Newcastle upon Tyne stoner metal behemoth Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs (henceforth referred to as ‘Pigs x7’) partnered with lo-fi fuzz pop garagesters The Paranoyds for an evening of good loud fun at Ballard’s venerable Tractor Tavern earlier this week. The somewhat unlikely English metal act took the stage to the made to order klaxon call of AC/DC’s ‘For Those About to Rock’, which was an appropriate foreshadowing of the din that was to follow. I’ve heard plenty of truly LOUD metal bands over the years but never anything that approached the sheer air moving, floor shaking impact of Pigs x7 at the Tractor.
The band drew heavily from their most recent release, ‘Death Hilarious’, opening with the punishing, repetitive riffs of ‘The Wyrm’ before transitioning into an innervating Black Sabbath meets Melvins workout after the song’s first bridge. Pigs x7 aren’t shy about acknowledging their allegiance to Sabbath, cramming the bulk of their tunes with Tony Iommi style drop tuned sledgehammer riffs and a substrate rattling bass that would make Geezer Butler green with envy.
While the entire Pigs x7 crew is top notch and worthy of note, frontman Matthew Baty is the band’s visual focus and an absolute marvel of non-stop fist pumping physical activity and enthusiasm. He reminds me a lot of Idles’ front guy Joe Talbot, but where Idles leans punk and seems to draw from hardcore and noise influences, Pigs x7 is all about the Sabbath.
The Paranoyds set the table for Pigs x7 with a fun and upbeat set of garage-ish guitar rock. Their comparatively breezy (and somewhat quieter) performance paired nicely with the headliner, and they were rewarded with a warm and appreciative response from the capacity audience.
