CORROSIVE SPEED METAL AT FENDER’S

Contrary to today’s Rambo-fied culture, hard-core metal bands--the folks who take some leftover Ramones riffs, turbocharge them and then surround the concoction with murkily menacing lyrics--may be getting “sensitive.”

Consider the local debut of North Carolina-based Corrosion of Conformity at Fender’s in Long Beach on Saturday. Instead of abetting the standard violence in the dance pit, drummer Reed Mullin stopped playing and demanded the pugilists “take their (bleeping) problems outside.” Mullin did it twice, in fact, leaving hard-core fans around the ballroom gasping with shock.

Perhaps all this consideration has to do with Corrosion of Conformity’s unequivocal political stand--the lyric sheet for its “Technocracy” EP features a cartoon depicting Uncle Sam poised to defecate on Central America. But maybe it’s because all the commotion down below was swiping attention from the group’s buzz-saw speed-metal display, which (when you could hear it all) was nigh awesome.

Guitarist Woody Weatherman cranked and fired numerous searing leads, reminding one of a young, right-handed Tony (Black Sabbath) Iommi, while new bassist Phil Swisher punched along the beat ferociously. Drummer Mullin’s no slouch, either. Vocals? Who could hear them? The skins in front were shouting too loud.