With the venue packed from opening time, this industrial double-header has clearly got people’s attention and, on the strength of the show that follows, it’s hard to believe that 3teeth, who have already earned support slots with Tool and Ministry in the States, will be in such venues for long. The bastard child of NIN, Marilyn Manson (sans the gothic schtick) and Depeche Mode, 3teeth have the innate ability to combine the catchy and the coruscating into the sort of huge, dance-floor filling anthems in which the likes of Marilyn Manson and White Zombie used to take such delight. Lyrically intelligent, visually overpowering and musically blistering, 3teeth (along with their perfectly-matched support act, PIG) are poised for bigger things.
Opening the night, we have PIG, the long-standing project from KMFDM collaborator Raymond Watts. With a somewhat incongruous-looking band in tow (guitarist En Esch looks like MC Spee on steroids, whilst Steve White looks like Steve Pemberton), all eyes are on Ray, who is dressed like evil Rimmer (there’s a reference for you Red Dwarf fans) in leather trousers and a faux-fur top. Whilst the band may be visually inconsistent, there is absolutely nothing inconsistent about their tough-as-nails take on industrial rock, which falls somewhere between Sisters of Mercy, NIN and Rammstein. Airing a range of tracks, including a healthy selection from 2018’s excellent Risen album, the band tear through a blistering The Revelation, a gloriously catchy take on KMFDM’s Juke Box Jezebel, and a stunning, potent rendition of Risen highlight The Chosen Few, which sees a manic Ray pointing out members of the audience in a manner reminiscent of Roger Waters’ sneering Pink in In The Flesh. Throughout, PIG are devastating with the crystal clear samples and pulverising drums perfectly augmenting the ferocious double-guitar assault and menacing vocal performance. With the audience hooked, PIG simply own the stage, their support slot flying by in what feels like a matter of minutes, and they’re off the stage far too soon for most people’s tastes.
With the crowd now packed into the steamy confines of The Rescue Rooms, 3teeth’s arrival on stage is greeted with near-hysteria. Whilst <Shutdown.exe> is a stunning album, there’s no question that the absolutely massive Metawar has deservedly raised the band’s profile, not least because every single song sounds like a potential single choice (thus far, the band have released six of the tracks separately) and the confidence and energy the band exude on stage does much to reflect the quality of their song-writing. The set-list is packed, too. Opening with a selection of songs that are so tight, they drill into the crowd with surgical precision, 3teeth give us Hyperstition, Affluenza, EXXXIT and American Landfill in quick succession. Then, just as they seem to be getting comfortable, they roll out the live debut of Time Slave, clearly enjoying the fact that they’re headlining their own shows and have the time to explore deeper cuts from the new album. That’s not to say the mighty <Shutdown.exe> is ignored. Degrade, Slavegod and a monstrous Pit Of Fire are all aired, with the only slight let down being that Alexis’ between-song raps are all but lost between the slightly muffled PA and the random samples being triggered by a mischievous Xavier on keyboards.
Over the course of an hour and a half, 3teeth basically decimate the crowd, and the energy they project from the stage is entirely reciprocated by the sweltering audience. With three albums under the belts, the band now have an impressive selection of songs from which to choose and, although it is a shame that they don’t break out their cracking cover of Pumped Up Kicks (you have to wonder if the venue’s strict, 10:00pm curfew might have something to do with this, as the crowd are clearly up for more), the finale of President X, which sees Alexis don the mask of the titular character, certainly brings the set to an impressive close and it leaves the crowd to stream out into the night fully aware that 3teeth have a huge future ahead of them if they can maintain their current momentum. An epic night, then from two bands keeping the industrial flame very much alive, the audience were pretty much awed into submission form the off. Catch them whilst they’re still in venues where you can see the stage.
