Concert Reviews

ASHES OF LEVIATHAN TOUR:PITTSBURGH SHOW REVIEW

Published

3 months ago

August 3, 2024

Pittsburgh’s Stage AE was host to the Ashes of Leviathan tour with Lamb of God and Mastodon, with both bands playing pivotal albums, Ashes of the Wake and Leviathan, for their sets. Pittsburgh is a favorite spot for Lamb of God, having played the city more times during their history than any other city in the world, as proclaimed by vocalist Randy Blythe. Also appearing this night is the hardcore thrash metal act Malevolence, and Kerry King, the guitarist from Slayer’s own solo act. As the crowd lined the street in front of the venue, a light drizzle would come to a stop as the doors opened. People filled the outside arena, hoping the weather would hold off as they were about to begin their metal-filled evenings.

Malevolence was up first; the band plays a mix of hardcore and metal with bits of southern metal and thrash thrown in. The band’s high energy helped to hype the nearly sold-out crowd, even at the beginning of a rainstorm. Vocalist Alex Taylor had a very demanding presence on stage, calling out to the crowd through his set and getting a massive response from the headbangers. The band played through several songs from the Malicious Intent album for their set.

Kerry King took the stage next with a who’s who of metal, from Phil Demmel, formally of Machine Head, to Paul Bostaph of Slayer, Kyle Sanders of Hell Yeah, and vocalist Mark Osegueda of Death Angel onstage. These guys came to throw down, playing thrash metal from beginning to end. The band’s fast metal riffs were paired with the members using all of the stage; even the vocalist would lift his mic stand into the air and carry it with him like many of the rockers from that 80s era of metal. The band played through several songs off the From Hell I Rise album and finished off with Reigning Blood and Black Magic, Slayer covers.

Mastodon came out to kaleidoscope of colors and images on stage, as they kicked off with Blood and Thunder. The high energy set got the crowd kicking and cheering along as they played through their 2004 masterpiece Leviathan. Crowd surfers were coming over the gate as the band played, I am Ahab, and didn’t stop for the rest of the set. From fog to fire, to lasers and giant monsters roaming on stage paired with their iconic songs, Mastodon had something for everyone to tantalize the senses.

Lamb of God came out to the crowd, chanting their name. Always known for putting on a high-energy show, vocalist Randy Blythe kicked off with Laid to Rest. This adrenaline rollercoaster just left the station as the band ripped through their iconic Ashes of the Wake album. As the heavens opened and began to drench the crowd, Lamb of God were playing in front of flames shooting up from behind the drum riser. On “Now You’ve Got Something to Die For,” the big ending breakdown, the crowd got to witness what has become a live staple for the band. Vocalist Randy Blythe does a well-timed jump with the pyro, as I can only call him the Lamb of God Jumpman. The band ripped through the rest of their timeless album before calling it a night.

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George Archibald

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Related Topics:Empire Extreme featured Kerry King LAMB OF GOD malevolence Mastodon Pittsburgh

Concert Reviews

STRYPER ON A SUNDAY. YES PLEASE

Published

2 days ago

November 13, 2024

Ron

STRYPER was just in Baltimore the other day on the 40 years of Stryper tour. Playing 2 sets spanning those 40 years. I’ve only ever seen Stryper play at M3 so it was amazing to get to see a full on set then another full on set right after.

For the 1st set we got the 1984-1990 set which included songs like “Loud N Clear”, “Soldiers under Command” and “To Hell with the Devil”.

The second set we got 1986, 2004-2024 with songs like “No More Hell to Pay”, “This i Pray” and ending the night with “Sing along Song”.

It was a great night for Music and sadly more then likely the last show at RamsHead Live I’ll be ever to attend as the are closing their doors (hopefully will be open again with a new venture) but the show was amazing to see Stryper play on the stage. Such great guys and a great band. I love that Stryper is fully engaged with the fans and the show is always amazing. I love that they put their religious beliefs 100% on display but the show never feels preachy or judgmental. If you get a chance to see Stryper play in your city I fully recommend it such a great time and a great band to see play live.

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Ron

Ron has keen eye for new talent, a love for the underground, and a tremendous passion for music of any genera. You’ll probably bump into him at a horror convention or some seedy club checking out the next need-to-know band.

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Concert Reviews

King Diamond brought the Halloween party to Silver Spring MD

Published

2 weeks ago

November 2, 2024

Ron

King Diamond who’s on tour now with Overkill and Night Demon.

Overkill always puts on a great show and shows that face pace thrash metal is still kick ass. Led by NJ’s Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth Overkill has that distinctive sound with Bobby’s high pitched and raspy vocals. With songs like “Scorched”, “ Rotten to the Core” and “Hello From the Gutter”, Overkill got the crowd into a frenzy and warmed up the stage before the king.

You know it’s gonna be a good night when it’s 3 days before Halloween and you get to see a kick ass set from King Diamond. King Diamond who’s 68 right now still commands that stage and sounds amazing with his insanely falsettos. The stage show at a King Diamond show is always such a great sight to see. With a multilayer setup of stairs and little pieces of elaborate set all over it’s such a great view and perfect setting to watch a King Diamond set.

The set list was amazing too we got to hear songs from such a great career like “A Mansion in the Darkness”, “Halloween “, “Spider Lilly”, “Welcome Home”, and “Eye of the Witch” and of course ending the night with “Abagail”.

If you’re a fan of King Diamond or just a fan of great music that adds that Halloween haunted asylum themed stage performances then you need to go out and check this tour now. King Diamond never disappoints and always puts on one hell of a show.

About Author

Ron

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Concert Reviews

ITS TIME TO GET YOUR BODY BEAT AND LET THE BLOOD FLOW

Published

2 weeks ago

October 29, 2024

Ron

Combichrist came into Lovedrafts in Mechanicsburg with an old school electronic set and the return of PA’s own DeathMaschine.

Combichrist took the dark stage armed with Eric on the synths/sampler and Andy on Vocals and an open stage to rampage on. I got to hear some killer kick ass songs I haven’t heard in a while like “Today I woke to the rain of blood”, “This is My Rifle” and This shit will fuck you up”.

The crowd were super excited to watch the set and everyone was having a good time, dancing to the beats, and singing all the songs and having an amazing time. I’ve been wanting to see Combichrist do these old school sets and have always loved that era of the band. We also got to hear “Like to Thank My Buddies” and “Shut up and Swallow”. We also got a super rare treat for an encore Andy went back even further in his musically roots and pulled out an Icon of Coil song “Dead Enough For Life”, which got the crowd in a frenzy.