LIVE REPORT: SulfuriS
Playhouse Bar; March 7th, 2024
Helsinki Metal Live Underground
It seems like only yesterday that I was at Playhouse bar in Vallila for a show… because it was. After having just been there the night before for March’s Love Potion Club, I returned yet again the next day (shout-out to the venue for having me back!) because SulfuriS were playing and I’ve been missing their shows for far too long now. Fronted by a friend of mine whom you may remember from the Musicalypse days (and more recently from the rare Vincent Hates Everything articles at Tuonela Magazine), it was far past time for me to see them, so I headed back into Helsinki again to check out their set, which was between two other artists that I didn’t manage to catch, Abstrakt and Nervebreak.
As mentioned, I actually really like Playhouse Bar, because it’s a small, comfortable, and intimate setting for bands to play in (I’m happier the smaller the crowd). I’m not sure who organizes the Thorsdag-klubi, but whoever it was picked a few good acts, at least according to SulfuriS’ vocalist, Vincent Lilium, who was obviously there for the full set of gigs. Since I had a partner to fetch from work, however, I arrived just in time to see SulfuriS’ set before having to rush off.
The sets were off to a bit of a late start, which was okay by me since I had been just barely on time for the original start of the show. When SulfuriS took the stage, they were off to a HARD AND LOUD start, holy crap. What a bad day for me to forget to bring earplugs. Furthermore, while I have listened to SulfuriS on Spotify a bit, they started releasing music right around the time that my interest in the metal scene started to die, so I confess that I don’t know their music as well as I should. That said, the live performances really brought things to another level! I know that frontman Vincent Lilium also has performed in a Motörhead cover band called Iron Wrist, but this was the first time I had seen him playing bass and I could sense some of that Lemmy flare in the way he rocks relentlessly. He’s also a fair hand (haha) at growling too!
The band members each had their own interesting visual style: Vincent had tight pants, striped wrist covers, and a spiky collar, while one guitarist looked a bit like a casual hippy in brown cargo pants and a T-shirt, with the other in shorts, high socks, a mesh undershirt covered with a Spice Girls T-shirt, and an officer’s hat. The drummer, simply enough, was shirtless and covered in tattoos. The completely different styles only work when everyone in the band is different from one another, so this was just fine.
Some of their tracks included “Malleus Maleficarum,” which was very heavy and shredding, and my personal favorite of the night, “Rigor Mortis.” Many of the songs had fun introductions, with the latter of those aforementioned tracks being dedicated to those out there who don’t have quite enough strength to make it through life, and not to worry because death solves all problems. One of the cymbals fell over towards the end of their show, but the drummer managed just fine without it for the rest of that song, and overall, they had a really good sense of melody, paired with a lot of heaviness and growling… ultimately, a very solid and enjoyable performance. I could use a little more life/excitement from the guitarists, but they did loosen up after a few tracks. Next time, I’m going to need those earplugs though! If you catch SulfuriS playing some live shows and you like your metal heavy, do check them out!
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