I somehow discovered this band in the summer of 2005 and instantly fell in love with Miasma. It almost immediately became my Album of the Year, an accolade I have never once doubted. However, upon Nocturnal’s release, I was less enamored. As the years progressed, I’d return to dabble for a few songs on each album, never falling hopelessly in love with Elizabeth Short as I had decades prior.
Now, I did finally see the band recently, as chronicled previously. In the weeks leading up to this monumentous event, I went on a frenzied binge of BDM, mainly focused on their upcoming setlist. In the past, I might have considered that lame. Being 50 is far more lame (lamer?) than any fucks could possibly give, so I prepped myself and enjoyed the hell out of the night.
In the wake of such a life-altering event (less so the band, moreso the life), I wanted to give a list of fan-fucking-tastic tracks the band has recorded in their storied history. Ideally, this will be a fluid list, as my two-decade gap of wisdom is re-examined. Whatever. Here are my favorite songs, posted tonight lest I perish in my sleep.
These are in order of S-tier onwards…
Miasma: The entire fucking thing. Nocturnal: Deathmask Divine, Everything Went Black, What A Horrible Night… Deflorate: Ritual: The Window, Moonlight Equilibrium Everblack: Abysmal: That Cannot Die Which Eternally Is Dead Nightbringers: The Lonely Deceased, Nightbringers, Catacomb Hecatomb Verminous: Dawn Of Rats (!!!), The Wereworm’s Feast, Sunless Empire Servitude: Panic Hysteric, Utopia Black
I’ve never seen The Black Dahlia Murder. Their sophomore release Miasma was my 2005 AotY, but I lost interest and only kept up casually as the years progressed. Glossing over the obvious tragedy, I was really surprised with Servitude and when this tour was announced, I figured now would be a great time to see them for the first time. It’s rather infrequent that I see new bands nowadays, being fortunate enough to have witnessed most of my idols and followed acts. Come to think of it, that’s a good article right there: Bands I’ve Never Seen. I digress.
Tumultuous is the most sanitized word I can use about my situation leading into the show, so the ride north began on a somber tone. A few weeks ago I made a playlist matching the setlist and I’ve been prepping. Going through 10 albums is a daunting task, after all.
Shedding my introspective attitude, I blasted the full setlist while muscling through waves of bullshit Sunday-night traffic. Quick pre-game prep for entrance, I grabbed some merch from the curiously short line, and enjoyed my chatter with the vendor who gave me a pile of Unhallowed stickers that I’ll never be able to use/give away.
I caught Septicflesh’s set and the Greek trio (missing one member who fell down some stairs and broke a few ribs) sounded pretty good. A pair of songs caught my interest, but the main reason I was there was next, so I timed it perfectly — as a concert-going veteran is wont to do — and got up front for the arrival of The Black Dahlia Murder.
And they were simply fantastic. By the end of Necropolis, I was at the barrier. Not one person behind like every other show I frequent, no, I was right there. And there I remained: neither boots to the head nor a bouncer punch to the face could sway me. The band pummeled their way through 14 songs covering 7 albums, including 3 from my beloved Miasma. Some didn’t go over as well as others, a scientific formula I cannot discern. In fact, it’s hard to pick a favorite song as I was so fucking thrilled to see every one.
I took a handful of pictures, most of which came out great due to my proximity, but the hour flew by and the intensity hardly ever relented. Both guitars sounded great, Brian’s shift to vocals leave a haunting gap in the band’s presence, but he commanded the stage, and Alan Cassidy’s drums, foundational to the band’s brutality, didn’t miss a beat.
More bodies flying overhead, including the ape during Statutory Ape, my Monday morning revealed fully bruised forearms and the 50-year-old version of headbanger head. The final tally was just shy of an hour, but what an hour it was. I absolutely loved it.
The setlist:
Necropolis
Contagion
Mammoth’s Head
Moonlight Equilibrium
Panic Hysteric
Nightbringers
Everything Went Black
Cursed Creator
A Vulgar Picture
Miscarriage
Statutory Ape
Christ Deformed
Utopia Black
What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse
The Black Dahlia Murder: Miscarriage
The Black Dahlia Murder: A Vulgar Picture
I stepped back to catch my breath; I didn’t need to be up front for Arch Enemy. The wait was longer than I’d have liked, but when they emerged, it didn’t take me long to get right back, now to my usual second-in-line position. Unfortunately, I was behind two absolute idiots who spent the entire show filming. Well, when they weren’t hiding from the constant rain of bodies coming over the top. These assholes were the worst part of the show, and when one feared he’d lose his spot, he gave me a swift elbow to the throat. Whatever, glad he got his footage, which looks identical to the douche next to him.
Lauren came out donning a tight leather outfit and she just fucking shredded. Her voice is fantastic, way better than Alissa, and that’s the only comparison needed. No, Lauren was commanding and she was having a great time. She spoke about how Ravenous made her want to sing like she does, and while the rest of the band appeared to be going through the motions, she was lively, energetic and fantastic. Make no mistake, however, the band’s performance was solid, with Erlandsson feeling atop of his game and the Michael/Joey Concepcion duo hitting everything with precision. Sharlee seemed the least enthusiastic, both his demeanor and his playing, but nothing felt lacking. As my fifth time seeing the band, my biggest gripe was with the setlist. As a co-headlining date, I’m glad BDM got more time, but Arch Enemy’s choices were less inspiring to me. However, the good was just outstanding: Lauren’s headbanging on My Apocalypse, the crowd’s response to Dead Bury Their Dead and Nemesis, and the overall sound – I loved it.
Not nearly as much as The Black Dahlia Murder of course.
Kairi got out of work later than anticipated and we departed late to the venue. Absurd traffic made us even later. Ultimately, we ended up parking at the middle school and we traipsed through the woods, only emerging from the gates as Megadeth was playing Ride The Lightning. It was ecxeedingly disappointing, particularly after the setlist revealed they played The Mechanix just prior.
The disappointment lingered, but Tornado Of Souls helped elevate my spirits. That it is Kairi’s favorite song by the band is a nice perk. Symphony sucks, as much now as it did then, but Peace Sells and Holy Wars were as good as I could have hoped.
Unfortunately, the brief exposure to Megadeth was not enough, and I certainly hope a full headlining farewell tour will follow.
Tipping Point
Hangar 18
Sweating Bullets
The Mechanix
Ride The Lightning
Tornado Of Souls
Symphony Of Descruction
Peace Sells
E: Holy Wars… The Punishment Due
After the usual turnaround, Iron Maiden arrived, representing my 9th time seeing them (plus Bruce twice!) and first in 14 years.
Ides Of March was tape, but Murders In The Rue Morgue was not. It was a fantastic snapshot at the early days of the band, particularly as it went into Wrathchild, Killers, and Phantom Of The Opera. The band sounded fantastic.
Much like with Metallica, seemingly boring setlists never truly represent a show’s quality. However, seeing Infinite Dreams, one of my favorite songs from possibly my favorite Maiden record, was particularly poignant. Certain setlist entries are more powerful than others. The Trooper offers less potency, but goddamn, the “Ooooh oooh ooh ooh ooooh ooh oh oh ohhhhh,” of that song has never felt lackluster. Ignoring such tracks, there’s no way to turn a blind eye to epics Rime Of The Ancient Mariner, and Seventh Son. Each has its meandering mid-section, but the outros are simply legendary and display what got me into the band in the first place.
If I’m honest: Hallowed rocked. Aces High ruled. Fear Of The Dark was phenomenal. I’m 50. Bruce is the youngest core member, and he’s 68! Yes, parts of the show are by-the-numbers, but goddamn, those numbers aren’t shrinking. And they simply killed it. The new drummer was consistent and solid. Janick was Janick. Dave shredded and Steve is timeless. Having seen Bruce just last year, you hear his limitations, but he tore through the set. I won’t say he sounds better than ever, but he sounds way better than most after 40+ years in the business.
This is a topic I’ve thought of over the years. Many of us can agree on what the Golden-Age records are for bands. For those who were engaged in the ’80s outputs by the major bands, there’s a clear dividing line—often the early 1990s. What if we took ALL those post-heyday records and whittled them down to one super album? What would it contain? My first entry into this list is a WIP one on the mighty Slayer. These are organized by album for ease. Anyhow, it’s just an idea. I don’t know if it’s worth double digits in its counter.
Killing Fields
Dittohead
Gemini
Scrum
Screaming From The Sky
Point
Disciple
God Send Death
Skeleton Christ
Supremist
Playing With Dolls
Repentless
Piano Wire
Not sure how official this is, but as of today, it’s postable.
Granted, this omits many physical/iPod plays over the course of years. Despite this, it’s a kick-ass list that no one can justifiably deny.
To add to the absurdity, Moonsorrow’s average song length resides at over 10 minutes. My top-played song ever, with 230 scrobbles, is over 26 minutes long. Yeah, I love that band.
After Testament’s hightest-ranking album since its AOTY representation in 1999, I was excited to see them return with no other than the mighty Overkill. This would be my 10th time seeing each band: a three-and-a-half decade history with metal history, having met, interviewed and seen both bands in every decade since, with the exception of Overkill in the 2010s.
Mat grabbed tickets for the three members of SMJ, but sadly, Doug had to cancel at the last minute. Instead, we picked up his friend Danielle and drove up to Sayreville several hours early. Wheelchair in tow, handicap pass ensuring close parking, we pre-gamed for a bit before approaching the fast-track lane to get inside. However, upon staff noticing the wheelchair being busted out, we were escorted to the side entrance. A somewhat inebriated me opted to race Mat around in said wheelchair, hitting a pothole and dumping him on the pavement. Understandably, I burst out in laughter, as several staff members helped return him to his mobile throne.
We got up the ramp, ready to enter, and proceeded to the area reserved for those with physical needs. It provided a generous vantage point, to the right of the stage, and elevated. While the place isn’t too big, it was utterly packed. By 7:15, when Destruction was playing, the floor was full, and there was simply no way I was going to get closer for the next bands. I grabbed Mat a shirt, purchased a few drinks and returned, making another round trip (or two) as Overkill hit the stage.
Their setlist was almost identical to the last time I saw them, with King Diamond in 2024, with one exception: Deny The Cross. This was a great addition, however, guitars cut out and a good chunk of the song was played with just bass and drums. Blitz was happy to play to the hometown crowd, with some heartfelt comments as the night went on. I should hope to see them play a headlining show again one day. For time #10, I was happy to see them with Mat. The full list is as follows:
Scorched
Rotten To The Core
Bring Me The Night
Hello From The Gutter
The Surgeon
Ironbound
Elimination
Fuck You!
Again, the place was utterly packed, so after a last round-trip bathroom run, I prepped for the arrival of the mighty Testament. This was the site of the last time I saw the band, a month shy of four years prior, and, unfortunately, the results were rather similar. The setlist was diverse and added some deep cuts, but none of them were good. In fact, the selection was a mind-boggling choice of oddities. Amidst the calamitous list of tracks, Mat proceeded to dump my entire drink on the floor, a strange, inexplicable sequence of events. The whole end of the night was just madness.
It started out great, and the back-to-back-to-back trio of new songs was fantastic. But the other tracks were just so….meh. Chuck was having a great time on stage, as was the whole band. However, I felt like the new drummer wasn’t used or challenged. The drums sounded very clicky, but it all made me wonder who chose songs like John Doe. Having lived through every era of the band, I appreciate the good and the bad, but if I had to choose two from Demonic, John Doe wouldn’t have made the cut.
Sure, I am glad I didn’t have to hear Practice or Souls, but…Sins Of Omission?? It was all just so perplexing. Then – The Ballad? What the fuck? So Many Lies?? What the fuck!?!?! Sure, I like the heavier side of Testament, but you cannot deny the setlist was just so fucking weird. They began and messed up Over The Wall before tossing in The Haunting, but then it seems that similar things happened on other dates.
Ultimately, it was fun seeing them, and while I didn’t love the choices, the band had a great time. One day, we won’t get such opportunities. Unfortunately, this is twice now where I feel that the band was outshone by its opener: first Exodus and now Overkill. Regardless, the Thrash Of The Titans tour was a kick-ass time, and I’m so glad we went.
I drove Danielle home, returned to Mat’s place and crashed the fuck out on the couch, waking up mid-night to lie down. I was shot. What a wild night.
