NOCTIS III METAL FEST & CONFERENCE

I was honoured to find out a few weeks back that I'd be a delegate and speaker at NOCTIS III Metalfest & Conference in Calgary, Alberta Canada. I have done a handful of conferences over the past few years but never a "metal focused" conference. In fact, I'm usually the only, or one of very few, metal-heads in attendance for any of the conferences I attend but luckily Noctis was different. A comforting sea of black t-shirts, leather jackets and long hair was the typical site this past weekend as metal-heads of all ages gathered for NOCTIS III!

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1st:

I arrived on around supper time to the smiling face of one of metal's most knowledgeable enthusiasts, Josh (JP) Wood. Now when I say “metal enthusiast” I mean it! Josh co-hosts a metal radio show on Calgary’s CJSW Radio for nearly ten years (the show has been running an amazing 25 years now!) as well as he created the worlds only Heavy Metal board game ‘Metal Mental Breakdown’ (which is mandatory for all metal-heads to check out!) I had actually met Josh a few weeks back home in Halifax when he was up for a family vacation so it was great to see the only familiar face I would see that weekend. Throughout the evening I decided to join Josh on a few more airport pickups which introduced me to metal journalist legend Martin Popoff as well as Seasons in the Mist CEO Michael Berberian.

After the last pickup, Josh, Michael and I decided it was time for to grab a beer so we headed down to the hotel bar. Despite being rather empty we quickly spotted a table of metal-heads and introduced ourselves only to realize that we were sitting with Chicago’s November’s Doom, a band which I have been following quite closely since their album ‘The Pale Haunt Departure’. I can safely say some of the nicest guys I have met in a long time. A delicious drink and some conversation later and we called it an early night as I eagerly awaited what the festival would bring.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2nd:

Today I would speak on 4-panels covering an array of topics such as ‘Staying Independent by Chance or Choice’, ‘Distro and Endorsements: Earning Income with your Metal Band’, ‘The Roll of Agents and Managers’ and ‘Promotion, Reviews and Radio Play’ plus do some one-on-one mentor sessions... it was going to be a busy day but I was ready for the challenge.

Before the conference was even officially open to the public a swarm of metal-heads were already pouring into the hotel providing a stark contrast to the elegant chandeliers which hung from the conference room ceiling. For the following six hours I either shared knowledge or gained it. When I wasn’t speaking I was listening attentively as some of the greatest minds in the metal world were sharing their thoughts. Journalist, Photographers, Label Rep's, Booking Agents and more!

• To view a full list of this year's delegates please click here.
• To read a great article about the fest as covered Hellbound.ca, click here.

After the conference was completed a few new friends and I found the closest liquor store to stock our rooms for the inevitable after parties and then headed for a meal before making our way to The Distillery for the first nights music.
At dinner we ran into a group of a half-dozen kids who had traveled hours only for the conference not even to see the bands perform. This spoke in volumes to me, as convincing young metal heads to drive hours to see fantastic bands is easy... however, convincing them to drive hours to hear behind the scene and industry folk speak about the current state of metal was almost unimaginable to me. To me that just went to show how much work the Noctis organizers did to ensure the festival was properly promoted and had the greatest minds in the industry.

Due to our extended supper we sadly missed some of the local acts and showed up just as Ares Kingdom hit the stage. There was another big show in town that evening which featured Children of Bodom, The Black Dahlia Murder and Skeletonwitch so many were worried this would hamper the crowd at the Distillery, luckily for all of the us the venue was packed. As we later found out the Distillery packed in double the crowd as the Bodom which again was another testament to the power of this festival. After a solid set by Missouri’s Ares Kingdom, California’s Slough Feg hit the stage and with immense stage presence they whipped through great set rock fueled metal tunes. The evening’s main attraction was Chicago’s November’s Doom who did not disappoint! Powerhouse vocalist Paul Kuhr switched effortlessly between his low rumbling and angelic singing while they performed a captivating set of old and new material.

To close out the first evening was a 3-piece, instrumental act called Truck, which was composed of some of the most talented musicians in the Calgary metal community. These three individuals were not only the masters of their respected instruments but they were skilled at writing energetic and engaging songs which, without a frontman, is no easy task.

The Distillery was within stumbling distance to the hotel so we headed back for a brief but fun afterparty and taking some new and familiar friends along the way. Truth is, anytime metal-heads gather and a hot tub is filled to brim with booze it is a good time and the Friday night was no exception.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3rd:

I awoke in time to grab some breakfast and try an Alberta Caesar. Since the drink was originated in Alberta I had high expectations, yet I was sorely disappointed.... but the delicious breakfast helped balance out.

Around noon time I met up JP Woods and his friend Greg, along with the boys from Slough Feg, we headed out on the town to do some record shopping around the city. Sadly I didn’t end up making any purchases but nonetheless it was a great mini adventure. The boys were flying out later that afternoon so JP, Greg and I met up with Martin Popoff at Vern’s Bar for an afternoon beer and some nachos before heading to MacEwen Hall for night two of Noctis! I have to say sitting and listening to Martin and JP talk is unreal. They are a the almighty knowledge keepers of all things metal!

The set up for Night #2 at Noctis was well laid out; the Mainstage was MacEwan Hall and the Den was the second stage. To ensure no music was missed the bands alternated so bands on the second stage would be performing during change-overs from the main stage. This was killer since I need not miss the fine local talent that was performing.

The night is too plentiful to even write about the awesomeness that I witnessed but I’ll give a few quick highlights.

Begrime Exemious and Exit Strategy both performed on the mainstage and rightfully so! Begrime is hell-filled black metal and Exit Strategy balances technical death metal with a healthy dose of grind. Both of these bands are at the top tier of their respective genres and could hold their own with many of the industry’s finest.

On the second stage I witness some youthful local talent in Hrom whose take on power metal was impressive. Their singer could hit some crazy vibrato notes! If you are into Rhapsody or their ilk… this is a band to watch. Another fantastic local act, which headlined second stage was Death Toll Rising, who played a killer set of melodic and aggressive thrash.

In addition to the fine local talent, I was lucky enough to witness such great bands as Aura Noir, Destroyer 666, Suffocation and Cynic.Cynic was quite possibly the greatest live performance I had ever witnessed! From the opening notes they performed flawlessly through material from Focus and Traced in Air. In fact, to see two drumming gods, Mike Smith (Suffocation) and Sean Reinert (Cynic) perform in the same night was a definite highlight.

After the performance it was time for another after party with a freshly stocked hot-tub full of booze. Sadly the hotel staff didn’t quite share the enthusiasm of the metal-heads and the party was short lived. Lucky for us we still had a moderate supply in my hotel room so Josh Woods, his friend Greg and I were joined by Justin Bender and Paul Masvidal for some more beers and some causal music talk until the early hours of the morning.

All in all, I couldn’t have been more pleased with NOCTIS III Metalfest & Conference! I met some amazing people, saw some killer bands, and most of all had fun. Thanks to Terese and everyone at Scarab Metal Productions for making the amazing weekend possible.