Blood Ceremony And Witch Mountain at the Hard Luck Bar

     This week in Toronto is North By North East (or NXNE) where over 700 bands play a giant music festival throughout the city. However, one of the best shows of the week was not part of NXNE. Castle, Blood Ceremony and Witch Mountain played on Wednesday night at the Hard Luck Bar. I was at the show to see Blood Ceremony specifically, but all 3 bands put on a good set.

     I arrived at the bar and met a friend outside around 9:30 so we only caught the last few songs from Castle but what we heard was solid. From the few songs that we heard I would give the band a 7/10 and would probably check them out again next time they play a show.

     The second band to go on was Blood Ceremony. I have been to many of their concerts and they never fail to bring the Sabbath style Stoner/Doom Metal. Last night was no exception and they played a mixed set from both of their studio albums as well as one song that has yet to be recorded. They finished the night with the song Oliver Haddo and didn't come back for an encore despite the crowd's chants. Because they didn't come back for an extra song they get a 9/10. This may have been their last hometown show for the year as they tend to tour in Europe and are recording their third studio album this summer.

     The final band of the night was Witch Mountain from Portland, Oregon. I was not previously too familiar with their music but they were a sweet Doom Metal band with a bluesy female vocalist. All of their songs were good and they finished off their regular set with an 11 minute epic. Witch Mountain listened to the audience and stayed to play and encore song. I would love to see this band again and give them an 8/10



     I have an all-show pass for NXNE so expect some more concert reviews soon!