British death metal band Unfathomable Ruination played their first scheduled show yesterday in London. However, unlike most bands that play shows in London, a lot more people knew about this show, since it was in a soundproof airtight box just outside London skyscraper The Gherkin. While we couldn’t make it to London to not really be able to see or hear a band play, thankfully, OneMetal was there to do a show review. The 20-minute set was pretty much inaudible, according to the show’s reviewer, once the door closed.

Once Unfathomable Ruination were completely enclosed by the box, they were no longer the focus of the performance in any real sense. It became an observer focused work, much more about personal reactions than the band’s abilities. By hiding the band, the box also concealed all their metal iconography. The long hair, sharp edged guitars and a perhaps poorly chosen Suffocation t-shirt that had contrasted so clearly with the assembled suits were hidden from view. Just as the band’s performance faded into the background, so did all evidence that this was a ‘metal’ event beyond a few shirts in the crowd.

The reviewer states that it was a small crowd for the performance, but “the incongruity of a black, squat monolith leaking death metal into one of the world’s busiest financial districts attracted a number of passerby… it also had an interactive aspect as onlookers pressed themselves against the box to feel the music they could barely hear.” In all, it sounds like it was somewhat gimmicky, but worked as an art installation. It also seems to have helped Unfathomable Ruination, as a lot more people are talking about them that the less than 3,000 that have viewed the below video.

[youtube]http://youtu.be/Xekj_SYEfbA[/youtube]