I arrived Friday evening in time to catch the last half of Novembers Doom’s set, which was exemplary. Supporting the five-star To Welcome The Fade (Dark Symphonies), these Chicago doom-meisters invoked UK’s My Dying Bride with every dismal chord and proved that they are the premier doom band on this side of the Atlantic. Heading upstairs to the perpetually packed second stage to catch Bongzilla, we stood through hardcore act With Honor’s set and marveled at the kids in the pit throwing kung fu kicks and Matrix-like moves with incredible fluidity. Wisconsin’s Bongzilla then took the stage and, after a false start due to a blown amp head, proceeded to crush all bystanders with their smothering, Sabbath-on-quaaludes, slo-mo doom, including “Keefmaster” off their finest hour, Gateway (Relapse). While hanging out with the cast of Mazur PR and Relapse Records, Boston hardcore mavens Diecast were cranking up on the main stage. Their crowd-pleasing cover of Slayer’s “Reign In Blood” set the inevitable tone for the rest of the night. Italy’s Lacuna Coil were next, and although their goth melodrama appeals to a huge metal contingent (some fans came only to see LC), their delivery was laughable and somewhat preposterous (note the male band members wearing skirts) to the hardened rivetheads. They represented their new album Comalies (Century Media) well, but the male/female vocal sparring of Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro ultimately was a bit too much to swallow. After an unexpectedly early set by the dreadlocked Shadows Fall, Seattle’s prog/power metallers Nevermore were venomous in their attack, which was expected since the band hasn’t released any new material in three long years. Much like Testament’s Chuck Billy after so many beers, vocalist Warrell Dane demonstrated in no uncertain terms that thrash is back and metal lives again as he hoisted fans onstage for impromptu moshing and singing. These lucky schmucks gave the bouncers quite a run for their paychecks that night and the whole scene was a humorous sight to behold. Without a doubt, Nevermore’s forthcoming Enemies Of Reality (Century Media) will scream off the shelves later this year. Sweden’s Opeth polished off day one with rightful aplomb as they chose their heavier fare over the mellower material off the recent Damnation (Koch Int’l) album—which, of course, is exactly what the fans wanted. “Deliverance,” “The Drapery Falls,” even the rarely performed “Face Of Melinda” from 1999’s Still Life spotlighted the band’s signature synthesis of classic metal and progressive rock, wowing the audience with every note. After exiting the venue in the sea of people, we shared a hotel room with the editor of Eclipse magazine and Digitalmetal.com and stayed up chatting with old friends until the wee hours.

Saturday started off in fine fashion with Philadelphia’s terse instru-metal-ists Dysrhythmia on the mainstage. Chatting with guitarist Kevin Hufnagel beforehand revealed that, thanks in part to producer Steve Albini, the band achieved a warmer sound on their new album, Pretest (Relapse), than on previous releases. And how! The adept trio blasted through their half-hour set as if King Crimson were jamming with a punkier Death or Cynic, though only the early-bird fans who got out of bed by noon were blessed with Dysrhythmia’s wicked jazz-metal recital. After a stupendous lunch at a local Salvadorean eatery, we returned to the grim reality of having missed both New Orleans black-metal saviors Goatwhore and Seattle thrashcore enthusiasts Himsa because of no-show bands, causing the stages to be ahead of schedule for once. Sitting through the Canadian hyperblast of Kataklysm, the air was charged for Atlanta’s Mastodon, who gave one of the top performances of the weekend. Drawing from the bulk of their Remission (Relapse) album, Mastodon simply ruled the stage from start to finish, and one would’ve been hard pressed to hear a non-positive comment about their set. Next up was /Speed\Kill/Hate\, made up of Overkill members excepting Bobby Blitz Ellsworth and D.D. Verni. Their old-school take on punky thrash metal was interesting but not terribly inspiring, but that didn’t make any difference when followed by Canada’s Strapping Young Lad. Opening with the feral “Oh My Fucking God,” frontman Devin Townsend screamed hilarious insults between songs while priming the moshpit nonstop with classic cuts and a few from their blistering new self-titled record on Century Media. Drummer Gene Hoglan was a absolute whirlwind of arms, hair, and metal grimaces behind the kit, making it all look so, so easy. Florida’s Shai Hulud naturally couldn’t dream of topping SYL and didn’t, but the crowd braced for Tampa’s Hate Eternal, led by former Morbid Angel axegrinder Erik Rutan. Their maelstrom of hyperspeed death bled into the following ho-hum set of hardcore standard-bearers Converge, neither being very memorable. What proved to be unforgettable, however, was the triumphant return of New York death-metal masters Suffocation after five years of inactivity. Vocalist Frank Mullen even brought his little daughter onstage to see the crowd, which was deafeningly supportive as the band delved into their back catalog—“Thrones Of Blood,” “Effigy Of The Forgotten,” et al.—and previewed new material. (Here’s another new album that will move more than a few units upon its release later this year.) Swedish acts The Haunted and Meshuggah were intense but not incredible, as both bands seemed to be feeding off the now-waning energy of a tired crowd. Not even half the audience stayed for the final performance of the night—New Orleans grease-rock jockeys Superjoint Ritual—but it wasn’t hard to understand why. Their set of groove-based, derivative rock was mediocre at best, punctuated by the drunken babbling of Pantera frontman Phil Anselmo, though only a brave few stayed behind to hear it. Regardless, with exceptional shows by Opeth, Bongzilla, Mastodon, Dysrhythmia, Nevermore, Strapping Young Lad, and Suffocation, the 2003 New England Metalfest was decidedly the best concert of the year.