Concert Reviews

Mac Sabbath attack Pittsburgh

Published

3 years ago

November 24, 2023

Can a band be a bit creepy, profound, and enigmatic while offering insightful commentary on our grotesque feeding habits and our society’s behaviors buried under theatrical costumes, stunts, and heavy metal riffs? Mac Sabbath, fronted by Ronald Osborne, provides a twist to a slew of classic Black Sabbath songs. Bringing these masterful metal riffs back to life are guitarist Slayer MacCheeze, bassist Grimalice, and pulling drum duty is a half Hamburgler, half Peter Criss character known as the Cat Burglar.

Mac Sabbath Live Pittsburgh PA Nov 11 2023 By Josh Drespling for Empire Extreme

Mac Sabbath has been crisscrossing the United States for the last few months on the “More Than Meats The Eye” tour with the band of Transformers known as The Cybertronic Spree, along with Playboy Manbaby, who are taking a brief break from their jobs in the fast food industry.

As the band prepared to perform, the air hung heavy with the scent of fried mystery meat and the distant echo of deranged laughter. The intro music began to play, which was coupled with the sounds of hooves of stampeding cattle pounding the ground and long, woeful mooing. The scene was set for a descent into a gastronomic hallucination. The stage was flanked by two larger-than-life plastic Ronald McDonald heads with glowing red eyes that were ripped from the top of a set of exterior trash cans at McDonald’s chain restaurants in the mid-80s.

The four horsemen of the fast food apocalypse emerged onto the stage and blasted into the haunting opening riffs of “Organic Funeral” a parody of Black Sabbath’s “Electric Funeral”. A full minute and forty-five seconds into the song, the groups of fast-food mascots were joined on stage by vocalist Ronald Osborne, clad in a straitjacket. He spent several moments gyrating in an effort to free himself from the confines of the white straitjacket that was stained with greasepaint and what one could only assume was ketchup.

The leader of the culinary renegades of rock stepped up to the mic with a manic energy that was equal parts terrifying and exhilarating. His eyes, wide and wild, scanned the crowd as if searching for souls to devour. He began bellowing the lyrics, “Asparagine in the fries warns you of synthetic food dyes. Warm numbing feeling inside from the poisons that are fried ammonium sulfate. Monosodium glutamate, Monsanto run FDA, ONLY LEGAL IN THE USA!”

As the unholy communion of music and madness continued, the band played “Sweet Beef” (Black Sabbath “Sweet Leaf”) and The Lizard (Black Sabbath “The Wizard”). In this surreal circus of sonic excess, reality and absurdity collided, creating a dimension where the boundaries between fast food and heavy metal dissolved like a cheeseburger in a vat of hot oil. Ronald proceeded to douse the audience with water from squeezable ketchup and mustard bottles.

As the kaleidoscope of characters laid down the songs “In Dreams” (Roy Orbison), “Bread” (KISS “Beth”), and “Love Buns” (KISS “Love Gun”), one began to realize that the experience was not just a concert; it was a psychedelic trip through the greasy underbelly of rock and roll, a journey into the heart of a culinary carnival where the only rule was to embrace the madness and savor the high calorie content of the chaos.

As the carnival of parody and homage wound down, the lead singer, in his carnivalesque regalia, reached out to the crowd like a mad preacher, exhorting the congregation to embrace the madness as the band marched through the tracks “Supersize” (Black Sabbath “Supernaut”), “Chicken for the Slaves” (Black Sabbath “Children of the Grave”), and “Frying Pan” (Black Sabbath “Iron Man”). Ronald shouted, “Cows, we’re going to grind. Hope your stomach is well lined. Do I have the gall? Chopping onions makes me bawl, to the tune of Iron Man.

As the final notes reverberated into the ether, the crowd knew there was more to the orchestrated psychedelic feast for the senses. Mac Sabbath returned to the stage for a two-song encore that featured a collaboration with members of The Cybertronic Spree on the track “Hallowiener Schnitzel” (Misfits “Halloween”), followed by “Pair-a-Buns” (Black Sabbath “Paranoid”), which left an indelible mark on the collective consciousness of all who bore witness to their peculiar brand of musical alchemy.

FULL SET LIST:
Organic Funeral(Black Sabbath “Electric Funeral”)
Sweet Beef (Black Sabbath“Sweet Leaf”)
The Lizard (Black Sabbath“The Wizard”)
Grilled by Death (Motörhead“Killed by Death”)
Drive Thru the Void(Black Sabbath “Into the Void”)
In Dreams (Roy Orbison)
Bread (KISS “Beth”)
Love Buns (KISS “Love Gun”)
Supersize (Black Sabbath “Supernaut”)
Chicken for the Slaves (Black Sabbath “Children of the Grave”)
Frying Pan (Black Sabbath “Iron Man”)
Hallowiener Schnitzel (Misfits “Halloween”) with members of The Cybertronic Spree
Pair-a-Buns (Black Sabbath “Paranoid”)

About Author

Josh Drespling

Josh is the Publisher and creator of Empire Extreme and it’s sister publication Kingdom Extreme Magazine. He is an accomplished writer, photographer and graphic designer. He is always conjuring up new ideas and has a amazing passion for the music industry and all the things that surround it.

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Concert Reviews

BRISTOW VIRGINIA TOOK A TRIP ON THE WILD SIDE… SHOUTED AT THE DEVIL. AND ENJOYED THE GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS.

Published

3 weeks ago

August 7, 2026

Ron

MOTLEY CRUE CAME BACK INTO TOWN BRINGING WITH THEM TESLA AND EXTREME FOR THE RETURN OF CARNIVAL SINS TOUR.

Extreme opened up, and not only did they kick ass, but they also took some names, too. Gary sounded amazing on vocals, and of course, Nuno not only rocked the guitar; he gave all the ladies out there heart problems. We got to hear “More Than Words,” “Get the Funk Out,” and “Hole Hearted”.

Tesla was next, and the band always puts on an amazing show. It’s just a good ole rock and roll fun time. We got to hear “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Mama’s Fool,” and “Little Suzi.”

Motley Crue put up the circus tent, and fans were ready for the big top to drop. I was excited because this was the first time getting to see Crue with John 5 on guitar. The stage looked crazy and had things you could look at everywhere, from girls to cages and beyond. Nikki and Tommy looked amazing, and Neil looked healthier than in the past years; he sounded great, and you could see that he was having fun.

I have seen Motley Crue a few times now, but this time I was so close to the stage it was insane. Doing this press gig does come with some perks, and we get to see great bands and get tickets, but this was next level with how close to the stage my tickets were. It gave me such a great experience, not only just being that close and jamming out to songs that I grew up to, but also being with all the Crue fans and just seeing everyone getting excited and rocking out. They were all there for a good time and some kick-ass rock n’ roll.

Motley played a fantastic set too, with some bangers and killer songs from albums up to Generation Swine. Songs like “Wild Side,” “Shout at the Devil,” “Looks that Kill,” “Home Sweet Home,” “Smoking in the Boys’ Room,” “Live Wire,” “Girls, Girls, Girls,” and, of course “Dr. Feelgood” and “Kickstart My Heart.” The show was amazing, and the place was packed and having a great time. This is only the first leg of the tour, so if they come your way, go and see this tour and let yourself go and enjoy live music and rock ‘n’ roll.

About Author

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

THIS IS WHERE IT FALLS APART… STABBING WESTWARD CELEBRATES 30 YEARS OF WITHER, BLISTER, BURN AND PEEL IN BALTIMORE

Published

1 month ago

July 25, 2026

Ron

It has been nine years since Stabbing Westward played in Baltimore, and I was thrilled to see them return to perform my favorite album. They brought along Acumen Nation and Priest as supporting acts. Both Acumen Nation and Priest put on an incredible show, and I loved how they energized the crowd. It’s fantastic to have a band like Acumen Nation, which has been around since 1988, alongside Priest, a newer band, and the fans truly enjoyed both sets.

Stabbing Westward is one of those bands that really resonated with me at a pivotal time in my life. This album was released during my junior year and fit my experiences perfectly. It’s one of those albums I would listen to from start to finish, and then I would just start it over again. I’m excited that the band is releasing a new version of this album, reflecting how they would have approached it if they had the freedom to mix it and create without outside interference.

What we got to hear was amazing. I loved the fresh sound to it but still keeping the core of what that album meant to them and to the fans. Coming out on stage with my 3 favorite songs on the album, “I Don’t Believe,” “What Do I Have To Do,” and “Falls Apart.” But hearing some of the other tracks on that album brought back so many memories of the past, like “Shame,” “So Wrong,” and even hearing the cure cover “Burn” and “Dawn” from the Escape From LA Soundtrack.

The concert was amazing. We were supposed to have an interview with Chris, but because of the Canadian fires, he was saving his voice for the show and meet ‘n greets, but we will have that interview soon for you.

About Author

Ron

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Concert Reviews

THE EX-FACES ROCKED THE REVERB STAGE

Published

1 month ago

July 22, 2026

Ron

I’ve been incredibly excited about the Ex-Faces show since it was first announced. I’m a huge Mushroomhead fan and love that the members of this group have come together to enjoy the music.

It was incredible to see J-Man, Waylon, Stitch, and Lil Dan together again. Adding Gravy and Mr. Murdernickel to the mix—especially since I never got to see him play live despite being a Mushroomhead fan near Cleveland since ’96—made it even better. I love that the guys genuinely looked like they were enjoying being on stage together, celebrating their time in this band and their experiences with Mushroomhead.

Hearing classic songs like “Bwomp,” “These Filthy Hands,” and “Sun Doesn’t Rise” was fantastic, but getting to experience deep cuts like “Eternal,” “1200,” and even the cover of “Crazy” was incredible. The Ex-Faces played 16 songs and could have kept going; the crowd definitely wouldn’t have minded.

I know this band and project are more than likely temporary, but I’m fully down for a few more tours and maybe even some more ex-members joining the trek. Even though I was sad that our stop didn’t have Pig Benis, I was super stoked that we had his OG brother Murdernickel. Go out and see this tour while you can, and let’s all get a little crazy and never let it go.