one of The Enchanted's guitarists to the fold. While their material was a bit on the slow side for Death Metal they made up for it with a good dose of interesting riffs and the odd burst of speed, although I would complain that their singer tries a bit too hard to get the crowd going (you don't need to shout at us every 3 seconds). Still it was a great start and their new material sounds very promising.

Comedic Death Mettalers Amputated (Featuring members of Desecration and Funeral for a Friend (?!)) followed things up nicely with infamous classics like Raped with a Jackhammer, a good dose of humor and above all; a massive injection of speed, great stuff.

Nailed were the only downer of the day, feeling somewhat directionless for my taste. Didn't get along with the vocals either.

And so we come to last of the unsigned crop: Putrefy. To be honest with a name like Putrefy and songs like Raped by Rednecks my expectations were low... I am very glad to say that I was wrong. Putrefy offered a superb mix of Dismember and Dying Fetus up to a heat exhausted crowd, mixing sheer brutality and a high degree of musicianship with that wonderful evil guitar tone so fondly associated with Stockholm Death Metal. A great band that let the music do all the talking.

After an hour long respite from the audio carnage (people were literally falling asleep on the underworld floor during this time) Brit Black Mettalers Screamin' Demon took to the stage, again my expectations were low and very thoroughly dashed... Somewhat comical lyrics based around many of the most infamous serial killers in the UK, complete with some excellent stage banter ("...dear old Harold (Shipman) has been struck off the rolls of life itself"), fused superbly with frenzied raw Black Metal notched up the bar set by Amputated and Putrefy.

A rapid changeover heralded Holland's Prostitute Disfigurement. Charging straight into the fray after a short intro their band and their music were a living blur of violent anger in the best Disgorge/Obscenity fashion. Nothing overwhelming in terms of creativity or style but when you're that frenzied on stage who gives a crap anyhow, plus they had some great riffs up their sleeves too.

And now the main event for myself and Gib: The only other imported band on the bill, Spain's Avulsed. After a short instrumental intro Avulsed put on every Death Metal fan's dream stage performance, charging headfirst into the headbanging masses. Their set was tight and superbly executed with tracks from all 5 of their albums. Singer Dave Rotten stole the show in godlike style, never leaving the edge of their stage, thrusting the mike in people's mouths (mine included) and even stagediving more than once. Absolutely stunning on every level.

Gorerotted provided amusing stage banter ("this is a new song...cheer you cunts!") and had a good show of support their new material impressing me a lot more than their old stuff.

A now depleted audience of exhausted, dehydrated and just plain tired Metalheads welcomed headliners Cancer with as much strength as thewy could muster. Thankfully Cancer where on top form and rewarded those of us who had slogged it out to the bitter end with a selection of old classics and cuts from their new album, the newer songs in particular really striking home, being everything a reunion should be about, undeniably the same band but not stuck in the past at all. Cancer proved that they are a new beast, poised and ready to destroy all who doubt them. Stunning stuff and a superb use of £12. Big thanks to Arcane for this one.

Endless Torment

Amputated

Puterfy

Screamin' Daemon

Prostitute Disfigurement

Avulsed

Gorerotted

Cancer