Stoke on Trent's impressive sludgecore merchants Charger are one of those bands that feel as though they've been around for years. It seems surprising, therefore, that they've only just gotten around to releasing their debut album ["Confessions of a man (mad enough to live amongst beasts)", Peaceville Records]. Certainly, in the time that they've trawled the circuit, they've accumulated an admirable mass of fans, many of whom are here tonight solely for Charger.

They don't disappoint; relentlessly pummelling, at their most extreme reaches they're a howling assault on the senses - but for the most part, heavy as they are, a sense of melody clings persistently to the underbelly of their sludge-laden riffs. For all their aggression, there's something decidedly hooky and catchy about them. This element is appealing for the duration of their set, pleasing the Charger fans and keeping the rest of the crowd interested; however it renders them enjoyable but somewhat forgettable when placed alongside the spectacle that is Today Is The Day.

Today Is The Day are more than well versed in what they do. They've spent more than ten years honing their aural-battering-ram sound - a decade of noise that's seen numerous line-up changes, including half the band abandoning ship at one point to form TITD's Relapse labelmates Mastodon. The hard work and strife has paid off; Today Is The Day have established themselves as one of the most diverse and uncompromising hardcore bands around. Certainly, they're a more severe and challenging prospect than Charger, unafraid of alienating the population at large with their crushingly heavy, labyrinthine and unsympathetic brand of metal.

Their strength lies in their complexity and the fearless torrent of uncharted emotion that floods from the stage - under the surface of TITD's frantic mesh of guitar artistry lies a network of convulsive, interlocking rhythms that evade being pinned down, and an extraordinary set of vocals that go beyond the standard scream/roar/retch pattern that many metal and hardcore singers stick to - vocalist/guitarist/producer Steve Austin produces pure, obliterating white noise with his throat alone, piercing the boundaries of the auricular spectrum. The end result is a sonic maelstrom of monstrous, unfathomable proportions, leaving the audience physically reeling, dizzied by this onslaught of expert, savage fury. Simply put, Today Is The Day are incomparable.