Now in its fifth year, 2005’s incarnation of the Trois-Rivieres Metalfest took place on November 11 and 12 and featured a solid lineup made up of both international and national talent. Trois-Rivieres is a quaint city of 60,000 about an hour and a half outside of Montreal, and its distinctly European feel acted as the perfect backdrop for the 600 metal fans that showed up on each of the festival’s nights at the atmospheric Le Maquisart venue.

Due to the Nine Inch Nails/Queens Of The Stone Age/Death From Above 1979 show in Montreal on November 11, this scribe was only able to make it to Trois-Rivieres for the November 12 portion of the festivities. However, despite missing the first night of the festival, the highlight reel performance of the bands I was able to check out on the second night indicated that the groups in question had all prepared themselves properly for the excited crowd.

So, without further ado, here are thoughts on several of the bands at Trois-Rivieres Metalfest V, night II…

*Coming on shortly after opener Eclipse Eternal, London, Ontario’s Thine Eyes Bleed established that its buzz band reputation isn’t for naught. There’s a reason respected label The End Records signed the group, and that reason is the classy metalcore Thine Eyes Bleed is known for, showcased prominently at Trois-Rivieres. Playing with the rage and intensity of a collective coming into its own, the band’s live display even managed to rekindle my interest in its pretty cool latest album, In The Wake of Separation.

*Galy Records stalwarts/veterans Horfixion proved once again why the band’s brand of straight-up thrash continues to work time and time again. From the aggressive strains of its riffs to its tight live delivery, Horfixion has made good on the promise of its 2004 record, Self-Inflicted Hell.

*Necronomicon’s latest tour across Canada with Behemoth has brought dividends for the band it seems, as Necronomicon is stronger than ever on stage. Still playing in support of 2003’s excellent The Sacred Medicines, Necronomicon’s set displayed why the death metallers has been deemed worthy enough to share the stage with big-timers Cradle Of Filth, Dimmu Borgir and the aforementioned Behemoth.

*Neuraxis, quite frankly, put on one of the best performances of its career. Buoyed by a crowd that seemingly sang every word along with vocalist Ian Campbell (including songs from the new record, Trilateral Progression), the band must have also been energized by the intense bouts of moshing and numerous circle pits that accompanied the group’s live display.

*From the initial moments of Behemoth’s set, it was clear that the Polish warriors have now become bonafide headliners. My contention has always been that Behemoth is metal’s best live band (though Dillinger Escape Plan comes in a very close second), and Nergal’s crew didn’t disappoint at Trois-Rivieres. Playing for more than an hour, Behemoth delved heavily into selections from its fantastic Demigod, but also pleased fans waiting for songs from Zos Kia Cultus, Thelema 6, Satanica and the band’s black metal roots. At more than one point, all four members (including drummer Inferno!) headbanged in unison, physically manifesting how in sync and amazingly unyielding Behemoth is live. Though I’ve now witnessed the band’s show five times, I still look forward to the group’s next foray into Canada.

Overall, the Trois-Riveres Metalfest is well organized event, solidified by its strong attendance. Everyone involved with the festival, from the promoters to the bands to the fans, seems very passionate about the show, making the festival a pleasure to attend. Here’s hoping that the Trois-Rivieres Metalfest will one day be mentioned in the same breath as Milwaukee or Maryland.

Complete Trois-Rivieres Metalfest V festival line-up:

Night 1

MARTYR (headliner)

BLINDED BY FAITH

EXHUMED

ION DISSONANCE

BENEATH THE MASSACRE

PAROXYSM

STRIGAMPIRE

Night 2

BEHEMOTH (headliner)

NEURAXIS

NECRONOMICON

AVERSE SEFIRA

HORFIXION

VORTEX

THINE EYES BLEED

ECLIPSE ETERNAL