Helloween with Beast In Black - 40th Anniversary Tour (4/21/26)

Post #407

On Tuesday, the 21st of April, 2026, a friend invited me to see their favorite new band, Beast In Black. They happened to be opening for the mighty founders of power metal: Helloween. I couldn't say no! Prior to this invite I had only peripheral familiarity with the music of Helloween. I knew the hits, of course. I had collected a couple compilations over the years: The Best, The Rest, The Rare and Unarmed: Best of 25th Anniversary. Additionally, I was completely new to the music of Beast in Black, a fusion of power metal and dance-metal. In the weeks leading up to the show I did a deep-dive into streaming the back-catalogs of both bands.

As the show opened up, Beast in Black gave us "Power of the Beast" to kick off their set, and it was non-stop from there on...

Their set included tracks from each of their 3 albums, and a few non-album singles. Their newest track, "Enter the Behelit", a collaboration with DIABLO video game franchise and inspired by the Berserk manga series, was featured in their set. It was an adrenaline-fused set of power metal from start to finish. They closed with "No Surrender".

Then the stage was changed over and the crowd prepared for Helloween...

Helloween opened their set with a video montage, playing on the gigantic video screen serving as a backdrop to their stage set, that showcased the album covers of their entire discography. As the montage ended they launched into the track, "March of Time" off of their landmark album, Keeper of the Seven Keys, Pt. 2.

After that they proceeded to deliver an excellent setlist of songs from their debut album to their newest with a sampling of everything in between. At a couple places there was an interlude where 'The Keeper', their on-again, off-again mascot, narrated segments of the band's history as an introduction to the next song. You'll find the full setlist at the end of this post with a link to a Spotify playlist.

They featured several songs from their latest album, Giants & Monsters, my favorite of which was "Universe (Gravity for Hearts)", an epic song about space, time, life, love and eternity. I had only played this album a couple times a couple of times, so had not yet established my personal favorites from it. "Universe" is certainly at the top of my list after seeing and hearing it performed live.

Near the end they closed their main set with the epic classic "Halloween". A few minutes later they returned for an encore where they played "Eagle Fly Free", "Power" and "Dr. Stein" with the added bonus of the final chorus from 'Keeper of the Seven Keys".

All in all it was a fantastic night of power metal, from the pioneers of the genre to the new generation that will carry it forward for many more years to come. Please enjoy the setlists for each band. Click the links to save the playlist in spotify.com.

Setlist for Beast in Black:
-Power of the Beast
-Hardcore
-Sweet True Lies
-Born Again
-From Hell With Love
-Enter the Behelit
-Die By The Blade
-One Night in Tokyo
-Blind And Frozen
-No Surrender

Setlist for HELLOWEEN:

-March of Time

-The King for 1000 Years

-Future World

-This Is Tokyo

-We Burn

-Walls of Jericho/Ride the Sky

-Into The Sun

-Hey Lord!

-Universe (Gravity For Hearts)

-Hell Was Made in Heaven

-I Want Out

-In the Middle of a Heartbeat

-A Tale That Wasn't Right

-A Little Is A Little Too Much

-Heavy Metal (Is the Law)

-Halloween

-Eagle Fly Free

-Power

-Dr. Stein

-Keeper of the Seven Keys (last chorus only)

Happy Headbanging!

Back to the Beginning... Ozzy Osbourne's Final Show (July 5th, 2025)

 Post #406

On July 5th, 2025, from Villa Park, Birmingham, England, Ozzy Osbourne- the proverbial "Prince of Darkness", gave a memorable and unforgettable final performance. Ozzy, struggling for years with Parkinson's disease and unable to walk, fulfilled a long-standing dream of playing one final show* with the original Black Sabbath lineup in front of a hometown stadium crowd. What's even more- the entire, day-long celebration of all things Ozzy & Black Sabbath was live-streamed so that fans around the world could watch this momentous farewell performance. I was one of those fans, and while I could not watch the entire show in a single sitting, the live-stream ticket gave me a few days to re-watch the event, and I managed to see every band's set.

Part of the theme was to have each band that performed include a cover of a song by either Black Sabbath or from Ozzy's solo career. This is the element I will focus on for this post. To review every band's set completely would take forever. Besides, they'll probably release the whole concert on DVD or Streaming platforms eventually, right? We can hope!

So then, I will review each Sabbath/Ozzy cover song, and therefor build the most memorable send-off for the ultimate heavy metal icon in a setlist-to-end-all-setlists. Here goes nothing...

As the event began, our opening band was Mastadon. Their choice of a cover song was ‘Supernaut’ from the Volume 4 album. Drummer Brann Dailor sang lead vocals.

The next band was Rival Sons. I was not surprised to see them in the lineup, as they had opened for Black Sabbath on their 2016 The End Tour. They covered ‘Electric Funeral’ from Paranoid.

Big-Four thrash titans Anthrax were next, and they delivered an awesome version of ‘Into The Void’ off of the Master of Reality album.

Halestorm kept the show rolling and delivered the first cover song from Ozzy’s solo material with ‘Perry Mason’ from the Ozzmosis album.

Then came Lamb of God. Before launching into their Sabbath cover, vocalist Randy Blythe talked about how the world is a divisive place, as it was in 1971, and said how this song was a call to love ourselves and love our brothers and neighbors. The song was ‘Children of the Grave’.

As much as the A-list bands were doing an amazing job of showing the love and respect for Ozzy and Black Sabbath, what came next would raise the bar. A rotating lineup of a Supergroup, dubbed ‘Tom Morello’s All-Stars' took the stage and their set was primarily filled with cover songs. During this first set, here are the Ozzy & Sabbath cover tunes, with lead vocals credited:

-'The Ultimate Sin' (Lizzy Hale of Halestorm)

-'Shot In The Dark' (David Draiman of Disturbed)

-'Sweet Leaf' (David Draiman of Disturbed)

-'Believer' (Whitfield Crane of Ugly Kid Joe)

-'Changes' (YUNGBLUD)

During the intermission between the Supergroup and the next band, they played a video of a pre-recorded song by Jack Black and some School of Rock musicians: ‘Mr. Crowley’.

The next band was Alice In Chains and their choice of cover song was ‘Faeries Wear Boots’ from the Paranoid album.

Gojira came next, playing a short set that concluded with a cover of ‘Under the Sun’ from Volume 4. It was good to see a European band in the lineup, because otherwise, aside from Black Sabbath & Ozzy, all the other bands were American.

The next act was really more of a jam session that featured a drum-off between several drummers. They jammed to the riff from ‘Symptom of the Universe’. The drummers featured: Travis Barker, Danny Carey and Chad Smith.

The Supergroup returned for a flurry of more Sabbath and Ozzy covers mixed into their set of several other classic rock and metal songs. They included:

-'Snowblind' (Billy Corgan from Smashing Pumpkins)

-'Flying High Again' (Sammy Hagar)

-'Bark at the Moon' (Papa V Perpetua from Ghost)

Pantera were up next. Their ‘legacy lineup’ features Phil Anselmo and Rex Brown as original members, while Charlie Benante of Anthrax and Zakk Wylde are playing drums and guitar respectively. Giving credit where credit is due, Pantera raised the bar, being the first original band to perform 2 Sabbath covers in their limited set time. They played ‘Planet Caravan’ and ‘Electric Funeral’, both from the Paranoid album, and both songs they had covered before.

Tool performed next. They covered ‘Hand of Doom’, another track from Paranoid. It was a fitting choice as it is a ‘prog-rock’ type of song that moves into different sections from beginning to end.

Another Big-4 thrash titan, Slayer, were next up. When it came time for their cover, they played ‘Wicked World’ from Black Sabbath’s eponymous debut album. I loved this choice on so many levels. One: the lyrical themes are right on par with Slayer classics like ‘World Painted Blood’. Two: it was great to see Sabbath’s first album represented it the choice of covers. I’ve often thought that album is unfairly underrated.

There was another prerecorded video played between set-changes, this time by Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit. He performed ‘Changes’ from the Volume 4 album.

Side note: I was aware by this point that more than one song was performed twice. I was slightly annoyed that the bands seemingly didn’t coordinate their song choices for the sake of avoiding repeats such as this, but under the circumstances I tried not to hold it against them. However, in this case I happened to prefer Yungblud’s version.

By this point the show was escalating towards the inevitable climax, as the performers were now clearly at the A-list level. The next band was Guns N’ Roses. GN'R raised the bar with their song selection, opening with not just one, not two, not even 3, but 4 Black Sabbath covers! Those were: 'It's Alright', 'Never Say Die', 'Junior's Eyes' and 'Sabbath Bloody Sabbath'. With their selections, GN'R went deeper into the Sabbath catalog than we had heard up to this point. They were the first band to play selections from Black Sabbath's 7th and 8th albums with Ozzy: Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die! Three of their four covers came from these albums, and one of those tracks ('It's Alright') was originally sung by original Sabbath drummer, Bill Ward!

The final "opener" before Ozzy would take the stage was Metallica. Arguably the world's most popular heavy metal band, Metallica got the final opening slot, and were beyond honored to be able to be a part of this finale to the Black Sabbath/Ozzy Osbourne legacy. With Guns N' Roses' honorable inclusion of several deep-tracks from often-overlooked albums, could Metallica do anything to top that? Arguably, they did just as well. They opened with 'Hole in the Sky' from the Sabotage album, the only other track from this album performed on this day was the 'Symptom of the Universe' drum-off (which didn't feature any of the lyrics!). Then, before their set was finished, they also honored the Never Say Die! album with a performance of 'Johnny Blade'!

At long last it was time for the living legend himself: OZZY FUCKING OSBOURNE!

Performing his set seated in a bat-shaped throne, The Prince of Darkness rose from the stage, called for the crowd to scream, and began a set for the ages...

Giving it his all, one last time Ozzy performed his most iconic tracks:

'I Don't Know'

'Mr. Crowley'

'Suicide Solution'

'Mama, I'm Coming Home'

'Crazy Train'

Easily the most emotional moment of his set was his performance of 'Mama, I'm Coming Home'. Ringing with a symbolism never felt before, the lyrics and melody of this legendary ballad left no dry eyes in the audience, either in Villa Park, or anywhere in the world where fans were viewing it. I can vouch for this, personally. The track may be from the album No More Tears, but make no mistake, there were tears on this historic day.

One final set change-over, and before you knew it, Ozzy's original Sabbath bandmates, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward were on the stage with Ozzy Osbourne, and they delivered the most classic of Black Sabbath songs:

'War Pigs'

'N.I.B.'

'Iron Man'

and of course, 'Paranoid'!

As fireworks closed this evening of legacy, tribute, love, and respect for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath, the original members presented Ozzy with a congratulatory cake.

24 Black Sabbath tracks spanning all 8 original albums with Ozzy.

12 Ozzy Osbourne songs from 5 of his albums.

36 total tacks performed to honor a single, iconic legend of heavy metal music...

John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne.

Enjoy this playlist of those tracks. If possible, the covers by the performing artists are included. If the cover version has not been recorded for streaming, I used the original Black Sabbath or Ozzy Osbourne recording.

Back to the Beginning: A Black Sabbath & Ozzy Osbourne Playlist.

Happy Headbanging to all!

(* Ozzy passed away just weeks after this performance. Ozzy has often sang about his love of performing music, as the lyrics of songs like 'I Don't Wanna Stop' or 'Not Going Away' have depicted. The timing of his death makes these and so many more of his songs all the more prophetic. I will have much more to write on Ozzy, Black Sabbath, and his bandmates in other upcoming posts very soon...)

SLAYER- The Final Tour (5-25-18)

Post #399
(this post is belated: half-composed immediately after the concert, but just finalized recently.)

Slayer have been a cornerstone of metal since their inception. Along with being one of the 'Big Four' of Thrash metal, they are persistently cited as a major influence in nearly all extreme genres of metal, from thrash to death metal to hardcore, grindcore, black metal, etc...

As they announced they would do a Final Tour in 2018, I made it a priority to see this show if at all possible. They enlisted a top-notch opening lineup for this tour, making it even more irresistible. Anthrax, Behemoth and Lamb of God rounded out the lineup.

I regret that I missed Anthrax as the first opener, due to traffic and parking delays. Still, I will include their setlist below, and perhaps check out some videos from this tour to get a feel for their stage presence, and the performance I missed.

Behemoth were halfway through their set before I made it to my seat, unfortunately. I'll include their setlist below, but suffice to say, they put on a powerful setlist filled with demonic themes.

Lamb of God were up next. They killed it with a short set of their fan-favorite concert staple tracks. Their newest album at this time was Lamb of God VII: Sturm und Drang. Again, I'll include their setlist below.

But before long it was time for Slayer themselves. The crowd was almost electric with anticipation, and then their intro began to play. Their stage set up was a vision of the apocalypse itself. With their opening number "Repentless", the stage seemed to erupt in flames! 

I had been to several Slayer shows, and the mostly incorporated pyrotechnics, but this time they were truly going for broke. It was such an adrenaline rush! From one classic to the next, their song selection did not disappoint the Slayer faithful. They even included a track from Divine Intervention: 'Dittohead'

 

If this was truly the end of Slayer as a touring and recording entity, it was a fitting send-off. A concert that Slayer fans will cherish as a final memory of one of thrash metal's true icons.

Setlist:
-Delusions of Saviour (intro)

-Repentless

-Blood Red

-Disciple

-Mandatory Suicide

-Hate Worldwide

-War Ensemble

-Jihad

-When the Stillness Comes

-Postmortem

-Black Magic

-Payback

-Seasons In The Abyss

-Dittohead

-Dead Skin Mask

-Hell Awaits

-South of Heaven

-Raining Blood

-Chemical Warfare

-Angel of Death

Lamb of God setlist:

-Omerta

-Ruin

-Walk with Me in Hell

-Now You've Got Something to Die For

-512

-Engage the Fear Machine

-Blacken the Cursed Sun

-Laid to Rest

-Redneck

Behemoth setlist:

-Ov Fire and the Void

-Demigod

-Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer

-Wolves ov Siberia

-Chant for Eschaton 2000

-O Father O Satan O Sun!

Anthrax setlist:

-Caught in a Mosh

-Got the Time

-I Am The Law

-Evil Twin

-Antisocial

-Indians

Rock USA Oshkosh, 2014, Day 3: Like A Storm, Black Stone Cherry, Halestorm, 3 Doors Down, KoRn

Post #385

(an overdue review from 4 summers ago... See here for review of Day 2)

As Rock USA continued for its 3rd day on July 19th, 2014, I would again be taking in a variety of rock and metal music for an entire afternoon. The line-up on this day featured several bands I was looking forward to (Halestorm and Korn), and a few that were totally new to me (Like a Storm and Black Stone Cherry). In any case, it promised to be a day filled with awesome hard rock and metal music.

The first band I caught on the main stage was Like a Storm. They are a brand new band out of New Zealand, touring here in the States in support of their new album, Chaos Theory: Part 1, featuring their hit song 'I Love the Way You Hate Me'. They switched things up a bit with their alt-metal cover of Coolio's 'Gangsta's Paradise'. When it comes to their sound, between the vocals and guitar tones I felt they were comparable to Seether. These guys were something else! They even incorporate a didgeridoo into their music.

Next band on the main stage was Black Stone Cherry. They delivered their brand of hard rock with a veteran presence on-stage. Their songs were hard-edged yet made for mainstream radio. I recognized their main hit, 'White Trash Millionaire'. Their set was enjoyable and kept the crowd rocking out.

Halestorm were next, and they were one of the bands I'd been anticipating the most. It was late afternoon by this point and this band kept the crown engaged. Participation was encouraged by the band and the crowd responded. They opened with 'I Miss the Misery', a favorite of mine and a big hit of theirs. Lzzy proved to be one of the best band leaders of the whole fest. She kept the crowd engaged in the music, leading crowd participation segments, and interacting with her band mates. One of the best points of their set was here interaction with drummer (also her brother) during the drum solo. Another favorite from their set was 'A Familiar Taste of Poison'- a song I'd heard covered at Dame Nation Fest... But for me the real show stopping moment was when they launched into their cover of 'Dissident Aggressor'- the classic Judas Priest number (also a setlist staple for Slayer). Lzzy's voice sounded brilliant covering this metal classic, and she more than did the song justice, as Halestorm practically made it their own.

3 Doors Down performed on the main stage as the penultimate act of the day. They opened with 'Time of My Life', and their show was off and running. They delivered a great set, touching on all their major hits, and included  a new song from their (then) upcoming release. I was pleased to hear several songs from their debut album, The Better Life, as it is the album of theirs I know best. Of course the played Kryptonite- perhaps their most trademark of songs. Then it was down to Korn to close out the night...

Korn hit the stage with their unique, dark and twisted presence. 'Falling Away From Me' was the opening number. From heavy riffs to haunting 7-string lead guitars, dousing the outdoor ampitheater in the shadows of minor-key tones of ominous darkness, Korn blew the crowd away. Jonathan Davis' unique voice made spines tingle throughout the crowd. They closed this day of rock and metal music with a performance to be remembered. Not to be overlooked, they saved their early hit 'Blind' for their encore-closer.

All-in-all, it was a great day of live music enjoyed to the fullest. Setlists for these band on this day are as follows...

Like A Storm
-Chemical Infatuation
-Never Surrender
-Just Save Me
-Alone
-Nothing Remains
-Gangsta's Paradise (Coolio cover)
-Enemy
-T.N.T. (AC/DC cover)
-Love the Way You Hate Me

Black Stone Cherry
-Maybe Someday
-Me and Mary Jane
-Ghost of Floyd Collins
-Yeah Man
-Like I Roll
-Rain Wizard
-In My Blood
-Blind Man
-Fiesta del Fuego
-White Trash Millionaire
-Blame it on the Boom Boom
-Lonely Train
-30 Seconds of Death Metal

Halestorm
-I Miss the Misery
-Love Bites (So Do I)
-It's Not You
-Freak Like Me
-Break In
-Familiar Taste of Poison
-(drum solo)
-Dissident Aggressor (Judas Priest cover)
-Mz. Hyde
-Daughters of Darkness
-I Get Off

3 Doors Down
-Time of My Life
-It's Not My Time
-Duck and Run
-Away From the Sun
-Behind Those Eyes
-Loser
-Citizen/Soldier
-You Better Believe It
-Here Without You
-The Better Life
-Kryptonite
-When I'm Gone

KORN
-Falling Away From Me
-Twist
-Got the Life
-Did My Time
-Spike in My Veins
-Hater
-Shoots and Ladders
-Coming Undone
-Here to Stay
-Never Never
-Freak on a Leash
----
-Blind

Motley Crue-The Final Tour (with Alice Cooper) 8.8.14

Post #380

(Concert date: August 8th, 2014)
Motley Crue were one of the best known metal bands of the 1980's to come out of LA and were a dominant force in the hair/glam metal scene for over a decade. They set some notorious standards for the decadent lifestyle clichés of heavy metal, rock and roll culture during this era. With this tour, they we giving all their fans from over the years a chance to see the original line-up one final time. To make the 'Farewell Tour' even more convincing, the band signed a cessation of touring contract! Whether that holds true or not, time will tell, but for this night I was treating it as my last opportunity to see the Crue in concert!

Their opening act was the shock-rock veteran, Alice Cooper! Alice opened the show in style as he delivered a great set of songs ranging from classics like 'No More Mr. Nice Guy', 'I'm 18', and 'Billion Dollar Babies' to some later-era selections like 'Dirty Diamonds' and 'Feed My Frankenstein'. The best was his closing number, 'School's out', where he seamlessly incorporated a verse from Pink Floyd's 'Another Brick in the Wall, Part II'. (this version of the song has a studio-recorded version on Alice's all-star collaboration with Johnny Depp: Hollywood Vampires!)

Then it was time for Motley Crue! Their set opened with the autobiographical 'Saints of Los Angeles', and from the start they were off and running. While I truly enjoyed everything they played, I did have a couple favorites that stood out above and beyond the rest of the show. ‘Saints of Los Angeles’ is an undeniably great song. Their early number ‘On With the Show’ was memorable and not necessarily expected. Then when they played a portion of Sirius’ arena rock staple ‘Rock n Roll part 2’ as an intro to ‘Smokin’ in the Boy’s Room’ I felt I had truly heard something special.

They finished off a great set, compiled of all their greatest hits, heavily focused on their late-80's heyday. Truly, when it comes to farewell tours, I don't think you can expect a deep set list to go beyond the major hits and fan-favorites. The only thing is I wish they had toured more consistently, but between break-ups and reunions, revolving doors of members, and health issues, they really didn't have a chance to be consistent. At least they gave the fans this farewell tour. For that I'll always be grateful.

Thank you to Vince, Nikki, Mick, and Tommy, for creating the music you did, performing it for us one last time, and best wishes for you all.

Setlist ALICE COOPER
-(The Underture)
-Hello, Hooray
-No More Mr. Nice Guy
-Under My Wheels
-I'm 18
-Billion Dollar Babies
-Poison
-Dirty Diamonds
-(Drum Solo)
-Welcome to My Nightmare
-Feed My Frankenstein
-Ballad of Dwight Fry
-I Love the Dead
-School's Out (w/ verse from Another Brick In The Wall-Pink Floyd)


Setlist MOTLEY CRUE
-Saints of Los Angeles
-Wild Side
-Primal Scream
-Same Ol' Situation
-Looks That Kill
-On With the Show
-Too Fast for Love
-Rock N' Roll Pt.2/Smokin' in the Boys Room
-Without You
-MF of the Year
-Anarchy in the UK
-Dr. Feelgood
-In the Begining/Shout at the Devil
-Don't Go Away Mad
-Drum Solo/Guitar Solo
-Live Wire
-Too Young to Fall in Love
-Girls Girls Girls
-Kickstart My Heart
--------
-Home Sweet Home

Iron Maiden - Legacy of the Beast Tour (8-22-19)

Post #379

When it comes to heavy metal concerts, there are few artists that can be compared to Iron Maiden in terms of stage shows. With their Legacy of the Beast Tour they prove once again that they have an incomparable stage show, while also delivering a career spanning set list that left few Maiden fans wanting for anything else.

Their opening number was “Aces High”, and with this song they spared no expense. Mere seconds after the intro of Winston Churchill's speech, there was an enormous cloud from fog machines out of which emerged a life size WWII Spitfire fighter plane! Complete with a functional propeller and suspended like a marionette above the stage, the plane soared, or dove, or banked and turned throughout the entire song. I spent the whole 5 minutes with my jaw agape at the amazing spectacle. And this was just the first song!

They went on to bombard us with great hits, classic concert staples, nostalgic nuggets they've not played live in years, and quite a few surprises- both in song selection and special effects! "Flight of Icarus" included a gigantic winged figure with lines of fire that destroyed the wings, giant canvas back-drops that told the story behind many of the songs. It was a full experience both visually and audibly.

Although there were no tracks performed from either of their 2 most recent albums, that was probably by design- this was after all the Legacy of the Beast tour, so those songs that Maiden’s legacy is built upon deserved their moment in the spotlight, flames, and glory. Their set featured songs off of 10 different albums, and still they found time to include some deep-tracks in addition to the expected classics.

One personal favorite among those 'deep-tracks' was "For the Greater Good of God" from the A Matter of Life And Death album. (See my thoughts on that specific album in this post) Another welcomed surprise was the fact they included songs from both albums from the Blaze Bayley-era; "The Sign of the Cross" from The X-Factor, and "The Clansman" from Virtual XI!

With pyrotechnics and stage props that literally brought the songs to life in some cases I can honestly say that I’ve never been as impressed with a concert as I have with the Legacy of the Beast! This show was one for the ages, and I can’t imagine where they’ll go from here. But I certainly hope I’ll be able to see Maiden again on a future tour.

Iron Maiden's setlist follows:
-Aces High
-Where Eagles Dare
-2 Minutes to Midnight
-The Clansman
-The Trooper
-Revelations
-For the Greater Good of God
-The Wicker Man
-Sign of the Cross
-Flight of Icarus
-Fear of the Dark
-The Number of the Beast
-Iron Maiden
----
-The Evil That Men Do
-Hallowed be thy Name
-Run to the Hills

Happy Headbanging!
#Legacyofthebeast #Ironmaiden

The Hu - The Gereg Tour (Milwaukee, WI 9/13/19)

Post # 378

The Hu are a Mongolian 'folk-metal' band that have gained much attention since they had 2 music videos go viral in late 2018. They describe their genre as 'Hunnu Rock', and really stick to their roots, using traditional Mongolian instruments like the Morin Khuur (aka “Horse-Head Fiddle") and the Shudraga (a Mongolian 3-string guitar). They incorporate just enough drums, bass, and backing guitars to cross-over into the rock or metal genres. Not to be overlooked, they employ the native Mongolian throat-singing vocal style. It truly must be heard to be fully appreciated. A very cool sound, and it lends itself well to the rock and metal style. I can’t wait to hear more from this band!

I was very fortunate to see them on their first tour through the US in support of their debut album ‘The Gereg’. It was Friday the 13th of September this year, the very day their album “The Gereg” was released! A friend and I made the short trek from the northern suburbs of Chicago up to Milwaukee, made our way to the Rave and prepared to hear this new band exhibit their music for our enjoyment.

Even while entering the venue there was a unique vibe to this show. Their was a guy outside dressed in what I presumed was a traditional Mongolian warriors uniform. He was open to posing for photos so we did. I’m still not sure if he was with the band, their road crew, or just a local guy dressing all-out to support the show and Mongolian culture, but it sure was cool! Inside, we found the merch booth and each collect an autographed copy of “The Gereg”!

After a short opening set by a DJ that played some digital music, they set up the stage for The Hu. Moments before it seemed they were schedule to come out the restless crowd took up the chant of  “HU! HU! HU!...”

The Hu took the stage with their Morin Khuurs, Shudraga, drums and a couple backing musicians with guitar and bass. A brief  “Hello. Milwaukee!” brought a welcoming cheer from the crowd and they began their opening number, “The Same”. It was a slower mellow number but with pleasant melodies and a nice groove. Next they played the title track from their debut album “The Gereg”. It was a little more upbeat and you could feel the crowd getting more into the music with each measure.

Another song from their album they played really got the crowd rocking out. That song was “Shoog Shoog”. They’ve since released a lyric video for it. Another very catchy tune was “Uchirtai Gurav”- this one I managed to film a long segment of, and I still enjoy listening to the clip I have: it has a great throat-singing solo by Gala in it. Check out the link!

During the majority of the show the singer would speak to the crowd in Mongolian. The crowd responded enthusiastically, as a fair percentage of those in attendance appeared to be Mongolian as well. My friend and I cheered along anyway. It was the spirit of the moment! It wasn’t long until they played their 2 songs from their viral music videos: “Yuve Yuve Yu” and “Wolf Totem”. If you have not seen either of these music videos you’re missing out. Here is a link for Wolf Totem.
Their closing number was a really heavy, rocking tune! They actually announced this song’s title in English, “This is the Mongol”. It proved to be one of my favorite songs of the evening. Many of these songs are surfacing on YouTube as fan-filmed concert footage, but I sincerely hope they record some of these other songs on their next album.

The concert seemed to be over, but after about 5 minutes they came out on stage again! The crowd cheered for an encore. They proceeded to play their video hits, “Yuve Yuve Yu” and “Wolf Totem” a second time, closing with raucous cheers by the crowd and a humble, appreciative bow from the band.

Soon after the concert I created a set list on setlist.fm, and added the tracks I knew from their album, in roughly the order I could recall them. Not understanding any of the Mongolian lyrics didn’t help, but thankfully my friend and I had taken several video clips during the show and we matched titles to the melodies we recognized. Several tracks seemed to not even be on their album, but since creating the set list other users have filled in most of the gaps. If you attended the Milwaukee show for this tour, here is the set list link:
https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/the-hu/2019/the-rave-ii-milwaukee-wi-339cfc19.html

Set list for The Hu
-The Same
-The Gereg
-The Song of Women
-The Legend of Mother Swan
-Uchirtai Gurav
-Shireg Shireg
-Bii Biyley
-Yuve Yuve Yu (linked to my video from this show!)
-Wolf Totem
-The Great Chinggis Khaan
-Black Thunder
-This is the Mongol
——
-Yuve Yuve Yu
-Wolf Totem

Feel free to login and edit if you have a better recollection of the song sequence!

Happy Headbanging everyone!
And thank you to The Hu, for touring the USA! I hope it has been a wonderful experience for you, and I look forward to seeing you in concert again someday.

Midwest Springfest 2019 at Penny Road Pub

Post #375

On Saturday, April 20th, 2019, Penny Road Pub in Barrington, IL hosted a festival of rock and metal music known as Midwest Springfest. Starting mid-afternoon and running non-stop all through the afternoon and evening, no less than 14 bands got their turn to inundate our auditory senses and show off their variety of talent.

I unfortunately arrived too late to catch Mary Vaughn, Mudfish, and 20 Spot. I did arrive just in time to catch most of The Kringe's set, and then saw every band after that. The venue utilized both the main floor and basement stages, and set times were scheduled so that roughly as one band finished up their set, the next band was about to go on. So it was relatively easy to see every band.

The Kringe

The Kringe were a hard rock band- not aggressive enough to be called metal, but this fest was a broad spectrum 'rock' format, so it was a bit of 'anything goes'. The Kringe were an old-school rock band, and if I had to name their genre then and there I'd say they were 'sleazy blues-rock'. I could detect some influence from the likes of Ted Nugent, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Zeppelin.

GreyWall

Then it was upstairs to catch Greywall. Greywall were a hardcore, alt-rock band. Their vocals were harsh screams offset by scratchy melodic singing. They could be compared to Seether or Three Days Grace. Blend that with Nine Inch Nails and you may not be far off. They definitely had a gritty and raw sound. I was about to be lulled into their ambient dark mood when they hit overdrive and the guitars screamed heavy and distorted along with the vocals. The headbanging was quite enjoyable, and I knew this fest was going to have much variety in store.

Greywall's Set:
-Red Dahlia
-Bullfight
-Babies
-Wait
-Idle Wrist
-The Withering

Toxic Ruin

Toxic Ruin from Sheboygan, WI brought the intensity up a few notches. These guys are old-school thrash, and good at it! Fast and complex riffs, technical drumming and raspy growled vocals. They had the crazies headbanging in an instant and didn’t let up for their whole set. They even included a cover of 'Crystal Mountain' from Death’s iconic Symbolic album. My neck now thoroughly loosened up, I headed back upstairs to catch the next act.

Rachels Bully

Back up to the main floor and Rachel’s Bulky were set to go on. These guys were more old-school rock n roll. They were so intense the shorted out a part of the sound system on their 2nd song. After a short delay to repair the sound system, they were back at it, rocking out to the core. A few more songs into their set they switched it up with a ballad, but then returned to their comfort zone of hard rock with a sleazy edge. I'd recommend them to fans of Buckcherry or Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

Prison City Brigade

Prison city brigade, from Joliet, brought something new again, showing us a taste of hardcore punk! They had some crowd participation in their name sake song, as they had us chanting “We are! We are the brigade!!” The guitarist came into the audience and jammed one of their songs right there among the crowd. This band gave it their all and poured their hearts (and sweat) out on the stage.

Blacken the Day

Blacken the Day were fortunate to be able to play, as one of their guitarist was just released from the hospital the day before. They didn’t disappoint. Self-described ‘Jazz-metal’, they are the product of a jazz singer who joined a metal band, so both influences were apparent in their sound. Their riffs were heavy with an alt-metal vibe, their singer's vocals melodic and clean. This brought a nice contrast to their sound and delivery

Monroe

Monroe's sound was a welcomed mix of hard rock and alternative metal. They delivered a heavy, rocking set while keeping the crowd engaged. Their bassist was sporting a Genotype t-shirt, a hint that they also were representing the Rockford scene. Track for track, Monroe delivered a loud rocking performance and songs with catchy grooves.

No Clear Way

This band again brought something new to the mix. Heavy guitars, and a deep toned-bass groove set the foundation for their singer's post-grunge inspired vocal style. There was evident of the influences of Scott Weiland, Eddie Vedder and the like, but backed by a more metal style. Theirs was another engaging performance with more bands yet to come!

Genotype

With only a few bands left to perform, it was finally time to catch Genotype, the winner of my independent band poll last fall, in concert! I first reviewed them after they played Dame Nation back in 2013. Since then I had followed their social media, but never had another chance to see them live. Once they started playing it was obvious they were worth the wait! They opened with 'The Dream' from their latest album- Genotype III, and their intensity was at 11! They play a style of metalcore, mixed with electronic elements. Vocalist Kadie Kirby delivers both melodic and screamed vocal styles, with equal mastery of each style. Charles Esposito and Shaun Combee keep assaulting the audience with heavy riffs and killer solos. All the while drummer Remington Roberts keeps an intensely tight beat with rapid blast-beat drumming. I was especially blown away by the vocal range displayed in their track 'Drifting to the End'. They are an amazing band to see live. I'd try to catch their next show if I were you!
-The Dream
-Temple of Saturn
-Lysithia
-Energon
-Drifting to the End
-Silence

Dear Deadly

The Penultimate band was Dear Deadly, and they performed a more traditional style of metal. Sharp guitar tones, frequent solos and a scratchy but clean vocal style had me pegging them as power metal. Their vocal style was clean singing, but with a power and edge that it hovered at the bring of a scream for the majority of their set. For a comparison I might look to the early works of Bullet for My Valentine, or In Flames. Their songs had great hooks! At one point I thought I heard a guitar solo that mirrored the melody of  'La Vida Loca'. Check out their song 'Deviant' and see if you hear the same!

Setlist:
-Virus
-Face to Face
-Bad Habits
-Very Wicked Things
-Deviant
-The Devil You Know
-The Hopeless
-Papercut (Linkin Park cover)

Alethia

By this point of the show there had been so many great performances that I found it hard to believe the show organizers could have possibly saved the best for last, but then Alethia took the stage, and I was soon proven wrong. Alethia were a true metalcore band. Fast, technical, complex riffs, and a hardcore screamed vocal style, they pushed the adrenaline through the roof! Still, more than just the intense and heavy sound, they incorporated segments of melodic phrases and clean backing vocals the give their sound a sophisticated and professional delivery. I was banging my head as intensely as I had all night, and their musics power reminded me of the likes of Killswitch Engage, or August Burns Red.

At the end of this truly rewarding metal music fest I had definitely added many bands to my list for must-hear music. I have downloaded, or bought their CDs online, and highly recommend you do the same! Check your iTunes, Spotify, Bandcamp, Reverbnation, facebook, and Youtube for these bands, their catalog of albums or EPs, their most highly played songs, add them to your own playlists and spread the word to your own metalhead friends!

Thanks you for reading, and as always, Happy Headbanging!

KISS-End of the Road Tour (3/2/19-Chicago, IL)

Post #371

KISS are a legendary rock-n-roll band that have influenced multiple generations of rock and metal musicians over a career that has spanned nearly 5 decades. They boast the largest discography within Mercury records, hold the record for most Gold albums by an American recording artist, rewrote the rules for the rock-n-roll concert stage show with pioneering theatrics, and have secured a place in the official Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. However, the members of the band are not as young as they once were and this time around they have called the tour "The End of the Road Tour: The Last Tour Ever". However, some critics claim that they have done a "Farewell Tour" once before, so why should we believe them now? That question can be debated as much as you like, but in the end, time will tell. As it always has.

These questions aside, I did approach this concert as if it will be the last chance I'll ever have to see this band in concert. I've long held to the statement that KISS are my all-time favorite band. I am constantly discovering new metal bands, both on the national and local levels, so on any given day there could be a different band that I hold in the highest regard. However, when I look over the course of my music-listening life, the timing, scope, and longevity of KISS all play a role in keeping them high on my ever-growing list of favorites.

(myself in Eric Carr's 'Fox' makeup)

So for this show I was all-in. I put on my 'ultimate fan' hat, outfitted myself in KISS swag from my head to my toes, and yes, even painted my face like a member of the band (this time I chose the late Eric Carr). I left my pipe-dream hopes and expectations of any reunion with past members at the door, as I had heard enough interviews that consistently ruled that scenario out. I simply went with the hopes to see this current KISS lineup of Gene, Paul, Eric and Tommy deliver a selection of songs and performance of music that would exhibit a diverse representation of the band's long and storied career. With this as my frame of mind, I was not disappointed. By the end of the night, I was grateful to have witnessed the KISS live show for quite possibly the last time.

From the moment the lights went out KISS were on a mission to give us a final performance that fulfilled a fan's expectations no matter what year they may have begun to follow this band. They opened with their classic hit, 'Detroit Rock City', descending from the rafters on stage-lifts, with laser-lights and fire balls erupting from the stage. There was no looking back from there. KISS kept the show rolling as best they could. They gave us a good mix of anthems, ballads, and heavier tunes.

(photo by Amanda Dean Morell)

Early in the show, Paul Stanley said they were going to represent every era of the band. By the end of the show I can say they did a fairly good job of that. True, it is difficult to represent every era when a band has 20 studio albums (24 if you count the 4 solo albums). If I looked at their set list under a magnifying glass I could say they skipped a few albums (no 'Hot In The Shade', no 'Revenge', no 'Monster', or 'Elder', or 'Carnival of Souls'... no 'Unmasked'). But I was looking on the bright side. They covered all of their biggest hits, and best-known anthems, and with the first 'Alive' album being their most successful and possibly their best-known release, it's no surprise they still play many songs from that era. But they did perform 'I Was Made for Lovin' You' from the 1979 'Dynasty' album, 'War Machine' and 'Heaven's On Fire' from the 1980's, and 'Say Yeah' from 'Sonic Boom' (one of only 2 albums recorded by their current line-up). So in the end they did represent the spectrum of KISS quite well!

(photo by Brian Batt)

Their classic theatrics were all there: pyrotechnics, elevating drum riser, laser light show, fireworks shooting from the guitar, and of course Gene Simmons breathed fire and spit blood at different points of the concert. Paul Stanley rode a zip-line out to a small platform stage in the back area of the main floor to sing a couple songs- a stunt he has done for several recent tours. Gene Simmons was lifted to the rafters to sing 'God of Thunder'.

(photo by Mary Ionetz Brodnick)

With all of this in mind, I must say that my favorite part was when they played 'Lick It Up'. Ever since they incorporated a segment of The Who's 'Won't Get Fooled Again' into the breakdown segment of this song it has become a concert experience to behold. They did not disappoint, as they performed this song again with the extended breakdown.

They closed their main set with 'Black Diamond', a classic song from their first album, and Alive! From the clean intro, the crowd participation elements, and slow closing segment of the song, the crowd went crazy right to the end. Then the lights when dim to the enthusiastic cheers of the crowd.

(photo by Jerry Downing)

A few minutes later it became clear that they had saved the best for last. The first song of the encore was 'Beth', sung by Eric Singer. The cool thing about this song was that for the first time in all the years I've seen KISS in concert, Eric actually played the song live on the piano, instead of singing along to the recorded instrumentation like he usually does. I only recall one other tour where they played the song live instead of singing along to the recorded music, but even then it was on acoustic guitars. This was on the piano, as the song is meant to be played. Thank you Eric Singer for making this a memorable performance!

After that they played 'Do You Love Me?' and of course 'Rock and Roll All Nite'! They dropped balloons from the rafters, blew confetti into the air, lifted Gene and Tommy on cranes out over the crown on either side of the arena, and ignited a lot of pyro in the ultimate concert finale. The crowd went crazy as they finished their show with this classic anthem. It was a night I'll never forget.

Thank you again to KISS for all the music and memories through the years. You let us drive you wild; we let you drive us crazy!

KISS-End of the Road setlist:
-Detroit Rock City
-Shout it Out Loud
-Deuce
-Say Yeah
-Heaven's On Fire
-War Machine
-Lick It Up (with medley of 'Won't Get Fooled Again' by The Who)
-Calling Dr. Love
-100,000 Years
-Cold Gin
-God of Thunder
-Psycho Circus
-I Love it Loud
-Let Me Go, Rock N' Roll
-Love Gun
-I Was Made for Lovin' You
-Black Diamond
---encore---
-Beth
-Do You Love Me?
-Rock and Roll All Nite


For more pics and videos from this concert on March 2nd, 2019, please visit this Facebook event link, posted by KISS, and filled with comments from the KISS Army of Chicagoland! Lastly, I wish to give a sincere thanks to those who gave permission for me to use your photos in this review. You guys rock! Happy Headbanging to all of the Kiss Army!

Mac Sabbath with Galactic Empire at Subterranean, Chicago (2-17-18)

Post #357

Drive-Thru Metal meets Sci-Fi Metal? Count me IN!! On February 17th, 2018 I attended the weirdest tribute band show I ever saw. It was the "I Got a Bad Feeling About This" Tour with Mac Sabbath and Galactic Empire...

When it comes to tribute bands, I really appreciate true passion and talent in giving a nod to the artists that inspire you. But for a band to embody the passion of the music along with specific elements of a niche fandom, such as Star Wars, was truly something unique to behold!

Galactic Empire are that band. They have become internet-famous with their music videos, where they perform heavy metal versions of Star Wars soundtrack songs in full Star Wars costumes. They play the roles of Darth Vader, Death Trooper, Storm Trooper, Imperial Red and Boba Fett in the video. Not only that, but they insert fandom-themed jokes into the music videos also.

Seeing them perform live was every bit as entertaining as their youtube videos, if not more-so. They even had crowd participation, as someone from the audience was tapped to play the role of 'a Rebel Alliance traitor', and were then force-choked by Vader on stage. Since their first couple music videos, they have replaced Death Trooper with 'Kyle' Ren on guitar. During their live set they explained the line-up change, with plenty of dark-side humor!

Galactic Empire's arrangements of the theme music from the Star Wars franchise are near flawless and satiate the metal-head's craving for well-executed riffs and guitar solos. This was, after all, a "fully armed and operational metal band!" As a Star Wars fan, and also owning my own copy of their full-length debut album, I knew every song and was immersed in metal-infused Star Wars fandom for the entirety of their set. The crowd's most energetic moment came when they played 'Cantina Band', of all numbers. If you haven't heard that one yet, find it on iTunes and treat yourself!

I forget the exact sequence, but I know they played:
-Main Theme
-The Force Theme
-The Forest Battle
-The Imperial March
-Cantina Band
-Duel of the Fates

Download Galactic Empire's self-titled debut on iTunes!

Then it was time for Mac Sabbath. Their description alone says enough about them: A Black Sabbath Parody-Tribute band that mocks the food quality of the McDonald's franchise as well as the US FDA and food industry in general.

Mac Sabbath sometimes had a hard time taking themselves seriously, but the instrumentation and performance of the classic Black Sabbath riffs was worthy of any metal fan's respect! With the real Black Sabbath seemingly retired after their 'The End' tour, a chance to see any Sabbath tribute band is appreciated. This one was full of laughs as well. The music was well performed, and the lyrics were downright hysterical!

They do have a music video for 'Pair-a-Buns', but unfortunately most of their songs remain unrecorded in studio format. They do have a ton of youtube videos out there from various live performances that you can check out if you're curious, and have a strong stomach...

Since the show I've looked up the names of many of their parody songs, but the sequence may be off..
To the best of my knowledge, the setlist was:
-Black Sandwich (Black Sabbath)
-Organic Funeral (Electric Funeral)
-Chicken for the Slaves (Children of the Grave)
-GMO-Blind (Snow Blind)
-In Dreams (Roy Orbison cover?)
-SUPERSIZE!!! (Supernaut)
-Into the Void/Sabbath Bloody Sabbath/Megalomania  (Instrumental)
-Frying Pan (Iron Man)

encore(?)
-Mac Flag (Black Flag cover, 'Nervous Breakdown'?)
-Pair-a-Buns

HappyHeadbanger Fest 2016: Live at Elbo Room, September 3rd.

Post #341

On September 3rd, 2016, history was made as the first-ever Happyheadbanger Fest was held in Chicago at the Elbo Room on the north side of the city. 5 bands came out and played their hearts out for the faithful followers of independent music who came, saw, and rocked out with them. The evening was recorded live, and may be available in the future either through this blog or directly through the bands who performed. For now, I'll review the music that was played on this night.

The opening act was Fist to the Sky, the band who won my Independent Band of the Year contest in 2012. Brothers Mike and Phil Sylvester played an 'acoustic' set to open the show, as their drummer was unavailable for this night. They started off the night with a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd's 'Simple Man'. They actually sounded close to the Shinedown version of this song. From there they mixed it up with some of their old songs, some newer original songs, a couple more covers, and even a song or two from their own side-projects.

With the crowd warmed up it was time for the next act... Next band up was Threatening The Order, a female-fronted metal band from Chicago. They played a fast and heavy set. The crowd got into it, there were fists in the air, and heads were banging. Their songs were driven by heavy riffs, and the singer brought a melodic element to each song. They did perform both songs they have available on their Reverbnation page to stream/download; 'Something to Prove', and 'Soul Inside'. They closed with another favorite track, 'Hold Your Breath'

Third band up, right in the middle of the line-up, was MEDIUMS. This was another change of pace for the evening. Mediums are a blues-rock band who have already drawn comparisons to Ben Folds with their sound. Having just started playing shows earlier this year, they filled in on short notice for another band that had to cancel. They kept things up-beat and kept the crowd into the music. They were quite entertaining, particularly their guitarist Henry Van Loon, who played a Hendrix-ish guitar solo at one point, complete with teeth-picking and behind-the-head playing. Even when one guitarist had a string break during their set, the rest of the band improvised a drum-solo and jam session while he re-strung his instrument, and they never missed a beat!

 The penultimate band of the night was Scars Of Armageddon, the current Independent Band of the Year on this site. They also played the most intense style of metal thus far, and they melted faces with their shredding progressive power metal. I recently reviewed their debut CD Never Sleep... Again, and they played 2 tracks from that release, including my personal favorite, 'Our Dying Day'. They also played several new songs from their follow-up CD which they are recording currently. Fists were pumping, heads were banging, and the crowd's energy was at its peak thus far.

Last but not least, was Proudest Angel, a Chicago-based metal-rock-punk band that gave the first ever HappyHeadbanger Fest an energetic and thrilling final set. Prior to their latest release, The Soundtrack to Your Next Bad Decision, Proudest Angel last released new music back in 2003. They played a couple songs from both their newer and older releases, but they also surprised us with a cool cover of Stabbing Westward's 'Shame', cleverly arranged as part of a medley with their own original song 'Starlight'. They hit us early and often with heavy riffs and powerful vocals. They closed their set with one of their older classics, 'Brink'.

And then it was in the books. HappyHeadbanger Fest 2016 had become reality, and hopefully marks the beginning of a tradition. In any event, this show was filmed and recorded. There may be audio and/or video material from this evening of independent rock and metal music available for you at some point in the future. Keep following Happyheadbanger.com, and keep up with local and independent bands near and far. Support your local scene wherever you are... Happy Headbanging to all!

Setlists for each band were as follows:
FIST TO THE SKY
-Simple Man (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)
-Count Your Blessings
-Life So Free (War Horseman cover)
-Done With You
-Untitled
-One Dance (Drake cover)
-Forever We Will Stand
-Forever and After
-Not After Tonight

THREATENING THE ORDER
-Price to Pay
-Mistaken
-Something to Prove
-Soul Inside
-Casting Molds
-Slave
-Buried
-Hold Your Breath

MEDIUMS
-If You Love a City
-Let Me In
-I Can't Take It Any More
-Only in Moonlight
-No Name #7
-Well Wishing
-Good Time
-Girlia
-Chasin' The Blues

SCARS OF ARMAGEDDON
-Dead End
-Never Sleep Again
-Our Dying Day
-A Good Day To Die
-Lockdown

PROUDEST ANGEL
-Shoulda Known Better
-The Hyena
-Anathema
-Chaos
-Whole Again
-Civilly Feral
-Shamelight (A medley of Starlight and Shame by Stabbing Westward)
-We Had Fun
-Brink

4WITHOUT, Sinister Fate, Proudest Angel, Evil Engine. 4-30-16

Post # 328

On Saturday April 30th, at Smiler Coogan's on Chicago's northwest side, 4 local Chicago bands got together to put on a kick-ass metal show (with a hint of punk!) Presented by Rebel Radio in conjunction with the venue, the 4 band line-up easily caught my eye, since I had previously reviewed works from members of 3 of the 4 bands, and only missed seeing the 4th band previously because I was out-of-state during Dame-Nation 2012. This was an excellent opportunity to see 4 bands at once, all of which I had interest in covering...

The opening act of the evening was Evil Engine, a 4-piece punk-rock act who are busy recording their debut EP. Their line-up features 2 members from Deadmanswake, previously reviewed here at www.happyheadbanger.com and a former Independent Band of the Year from 2010!

Their set was intense; packed with fast tempos and kinetic stage-presence in every song, they got me headbanging early! At one point their bassist even jumped into the crowd and kept on playing... They played many songs from this forthcoming EP, my personal favorite being 'Father', a demo track for which they made a lyric video previously this year. Another highlight for me was their cover of the Ramones' 'Pet Sematary', inspired by the Stephen King novel and film.

Next was Proudest Angel, a band featuring 2 members from Sutured Psyche, another band I've reviewed here before.

Although they are working on new material to be released soon, they are actually a re-tooled version of the band, and had recorded a couple EP's from 2000-2002. Their set featured mostly material from those early recordings plus a couple new ones. Their best number in my opinion was 'Whole Again', also available to hear in a youtube video.

Then came the dark and demented Sinister Fate! I had seen this band once before, and was looking forward to see what they had in store. They are known for incorporating a DIY-pyrotechnic display into their live sets, and this show didn't disappoint! They had two stage-dancers/performers who added a visually impressive spark-thrower display...

Their traditional metal/thrash metal style was easy to bang your head to, and they of course closed with their anthem to their favorite curse word: 'I Love to Say Fuck!', a cover of The Murderdolls song.
(**It should be noted that vocalist Dave Bates had been running a fever of 103 earlier in the day. In addition to delivering a great performance on vocals here with Sinister Fate, he ALSO played drums for Proudest Angel in the previous set! That is some true, heavy-metal style dedication to the fans of live music. Much respect to ya Dave!)

The last band of the evening was 4Without, a female-fronted metal band with roots from the Czech Republic. As I mentioned previously, they were part of the line-up for Chicago's female-fronted-metal fest Dame-Nation, a concert series I often covered here, however this was the first time I got to see them live.

They delivered numerous tracks from their own self-produced CD, Line of Love. Their style is melodic metal, or heavy-hard rock. One highlight from their set was 'Move On'. Click the song title to see their youtube video for it!

Setlists for this night's performance from each band are as follows...

Evil Engine Setlist:
Father
Degeneration
Resistance
My God's Bigger Than Your God
Radio
Pet Sematary
Egression
Ugly Public

Proudest Angel Setlist:
Shoulda Known Better
Civilly Feral
Anathema
Ex Chrysalis
Brink
Starlight
Canto Dolor
I Like It Rough (Lady Gaga Cover)
Whole Again
We Had Fun

Sinister Fate Setlist:
Trust/Obey
Decay
Sympathy From the Devil
Hellbound
Zombie Bomb
S and M Anthem
Drop Dead Goregous
Gore Whore
Natural-Born Killer
Dragstrip Dragula
Fetish
I Love to Say Fuck!

4Without Setlist:
Line of Love
Running Away
Sweet Bite
Territory
Desire
Personal Jesus
Where I Belong
Kill Him 1st
Move On
Life

Trivium in concert with Conniption and The Bloodline (1-21-16)

Post #324

Touring in support of their newest album, Silence in the Snow, Trivium made a stop in my neck of the woods in southeast Wisconsin and I got myself a ticket, in spite of it being on a week night. It has been far too long since I've managed to see Trivium live, plus this would be my first chance to see them as a headliner! They've put out 3 albums since I last saw them on Mayhem Fest in '09, so there would be plenty of new songs in their set, plus I also got a chance to see two other up and coming bands: Conniption and The Bloodline.

I had been following The Bloodline in recent months, since Mike Sylvester of Fist to the Sky joined their touring line-up, but Conniption were completely new to me. I had no idea what to expect. As soon as Conniption started playing I knew I was in for an awesome night of thrash and power metal. Conniption are from Milwaukee, WI, and they perform an intense brand of traditional metal or power metal- fast-tempo, power-riffs, numerous extended guitar solos, and a vocal style akin to Iron Maiden. One of the songs in their set was an instrumental, featuring multiple guitar solos- traded off between lead guitarist Bill House and vocalist/guitarist Michael Brigham. The two played competitively, razzing each other while the other was playing their lead... sort of the way that Sam Totman and Herman Li of DragonForce do. After their opening set, it was time for The Bloodline.

The Bloodline are a Chicago-based melodic metalcore band, and a perfect warm-up for the likes of Trivium. Their style fluctuates between melodic vocals, and hardcore screams in a well-balanced ratio. Vocalist Travis Neal had a commanding stage presence while singing either style. I was reminded of Five Finger Death Punch's Ivan Moody, and it wasn't just their coincidental image of shaved heads, this dude can really sing... and scream. At every point where the song called for it, bassist Mike Sylvester was right there providing the backing vocals, also with both the melodic or hardcore style. Their brutal heaviness and intensity got the crowd energized and moshing ensued...

Next up was the band the whole venue had been waiting for with eager anticipation. Trivium- a band who in my opinion are the best to come along in thrash metal since the genre's beginnings in the mid-1980's. Trivium- whose music I regard as highly as I do Metallica's or Megadeth's. Trivium- a band who almost single-handedly restored my faith in metal's future when I first heard their song 'Entrance of the Conflagration' nearly 10 years ago...

Trivium took the stage as the classical music of 'Sn0fall' played as their intro. The crowd gave them an enthusiastic welcome, the release of their anticipation almost palpable... The band launched immediately into the title track of their new album, 'Silence in the Snow'. Power chords, thundering drums, and headbanging ensued almost immediately. After that they quickly mixed things up, playing a song from nearly every one of their albums in quick succession. They gave the crowd some of their older and well known hardcore classics like 'Rain' and 'Like Light to the Flies' from their landmark Ascendancy album, while ensuring each song was packed with potent energy, and they gave a kick-ass performance!

Matt Heafy was a perfect front-man: Keeping the crowd engaged, and entertained. He mixed some goofing off stage antics in with the expected venting-of-rage that Trivium's lyrical style lends itself to. For the first few minutes of their performance he stuck his tongue out for the crowd in a variety of manners, playing to the smartphones that were snapping pics every couple seconds. He struck several poses while his hands kept jamming out riff after riff. But he would let the crowd get too complacent either, asking us to keep the emotions high and loud even between songs. We in the audience were more than happy to oblige. We gave our all to show our support with screams, headbanging, moshing, and fist-pumping as often as possible.

The band as a whole was in top form on this wintry night. Bassist Paolo Gregoletto provides the melodic backing vocals, and Corey Beaulieu the hardcore backing vocals, while Matt switched back and forth with expert vocal control. Not to be overlooked is their brand new drummer, Paul Wandtke. Hired on by the band right at the start of this tour, replacing previous drummer Mat Madiro on short notice, he nailed all the drum parts like a pro. Heafy gave him a special nod right before he launched into 'Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr', the band's trademark song, and one with the most intense drum-intro I've ever heard.

Trivium left the stage but it was mere seconds later that chants of "TRI-VI-UM! TRI-VI-UM! TRI-VI-UM!" started up... And we kept it going for several minutes until another taped intro began to play. The crowd erupted in cheers with recognition of the track 'Capsizing the Sea', the intro to their 2011 album, In Waves. Matt Heafy again thanked us for being a great crowd, but also instructed us to sing the two-word chorus "In Waves" as loud as we could, and when the song kicked in, we did! I know I was screaming myself hoarse as the mosh-pit grew to encompass at least half the square footage of the entire venue. A fitting conclusion to a killer set-list by one of my favorite bands.

Here are the songs performed on this night. You should find they make an excellent playlist! You cna find the songs of each band downloadable through their websites, also listed below.

Setlist: CONNIPTION
-The Torrent
-Sonata #1 in b minor
-Kamikaze
-(Come On) King of the Road
-Let the Wolf Out

Setlist: THE BLOODLINE
-We Are One
-Divided
-Dead and Buried
-Midnight
-With Fire (Comes Absolution)
-Poisonous
-The Blackout

Setlist TRIVIUM
-Sn0fall (intro)
-Silence in the Snow
-Into the Mouth of Hell We March
-Strife
-Rain
-Tread the Floods
-Built to Fall
-Like Light to the Flies
-Insurrection
-Throes of Perdition
-Becoming the Dragon
-Down From the Sky
-Until the World Goes Cold
-Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr
---encore---
-Capsizing the Sea (intro)
-IN WAVES

After the show I also took advantage of a meet - n - greet they offered for Trivium. Getting to hang with these guys after the show was a truly special honor. I headed to the balcony of the venue and waited a while until the band came out and made the rounds, taking a couple minutes to chat with each fan in the room, and sign their CD's or LP's too. They were very humble, very personable, and professional guys! I wish I had thought of some more meaningful stuff to talk with them about, but I was starstruck, and simply grateful for the opportunity to meet them and say a few words. You may recall that I missed a chance for a meet and greet when I attended Mayhem Fest, but this night made up for it.

Don't forget to follow each of these bands on facebook:
Trivium
Conniption
The Bloodline

My pics from the show...