A Murderous May

We hope these spewings have found you well. Or as well as you can be, considering….well…everything. Spring has nearly come (?) and gone (?) as the underground prepares for THE yearly extreme metal ritual of the year. While this article is primarily focused on the busy show season that the month of May is bringing and what we have in store throughout it, our next will share some insight into the next Death Sculpted label release, as well as what we have coming in June and some early summer staff picks.

For as many of my adult years as I can remember, May has been the busiest month for shows in the US. Between Maryland Deathfest, Decibel Metal & Beer fest, New Jersey Deathfest, as well as all of the bands touring on new albums that come out in spring and special routings around said fests. It’s always a sore couple of months for those showgoers with thin wallets.

For many, this is their vacation season. This is time to cut loose, throw on their favorite band tee as a badge of honor and dive beer-first into these spring and early summer festivals with joy and vigor. In many ways, I totally understand. Being cooped up all winter with few special tour routings to attend and the misery of family holidays gatherings can be quite the downer. Anticipation has been building for months to get to see “that band” you’ve been waiting to see, or friends from another country you only see once a year at once of these premier festivals. The ecstatic release, realized through overpriced beers, greasy food and even greasier grindcore bands in the streets of Baltimore can be quite the experience for most. I’ve definitely felt it.

That said, some of these endeavors can be pricey and not everyone can afford the ticket, let alone the lodging, meal and transportation costs to attend one of these festivals. The same goes for any other festival experience in any other state or country. It takes alot out of even the most seasoned festival attendee, physically and financially.

For those who can’t quite swing the strain of attending one of these massive undertakings, I encourage you to look at your favorite band’s social media outlets or show schedules to see where they are playing near you. The Death Sculpted crew has been booking shows in the Philadelphia area for nearly 8 years, and many of those have been for bands en route to or on the way back from Maryland Deathfest or Decibel Metal & Beer. Such examples for us in past years have been Altars (AUS), Galvanizer (FIN) [which never actually happened, FUCK YOU COVID], and Goetia (USA). A little bit of extra digging and asking around will surely prove fruitful if there’s just that ONE small band from the opposite side of the country (or world) that you want to see. Chances are, they’re trying to connect a few dates together around their “main event” of “MURDEROUS MAY” and sorely need you to see them at their non-festival date(s).

May 2026 is shaping up to be an exceptionally tough time for many with the cost of fuel for auto transport through the roof, food costs remaining high and MANY other tours happening outside of those traveling to and from the festival circuit.

The ultimate point I am getting to here is we have you covered for “MURDEROUS MAY” in Philadelphia. For those in the Philly area, we are hosting our good friends in Glorious Depravity and Laceration the day before they are both scheduled to appear at Maryland Deathfest. Further, Necroticgorebeast from Canada is making a trek through the states during the busy month of may, for which we are hosting a date. Some good friends of ours have a few shows going on as well, hosting bands that will ultimately be playing at Maryland Deathfest.

So, from the comfort of your Philadelphian home, you can catch a subset of the bands playing at Maryland Deathfest, all locally in the city for a fraction of the cost of getting to Maryland and posting up for the whole weekend. Please note, I am not discouraging anyone to go to any of these larger festivals. As far as bang for the buck, the argument can surely be made in favor of attending. The bands that travel from the literal opposite side of the world to play a 30 minute set to you, perhaps never to happen again is not something to pass up on in many cases. There’s also the social aspect - seeing SO many new and old friends and family in one place can be so enjoyable and a conduit of memories for years to come. All I am trying to emphasize is that there ARE other options for you to see at least a portion of the bands appearing at these events - you just have to look a little bit harder.

All of the big events happening leading up to and around Maryland Deathfest weekend that we & friends are hosting can be found below, with ticket links as well.

Note, the 5.14 bands are not playing MDF but sharing to show there’s enough entertainment taking place in Philadelphia to keep you occupied while all of your fellow metalheads prepare for “summer camp” in Baltimore.

Here’s a rollup of what’s going on:

5.14 @ Bonk’s - Necroticgorebeast, Atoll, Compulsed, Disarticulate

5.20 @ PhilaMOCA - Jarhead Fertilizer, Mellow Harsher, Bandit, Durian

5.21 @ Nikki Lopez - Witchvomit, Torture Rack, Coffin Dust, Caesarean

5.22 @ Kung Fu Necktie - Laceration, Glorious Depravity, Hematoid

Cheers and happy festival season to those attending and those not. Hope to see you all at a show sometime soon!