Buffalo Gorefest Aims to Make Buffalo Brutal Again

(EDITOR’S NOTE — Dave Jurenovich of the excellent Buffalo death metal band ‘Morgue Terror’ wants to take the city back to its “filthy death metal days,” and he isn’t just blowing smoke. In fact, for nearly two years, he’s been working behind the scenes to bring to life ‘Buffalo Gorefest,’ which finally will be birthed this coming June at Buffalo Iron Works. It’s always a pleasure for us to speak with Jurenovich, a talented and determined artist who’s as professional as they come. Recently, he was generous enough to talk with 1120 Press about the forthcoming ‘Buffalo Gorefest,’ for which the first band will be announced tomorrow (Friday Jan. 30). Please read our story below and follow Morgue Terror on its Bandcamp page where you can listen to and buy their music and merch, and on Instagram too. — Images for this story provided.)

1120 PRESS: Thank you for speaking with us! So, you’re spearheading and organizing the first-ever Buffalo Gorefest — a death metal extravaganza — which will be happening later this year. Can you tell us what Gorefest is, when and where it’s happening, and how this idea came about?

Dave Jurenovich

DAVE JURENOVICH: Thanks for having me! Back in the early 90’s when I was a handful of years old, there was a great fest called ‘Day of Death.’ We used to be a death metal town when (Cannibal) Corpse was starting out, Baphomet and had Malevolent Creation for a minute. Since then, it’s died down with peaks and valleys of interest in death metal. We used to be a bloody, gruesome city infested with death metal nutjobs. I went to school with one of the owners (of Iron Works) and graduated high school with her. That’s when I last saw her 20 years ago. Fast forward from 2006 to 2024 and last year: My stubborn ass is asking her to book death metal again or heavy adjacent music a few times a year. They actually did for a time. I randomly got a message saying, ‘let’s collaborate on a show’ and that was that. I wanted to keep it a show but somehow found the unintended motivation to turn it into a yearly one-day fest.

My goal is to unite fans of all eras of death metal, from young teens to old Gen X’ers who crave to see Scattered Remnants, Internal Bleeding, Immortal Suffering, Repudilation and other random older bands. I asked a lot of bigger bands like the aforementioned Internal Bleeding, Skinless, 200 Stab Wounds, Undeath, Fuming Mouth, Castrator and Cognitive. I almost had Undeath and they were chatting it over, then the Archspire tour they’re on got announced. Gorefest is the last day of that tour.

I couldn’t help but ask the big fish because Iron Works is a newer venue and larger so that means bigger, reputable bands. I strived for bigger bands who’d draw, plus it’s a bigger room. Can’t get a ton of small bands and have 50 paying attendees in a 300+ cap room; that won’t look good on me. I’m going to work my ass off to bring back our murky death metal past and spark some interest. We’ve always had strong hardcore and punk roots, but we were a brutal town at one point in time. 

I also have four vendors and waiting on the last few bands until the flyer can get made. And a lot of people are loving the flyer and logo. Shoutout to Andik Godfinger who’s done a lot of art for my band Morgue Terror and now Gorefest.

So, the first-ever Buffalo Gorefest, which will be annual, will be at Buffalo Iron Works on Saturday, June 6. Music will start around 2PM. 

1120: The first band on the bill is going to be announced tomorrow and then moving forward bands will be revealed one at a time. How many bands will be part of the festival and was there anything in particular you were looking for when it came to choosing bands for the event?

DJ: I am aiming for eight to 10 bands and, as previously mentioned, waiting on two to three bands to confirm. Also, I said there’s four vendors, who are equally important. I want the crowd to have things to look at, and do, besides talk between every band. And they’re also friends of mine, not just random vendors I contacted to sell. I’m focused on making it a death metal party and show the venue it can draw with the right bands. That’s why I’m taking it this seriously because death metal bands don’t traditionally play the best of venues unless you’re well known.  

I definitely had goals in mind. I had a financial budget for guarantees and, needless to say, I’ve surpassed it. It’ll be a party; I’m not mad. But I kept it northeast and Midwest (Michigan/Ohio-ish) as far as the USA is concerned. There are two Buffalo bands. I’m not bringing in bands from California, Texas or Florida unless they’re on tour. Another goal of mine is to find bands that don’t play the area often or haven’t. The lineup is really special to me because it’s bands I personally enjoy. I just want fans new to the genre, or older fans, to enjoy themselves and find a band they never heard of and become a fan. 

Show up on June 6 and support Gorefest so I can make a crazy move and pay like $3,000 for Incantation in 2027! If the people don’t show up, I can’t do something wild like that. 

1120: The first public mention/post regarding Gorefest was made during the first week of January. But when did work actually start on this event, and can you provide a glimpse into what will be happening behind the scenes over the next few months leading up to the actual festival?

DJ: Truthfully since Morgue Terror’s first year live in 2024, I’ve been bugging the venue. I’m a stubborn fool and contact everyone. I have zero chill when it comes to asking. I collaborated with Godfinger to get the art done late fall. I was asking bands in October and November. I did all of that while trying to organize the Erie Canal Carnage run my band is a part of that we announced January 1.

I’ll be announcing every band and the vendors one at a time until I reveal the whole flyer. I have aspirations for the flyer art on a T-shirt and the bands on the back. I’d like to get stickers and maybe pins if possible. I’m working on getting a backdrop to put on stage of just the logo. I’m trying to brand it and put a real effort into it. I hope our community sees that. I have friends around the nation and some overseas who have shared the news. It’s kinda crazy to see how I’ve drawn interest online just based on the logo and the flyer without announcing bands and vendors. I don’t want to half-ass this and, on top, ruin my reputation with the bands and venue. I can’t afford for it to tank. We have a lot deathfests around the country in certain pockets. Stuff out west in California, Texas, Florida, the Midwest, but not much in the northeast. I take it as a chance to give our part of the USA a deathfest. 

1120: How would you characterize the state of Buffalo’s death metal scene? And do you see Gorefest as a way to solidify or expand the community?

DJ: Truthfully, it’s inconsistent, but the right bands can draw well enough. It’s come back in a slow way with new bands popping up. I don’t sugar coat things and am honest. My friends in the death metal scene and beyond mean the world to me and Gorefest has piqued interest. I’ve seen a lot of solid shows and some that could have definitely done better. They won’t all be zingers but, in the end, you have to work your hardest to make your show a success. I saw Nunslaughter last year at Milkie’s. One of my longest running friends in said scene, Jeffrey Standish, put that one on and it was packed for a little joint. Shoutout to Coming of Rage Productions and Jeff for being such a great friend for two decades now. He’s supported my band to no end and now this new venture of mine. He put on his annual Rage Fest last summer that had sick bands like Rottrevore (members of Regurgitation, Embalmer and more), Inoculation, Sathanas, locals Wolfenstein and more. Probably had like 60-70 people at Amvets? Could have been better, but I knew Standish worked his ass off going to many shows promoting it. I thought the lineup was fucking great. It can be really great at times. I want quality over quantity and would rather have 100 passionate attendees than 250 that are disinterested and there just to see their friend’s band and dip. 

1120: The tagline, so to speak, for the festival is to “make Buffalo brutal again.” What should people attending Buffalo Gorefest expect?

DJ: As previously stated, I want to bring our city back to its filthy death metal days. I want to showcase that style to the young crowd that may not know much about it. It’s going to be a good, bloody time with many bands and things to do. I have a lot of support from my friends (far and near) and, most importantly, my wife. I’m lucky to know the people I do, and they are great to me. I was 4/5 years old in the early 90’s; maybe I can bring those vibes back. I was definitely born in the wrong generation as far as that goes, but luckily there’s no rules in life. And that’s what I’m trying to do. I’d have killed to see CC play “Eaten Back to Life” tracks in the little clubs we had. Same for Malevolent, Baphomet and all the other great out-of-town bands that rolled through. Who the hell thought Suffocation and Immolation were gonna be genre greats that early on? Seeing those combos of bands on those ‘Day of Death’ flyers dirt cheap (different economies, I know!) — kills me. I hope to create that sense of community and get even bigger bands.

1120: Is there anything you want to add we haven’t touched on?

DJ: I want to personally thank you for this awesome opportunity to push Gorefest.

Don’t forget to attend my first annual Buffalo Gorefest June 6, 2026, at Buffalo Iron Works. Doors at 1PM, music around 2PM. It’ll be a great time and hope to see our community rise up and hang out for the day. There is a Facebook, Instagram and TikTok as well. Just type ‘Buffalo Gorefest’ and you will find it.