Live Review: Chop Suey w/Slip-Not and The Violent Inzident at Sub89 in Reading!

The event organisers warn us to “get ready for a night of chaos, nostalgia and unmatched energy” with Chop Suey and Slip-Not on a UK and Ireland co-headlining tour and as it happens, tonight ends up being exactly that. Personally this writer isn’t usually one for tribute bands but will freely admit to having enjoyed The Iron Maidens as few years back at the same venue. The difference between most tribute bands and this co-headlining pairing is that the bands are comprised of an all star cast of musicians known for their prior convictions in other bands, so this is just a bit of good fun on the side of their main squeezes if you will…

A parody or comedy Nu-Metal act The Violent Inzident [7/10] hit every single cliché from 1999 on the head with tongue in cheek humour as they play a set of original songs that make them a guilty pleasure by design. Who they are is a mystery as their faces are all covered in one way, shape or form, a combination of Balaclavas and Limp Bizkit style outfits their choice of attire. “Whores of Instagram” is so true it’s hilarious as is “I Love Nu-Metal” and “Dare To Keep Kids on Drugs” which has everyone chanting “Drugs!” at the top of their lungs before the band ask “what would Corey Taylor think?”. Arguably the stand pit moment is “Brazil Is Great“, a kind of Sepultura tribute which sees the band waving an Argentina flag and mimicing Max Cavalera. Yes, there are points that border on cringe worthy but it’s all part of the fun.

What’s the biggest compliment you can pay a tribute band? If you can push your fingers into your eyes (the only thing that dulls the ache) and hear the original artist then you’re half way there. Tonight Slip-Not [10/10] are a high energy ball of fire, a well oiled six piece live machine capable of destroying any venue. An as close to sold out as you can get show on the first floor venue that is Sub89 with everyone jumping causes the floor to shake beneath our feet as every single song is sing-a-long anthem. From set opener “Unsainted” to closer “Spit It Out” the band demonstrate impeccable musicianship, tearing a bite out of the fans with every step. Masks and boiler suits are essential, the band mixing up the aesthetic from the first two albums. For those not in the know, Slip-Not feature Collapse The Sky vocalist Lee Margaillan as Corey Taylor and Karybdis vocalist Rich O’Donnell as Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan with Joey Jordison’s former drum tech and now Sinsaenum drummer Andre Joyzi gracing the drum stool. So between them they’ve played a lot of live shows and know exactly what it takes to work the crowd. “Before I Forget” is masterful, “End Of Everything” is hits like a freight train and you can tell by the emotive vocal performances that these songs mean as much to the band as they do to the fans. “Wait and Bleed” and “Duality” back to back feels like a one two combination from a prize fighter and leaves everyone breathless. A rousing career spanning set from a cover band who nail every single song an evening with Slip-Not is as much fun as you can have without it being the real thing.

Featuring musicians known for their roles in Dragonforce, Anti-Nowhere League, Breed 77, Sinsaenum and TigerTailz it’s fair to say that Chop Suey [10/10] are an all star cast of brilliant musicians in their own right. They play a career spanning set of System Of A Down covers including some deep cuts, capturing the magic of the Americans of Armenian descent perfectly. Part of that is down to vocalist Ashley Edison who has managed to nail the clean vocal accent of Serj Tankian and while he leaves the death growls to guitarist and backing vocalist Tommy “H” Tom Hunt, it works perfectly. Like Slip-Not before them, every song is a sing-a-long anthem from “Violent Pornography” to “Aerials“, through “Toxicity” to “Lonely Day“, the crowd bouncing, singing or getting sweaty in the mosh pit in participation. Minus his clown mask and boiler suit O’Donnell joins to provide the screams for “War?” and remains on stage for “Sugar” which finds Margaillan joining the party to do likewise. The musicianship is impeccable, the energy is electric and both the band and the fans have plenty of fun, so what more could you ask for. How about one more song? A rousing rendition of “I-E-A-I-A-I-O” brings the house down in style.

On a side note (and this is not a paid advert), both Chop Suey and Slip-Not will be back next year with the 25th anniversaries of “Toxicity” and “Iowa” so don’t sleep on that.