Tyrant Defend the Old In Baltimore

On Oct. 16, heavy metal bands from around the country met at a small club in Baltimore to prove that the dust has not been bitten just yet. While the bustling club scene had lines around the corner with half-dressed women, metal fans and musicians alike joined each other at Sonar to "defend the old faith and bash some posers" (as predicted on the fest's MySpace page). However, aside from a couple broken beer bottles, there was no bashing at the 2nd annual Defenders of the Old festival.

Virginia's October 31 showed support all night, as vocalist King Fowley (Deceased) stage managed all the bands and occasionally threw in some air guitar solos. New York's Fischel's Beast was joined by the gracious Sentinel Beast vocalist Debbie Gunn. The two beasts came together to play most of the metal classic 'Depths of Death.' Unfortunately there was not enough time for them to finish the album. Missouri's ultra mean and heavy Ares Kingdom followed with a killer set. Then there was Tyrant.

"It's '85 tonight!" Tyrant frontman Glen May said to the captivated crowd. However, he was sure to quickly add, "but I'm not." He wanted to make sure you understood that the old they were defending wasn't that old. But, as a 'Warrior of Metal,' no one in the venue would be assuming that, anyways.

Not too much later, he told us about the beginning years of Tyrant. "We put an ad in a magazine. And, we put a f---ing pentagram in our ad." He admitted the band was a bit goth and glam at the time. Still, that ad got them attention from Metal Blade -- who gave them a spot on the 'Metal Massacre III' compilation.

The night ended with New Jersey-born thrashers Blood Feast (not to be confused with the Misfits tribute band). With the floor covered in glass and confetti, it was a successful night for heavy metal.