On Thursday, September 17, 2015, Justin Broadrick and G.C. Green of the absolutely crushing, Godflesh, made their Boston stop on the current North American tour in support of the latest album, A World Lit by Fire, with tour support from experimental noise artist, Prurient (Dominick Fernow).
Seemingly few people knew about this show as evidenced by the poor attendance of maybe 150 people, which I can only attribute to the shamefully non-existent show promotion by whomever was saddled with that task in the area. For that reason, I really think there should be some pink slips issued. Godflesh has been in the area exactly one other time in the past 16 or so years. It’s not as if they are some unknown band or some guys from around the corner that sound like everyone else. Having influenced so many with their unique sound since their inception in 1988 Godflesh can’t be categorized as anything but terms like legends, game changers or innovators. Whatever, if you don’t know who they are then you have some serious homework to do ’Mr. and Ms. Metalhead.’ My point is that there should have been at least as many people as had attended their last show in Boston in 2014 and it is a sad comment on the area that there weren’t, whatever the lame excuse or cause.
Just before 9:45pm, Prurient pretty much exploded onto the stage and began his auditory assault. Smashing sound gizmos and gadgets(clearly technical terms) laid out on a table with a laptop and microphones then throwing himself around the stage while screaming inaudible sounds or words into the mic. I found the performance kind of mesmerizing and enjoyed every minute of it. If you don’t like noise artists then it may have been time to get a drink at the bar but if you do, then this was the set for you. Full of energy and interesting to watch with great sound to match.
Godflesh hit the stage and did not disappoint. Not only did they sound amazing, the projections that they are known for set the mood perfectly in the moderately sized venue. The majority of the set list obviously comprised tracks from the recent A World Lit by Fire, which I like a lot, but there were some “classics” as well. Ferocious songs like ‘Crush My Soul,’ ‘Streetcleaner,’ ‘Christbait Rising’ and of course ‘Like Rats’ to close out the night. Whether it was a new or old song, each one hit you square in the chest and left you wanting more. The sound for them was a bit quieter than I expected for the venue but was completely on point otherwise and the lighting for the set, although dark and moody, was the best I have seen there which in my experience has been stagnant an uninteresting.
Other than an extremely disinterested (to the point of ignoring customers), slow and very late merch guy and the lack of any real local show promotion, I have zero complaints. Go see this tour if and when it rolls through. It’s worth every second.
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WORDS AND PHOTOS BY HILLARIE JASON