Reviews
Wolf Bastard/Warcrab
The Junction, Plymouth - 20th March 2026
Words : Jools Green
Photographs : Keith Conlin Photography
Wolf Bastard
Satanic Scum, Drinking beer and Buckfast Abbey - Wolfbastard are in town
Always guaranteed to deliver a healthy meld of hilarity, profanity and brutality are Manchester’s Black Metal/Crust Punks, Wolfbastard.
So it was great to welcome them back to Plymouth again, their previous aural carnage being the end of 2024 in the smaller venue The Underground across the road from here.
Primarily here in support of their most recent release Satanic Scum Punks, delivering a set filled with crust infused fury which included Its Fucking Dark, title track Satanic Scum Punks, Hail Satan Kurwa, Manic Street Creatures (with a tongue in cheek dedication to the Welsh, Cardiff being the next leg of their tour) B.I.F.F.O. Let the Bastards Burn, F.O.T.D. from that album.
They also dropped in a few older pieces and reflecting on their previous visit where they allegedly called in at our local “retreat”, the world famous Buckfast Abbey, home of the iconic “restorative tonic wine”, affectionately known as “Bucky”, with the track Buckfast Blasphemies.
Along with Fear the Exxxekutioner, Drink Fucking Beer to chants of “Drink Fucking Beer, Hail Fucking Satan!” plus Sick in the Bath and ending on Graveyard Slag.
Between the tracks there was plenty of hilarious banter alongside the well delivered set and I was particularly impressed with drummer Dave’s high energy, fast and furious drum delivery which was necessary for these full-on pieces.
I also initially questioned, early into the proceedings, my personal wisdom in standing at the periphery of the pit, a place I avoid these days, but this performance was something that needed to be experienced close up.
Warcrab
Crushing brutality...and crabs! - Warcrab warm up!
These days, they are more likely to be the headliners but there was a time when Plymouth’s hugely popular Death, Doom, Sludge Metallers, Warcrab built their solid and reliable reputation on always being prepared to be a support act or step in last minute and save the day. So I couldn’t think of a better band to unleash their crushing brutality in support of tonight’s headliners Wolfbastard.
They always draw a loyal and lively crowd and the constant chants of “Warcrab, Warcrab!” between songs and the fact that even their slower pieces can whip up a pit in an instant proved this point perfectly.
Their local popularity also meant that The Junction well filled from the beginning of the evening ensuring a good atmosphere and a well warmed up audience for Wolfbastard.
Their set was drawn from their most recent two albums.
Orbital Graveyard, Black Serpent Coils, Sourlands Under a Rancid Sun, Howling Silence and Sword of Mars from their most recent album 2023’s The Howling Silence and In the Arms of Armageddon, Kraken Arise, Magnetic Fields Collapse from its predecessor Damned in Endless Night from 2019.
Late rumours that the band were going to do a cover of 'Woman in Love' by Barbara Streisand were unfounded.
