Ceremonial Castings definitely looks sinister. Its members sport ghoulish face paint, and they line their limbs with spikes. The group sounds terrifying, too, playing black metal that hisses maliciously through speaker holes like a poisonous mist. The cover of the recently re-released album Into The Black Forest of Witchery, on which a withered crone with sharpened-claw nails holds a crying infant over a smoking cauldron, doesnt help these guys babysitter credentials. But by headlining this all-ages benefit for PROTECT, an organization that helps abused children, the band invites reevaluation. Maybe that witch just wanted to give the kid a warm bath. Perhaps scary bassist Old Nick channels Jolly Old Saint Nick during the Holiday Season. It turns out the people behind the horror show care about humanity after all.
Sat., Dec. 20, 3 p.m., 2008
