Thursday, September 28, 2023

Death Metal, When Bands Fall from Grace

Its painful...a popular band begins its decline.  The members begin bickering and looking to branch off on their own.  Critics get downright mean.  Record sales plummet.  Desperation seeps in to figure out new material.  Record labels don't return phone calls.  Satan emerges with a horde of demons to possess and rip the talent apart.  Wait...what?  You heard me.  It will be gory, scary, and perhaps a good metaphor for the music industry and the ephemeral nature of popularity and adoration.  Today's feature is shocking horror at its loudest, 2023's "Death Metal," written and directed by Michaël Kuciak.

Abyssinister is a metal band on the downfall.  The above description applies to them.  Ivan (Nico Zahniser) leads his musical faux satanists on what is shaping up to be their last tour.  Their European tour was a failure...except for one factor.  Ivan managed to pick up the very last written copy of "Devil's Concerto." Over a 100 years ago a weird composer (Stefanie Barber) wrote it and when it was played, the audience was driven mad.  So mad, they all murdered one another.  All copies of it were then destroyed except for one...and Ivan has it.  A weird producer named Fleming (Ray Goodwin), who is very thirsty, believes in Abyssinister.  He invites the band to his out of the way farm to cut a new album.  Ivan knows they will succeed.  By the way, Shadia (Shadia Martin) is Ivan's GF and she is lovely.  She seems to be the business manager.  

Now Ivan springs his surprise on his musicians...The Devil's Concerto.  He plays it and guess what!  The lovely Anya (KateLynn E. Newberry) will be possessed first...this will not bode well for her two lovers in the band...you'll see.  The possessions, deaths, and subsequent demons will be gory and vicious.  Possessions will rule the day and eyes will pop out, spines will be pulled out, heads will roll, and fangs will tear out chunks of flesh.  The demons will go through Abyssinister like crap through a goose.  But wait!  Shadia might have figured out a way to reverse the concerto's curse. She better hurry as the band is falling apart...or being torn apart, actually.  Gore and loud music will combine to form a shocking horror film with plenty of social commentary.  All of you in the music industry will see the metaphors as obvious and pertinent.

Will Shadia be able to save Ivan, her lover, and other band members?  Will Anya as a demon be able to get even more lovers in Abyssinister?  However evil and bloody, isn't this music a lot less dangerous than the sappy Taylor Swift ballads?  This may be the best music horror film ever.  Ambitious, shocking, and gory...see "Death Metal" and re-evaluate your desire to make it big in the music industry.  

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