Rustbelt Rock Review

By: Z.M. Delgado

Rustbeltrockreview.com

Volume #232: Jesus Wept, Sentient Horror, Inoculation, Atomic Witch & Hallucination Realized

March 7th, 2026

No Class 11213 Detroit Ave, Cleveland, OH 44102

Good Morning Cleveland! And a most enthusiastic hello to all of you beyond the homeland. I am only just now shaking out the cobwebs in my brain as I rise from the ashes of last nights glory. Yes, it was a most glorious evening indeed and there is much to tell. It all began when I escaped from my shit eater day job and arrived home to an empty house. It seems my wife had taken the kids and gone off on an adventure of their own. I changed my clothes and settled down to enjoy the quiet. I packed a bowl and popped in Rambo: First Blood Part II. My afternoon unwound as I watched Stallone slaughter the enemies of democracy and blazed down. Before Rambo had finished rescuing the POW’s, Joha arrived and joined me in my endeavor. Once the movie was over we got our shit together and rolled out. Headed to the west side haven of No Class, we made excellent time. Finding a choice parking space, we pulled up in front of the club at precisely 6:59. Doors were at 7:00, so we were right on time. Heading inside we paid our fee and made our way to the Atomic Witch Merch table. There we were greeted by Bass master David “Rolling Thunder.” We chatted for a time, until Jimmy “The Dook” Fedor of RoXXXstarradio arrived, at which point we adjourned to the patio to smoke a joint.

Once our doobie interlude had ended we made our way to the stage in preparation of our first band. There was a very nice sized crowd in place as we gathered around for the nights inaugural offering. In from Rochester, NY was Hallucination Realized. This is a three man act made up of Bass/Vocals, Guitar/Backing Vocals and Drums. Their social media describes them as “Caustic deliriums through aural violence.” I would say, their sound was complex. I would definitely put them somewhere on the Death Metal spectrum. They would start out heavy and raw, powered by a raucous onslaught from the Drums. They would then drop into a surprising groove, laying out a much smoother jam. They would jump back and forth between these styles intermixing the noisy cacophony and more structured sounds. Their songs were one of two things, and I’m not really sure which is true. They were either incredibly short and punching, brought in quick succession without pause or introduction. Or they were long with a lot of different parts. What I know is that the band paused to talk to the crowd 6 times. Every time they paused the Bass player would say, “We have two or three more for you,” regardless of when it was in the set. Whether they played 6 or 24 songs, I’ll never know. What I do know is that Hallucination Realized was intense. Their play was incredibly tight, and as they rolled through the many changes in their songs, they never missed a note or a skipped a beat. The crowd really liked them and applauded enthusiastically at every break. After their sixth break in the music they called it a set and the crowd cheered. As for the crew and I, we returned to the patio and burned another one down.

Back inside it was time for one of my favorite acts. The terrifyingly aggressive Atomic Witch. This is a five man band that can be described a Theatrical Death Thrash. Made up of Vocals, Guitar/Vocals, Guitar, Bass and Drums, this band is well known for their visceral live shows. They summon a two pronged Vocal attack, delirious riffs, a thundering low end and technical Drum work. When their singer dons his signature green ski mask, like superman he transforms from a mild mannered citizen into the despicable frontman of Atomic Witch. Opening with “Morgue Rat” they plunged us immediately into the fray. The band has amazing stage presence. Led by their animated singer, the entire band moves and Rocks out, banging their heads with fervor. The crowd loved every minute of it as they headbanged and danced, screaming for more. I saw more than one masked man in the crowd as well. These rabid fans copied the singers style, and brought their own green ski masks from home. Midway through the set I saw Emma, owner of No Class, deliver a bottle of Mad Dog to the stage. This was offered to and subsequently sprayed all over the fans as the set commenced. By their fourth song, “Of Flesh and Chrome,” the first moshpit of the night had opened up and bodies began to fly around the confined space. The pit continued to roll on and off for the rest of the set. Long story short, Atomic Witch was incredible. They were maddening; operating somewhere in the realms of a Thrashing psychedelic psychosis. They played a total of eight songs, closing out with their classic killer “70,000 Skulls.” The crowd roared in approval, and demanding more from the vile Witch. Alas, there was no more. Atomic Witch said goodnight and we begrudgingly returned to the patio for another helping of the Devil’s lettuce.

Thoroughly toasted we made our way back the the stage. Third in our lineup was Inoculation. This is a three man band is built from Bass/Vocals, Guitar/Vocals and Drums. The took to the stage and we were greeted by the Space Jam theme song. This played out and upon completion, Inoculation broke into some pretty nasty Death Metal. Their Vocals were monstrous guttural roars. The riffs were bone shattering, the Bass work was quite intricate and the Drums were hard pounding with excellent double bass. They had good stage presence headbanging continuously. They had a unique Vocal attack, utilizing two different and distinct growls to vary the sound. The second song was sent out to the “Cleveland Sewer Demons.” Three songs into the set the dropped their new single “Earthbound.” This one they described as “a bit of a doozie.” That I believe to be an understatement, as the song is very complex and quite long; clocking in at nearly twelve minutes. The crowd went wild for this epic piece of songwriting and the mosh pit started up again. They performed this one song for the vast majority of their time, and it was well worth it. “Earthbound” is a singularly masterful piece of Death Metal songwriting and it was a pleasure to see it performed live. They played two more songs after that, bringing their set count to five songs. The crowd loved every minute of it. They headbanged, moshed and screamed their way through Inoculation’s set with passion. When they finished the fans bellowed in appreciation, sending Inoculation off with much honor heaped upon them. I and my band of merry men returned to the patio where we ran into Mr. Joe Lowrie, drummer of Nunslaughter and Olathia among others. With him we settled in and roasted another bone over some great conversation.

Eric Stevenson: The Official Tattoo Artist of the Rustbelt Rock Review

With another joint gone, we ventured back to the stage for New Jersey’s Sentient Horror. This is a four man Death Metal band made up of Guitar/Vocals, Guitar, Bass and Drums. They opened up ripping fast and steeped in profound heaviness. The Vocals roared and the music, while Death Metal to the bone, had just a touch of Thrashiness that I enjoyed. Second the played “Undead Mutation,” as the crowd began to be drawn in. Headbanging swept across the room and horns were raised in appreciation. The Drums hammered with a mechanical precision on “Bled Dry by the Night.” At this point I also made note of their outstanding Guitar work. Intricate and ripping solo’s emerged as well as some very nice tandem notes. “Glory to the Rotten” had a vicious tempo that was nothing if not incredibly driving. “A Faceless Corpse” summoned another bout of wild windmilling and violent moshing. About this time a maniac in an Atomic Witch green mask bulldozed me into the wall and fucked up my back. It was a brutal hit. I managed to walk it off, but it put a serious cramp in my style for the remainder of the evening. For their final song Sentient Horror put forth “Call of Ancient Gods” a song inspired by the cosmic horror of H.P. Lovecraft. This was another crusher with some intricate Bass work and a sickening solo. Another moshpit developed here, closing the set with titanic force. The crowd loved every minute if it, roaring with passion. I was greatly impressed and as I limped away with my back aching I couldn’t help but think that Sentient Horror was a monster of an act. I wandered over to the bar where I ran into Cleveland’s resident shredder, the ax master Mr. Dylan Andras. We relocated to the front patio where we chatted about all things under the sun, most particularly about his upcoming release with his new band Iron Bitch. We kept on talking until we heard the sounds of Guitars being plugged in and we knew the nights final act was about to begin.

Inside we headed to check out Detroit’s Jesus Wept. This is a five man death machine born of Vocals, Two Guitars, Bass and Drums. My initial impressions were that they had truly pounding Percussion. The man behind the kit put forth a merciless tempo. The Vocals were savage and snarling, as the frontman addressed the crowd with fire and brimstone in his eyes. On “Fucked on the Cross” the low end throbbed and pulsed as sickening Drumwork emerged. “Cataclysm” was hard, driving and packed a wicked tempo. Six songs in the frontman took a hard stance and had some scathing remarks about Israel and the new war. When he finished his political rant, they broke into another ripper with a bitchin solo and a crushing breakdown. Their seventh song dredged up a circle pit. Following that we got “One for the ladies” that was described as “a real ass shaker.” I’m not sure what all that means, because what we got was another bad ass hard edged Metal beast of a track. Finally for their ninth and final song they performed a cover of Thin Lizzy’s “Cold Sweat”. It was a banger and one hell of a way to close out the evening. The crowd danced and sang along as the classic jam played out in a Death Metal style. Then they cheered and screamed and raised their horns in respect for Jesus Wept. The lights came up and the show came to a close.

Heavy on Cleveland: Showcasing the best and brightest talent in the Cleveland scene. Tune in or Miss out!!!

Joha and I said our goodbyes and headed to the truck. Then it was eastward bound and on into the night. Joha dropped me off and I took my exhausted ass to bed. And here we are at the end of it all. It was a banger of a show. Five bands with varying sounds, all heavy as fuck. The bar was packed, the pit was wild and the fans were elated. I smoked joint after joint and stayed high as a kite for the whole of the night. I saw many good friends and as always made more plans for future endeavors. In short, it was a great evening. So I suppose I should leave it at that. Please check out these bands, because, man are they good. Heavy as stone and just as solid. I suppose that’s all I have to say on the subject. Thanks for reading. Bang your heads, hoist your horns and always wear your earplugs.

Until next time, Rock on, Rustbelt,

-Z.M. Delgado

Rustbelt Rock Review

Rustbeltrockreview.com

3/8/2026

Links:

Jesus Wept

https://www.instagram.com/jesus_fucking_wept/?hl=en

Sentient Horror

https://www.facebook.com/sentienthorrorofficial/

Inoculation

https://www.facebook.com/Inoculation/