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Pit Stories: Should We Have Maybe Brought Goat's Blood?

Guess I'm getting forgetful in my old age, because I somehow completely missed that yesterday was Tuesday. Your regularly scheduled Pit Story will arrive today instead!

This week we've got Devin Doucette from Toronto outfit Centuries Of Decay sharing a tale of when your band doesn't quite fit into the show.

Devin recalls this tale of being the only band not sporting robes and candles at a Satanic Black Mass:

I guess the most interesting live story is about a show we played sometime in December of 2015. We had just finished playing a gig at the Velvet Underground in downtown Toronto in what was supposed to be the venue's final gig before it closed (was bought and reopened under the same name). The show went well for us and we played like a well oiled machine. Afterwards, a promoter approached our bassist Anthony and asked if we would be interested in playing a black metal gig that was being held in downtown Toronto. Now, we have some elements to our music that derive from black metal, but we are certainly not a black metal band (I mean, Anthony had a long sleeved, striped maroon shirt on for the show). The one final detail is that the show was being put on by true Satanists.

It's December and we are loading into the event. We are greeted by the promoter with open arms and a Jim Beam gift set (very thoughtful). We were opening the event, but before the party got started, candles were being set up on stage and shortly afterwards a Satanic mass began. (Before I go further, I would like to state that I don't judge anyone for what they believe or think. Everyone has a right to their own opinions etc.) We were 4 dudes wearing mostly black street cloths, and there were people here with capes and corpse paint, cloaks and masks, taking part in a straight up satanic ritual.

The ceremony began with an incantation read from the Satanic Bible (presumably) by a young man, also donning a cape and extremely nervous. Despite the packed venue, it was super quiet, so quiet that we could hear someone entering the bathroom stall and fire up the hand dryer during the reading.

Despite us being 'visually' out of place, everyone at our show had a great time. We met some great bands and were paid in advance, more than any other show at the time. The promoter was amazing and generous and everyone had a blast. It was one of the best shows we ever played. Lesson is that music can transcend boundaries, and making those connections in turn makes the music community stronger.

Pro tip -- if you'd bring a bottle of wine when going to a dinner with new friends, the least you can do when meeting new black metal bands is bring a flagon of goat's blood to spill. Anything else is just a plain old social faux pas.

Centuries Of Decay unleashed a debut, self-titled concept album on August 4th, 2017. You can check out a track below, or hear the full album and pick up your own copy at Bandcamp here.

Ty Arthur splits his time between writing dark fiction, spreading the word about underground metal bands, and bringing you the latest gaming news. His sci-fi, grimdark fantasy, and horror novels can be found at Amazon.