Article and Photos by: Linda Carlson

Cincinnati, OH – A short walking distance from the University of Cincinnati, Bogarts has been a staple of live music and entertainment since 1980.  On August 10, the venue hosted an evening of deathcore metal bands, beginning with Deadculture, a local Cincinnati/Dayton band.  Formed in July 2017, Deadculture has been hitting the regional markets. Their strong performance at Bogarts exposed why they are gaining a strong following.

Next, gay deathcore metal band Brojob from Los Angeles gave an unforgettable performance.  Their lyrics are infused with sexually explicit content that are at once surprising and humorous, with songs like “Tickle War,” “Teenie Weenie” and “Pen Island” (change the location of the space to understand the humor).  The sound is pure metal with vocals from Jacob Wallace and Andrew Zink providing sophisticated layers of expressive, and sometimes satirical, lyrics.  The audience loved it and enthusiastically embraced the music as well as the tongue-in-cheek banter between songs.

Headliner Whitechapel stormed the stage with a vicious performance coming out of the gate.  Explaining that Cincinnati was not part of their recent tour with The Black Dahlia Murder, the band wanted to swing by and give Cincinnati some heavy metal love.  The intensity was fierce, with hard-hitting instrumentals from three guitarists (Ben Savage, Zach Householder, Alex Wade) and bassist Gabe Crisp.  All those strings give Whitechapel a unique sound, and a live performance that is commanding and entertaining.  Phill Bozeman’s vocals are formidable, and his delivery pure power.  A Whitechapel show is compelling to experience live.

Whitechapel resumes touring in November.  Check their website for details: https://www.whitechapelband.com/events.