SHADOWS FALL, Byzantine, Still Remains, Agonstic Front - Crocodile Rock - Allentown, PA - March 3, 2006
Amazing show here. The only thing that stinks about the Croc Rock, they want to keep the bands playing long so they can keep the bar open. That's cool, except, when there is no where to sit, after about an hour of constant standing, my knee's swell and can't really move too well. Old age is a bitch I will you. We got there right in time for Byzantine, and I have heard them on the satellite radio before, and had them on my list of bands to check out. They sounded awesome live. Great metal core band. Very much looking forward to hearing their CD. Still Remains was next and again, I have heard a song or two from them on the satellite. They sounded real good too, another great metal core sounding band. Agonstic Front was up next and I have seen them probably a dozen times over the past 15 years of going to concerts. They are good, I don't have any of their shit though, so I can't really tell you what they played. Almost 4 hours later (yes, the show finally started 8:00, and Shadows Fall wasn't scheduled to play until 11:45), they finally got on the stage. They played a little bit of new stuff, a little bit of old stuff and one song from their upcoming CD. The place was jamed packed, just about sold out. You couldn't move and for the entire time I was there, I only got to see 2 lights and a dread lock from Brian every once in a while. Did break out the old guns and played Of One Blood, which they haven't played for a long time. Also played To Ashes, First Noble Truth, Crushing Belial, Idle Hands, Destroyer of Scenes, Thoughts Without Words, Welcome to the Machine, What Drives the Weak, The Light That Blinds, and Enlightened By the Cold. That's going off of memory, which isn't very good, but only a couple days ago.

Pretty Boy Floyd/ Bang Tango/ Stephen Pearcy - Crocodile Rock - Allentown, PA - February 21, 2006
What a fun and interesting night. In the beginning of the night, I was the "Angel". By the end of the night, I was the wet noodle. (I'll explain later). So me and my girlfriend make the hour and a half trip up to Allentown to see some hair metal. There were 3 bands that opened up, I have no idea who they were, I think we missed the first 2. So Pretty Boy Floyd came on, but the only original member was Steve Summers. The guitarist, bassist, and drummer came from the band Bang Tango, who are not the original members either. Those guys play in Beautiful Creatures. They kicked ass though, all of the songs sounded like they did on the album and it was a blast like always. Played Leather Boys, I Wanna Be With You, Shut Up, Wild Angels, Live Wire (the Motley Crue cover), Your Momma Won't Know, 48 Hours and a few more. Bang Tango came on next, and I never got into them in the 80's. No idea why, they were in Metal Edge all the time. I recongized the songs though, because they play them on the Hair Nation station. They had a great sound too, and from what I remember played Love Injection, and Someone Like You. They played for a good 30-40 minutes though. Stephen Pearcy was up next, however we didn't get to see him, because me and my friend were having dinner with Joe and the drummer of Bang/Beautiful Creatures. My friend got us invited on their tour bus too. That was real cool, never been on a bus before, so that was an experience. They were calling me the Angel and my friend the Devil. But when it was 2 AM and I needed to get moving, so I could be semi-concious for work the next day, I was the wet noodle. Oh well, can't win themn all. They were extremely cool though and I think might have even enjoyed hanging out with us (just a little).

ROCK FEST 2005, featuring Never Never, Vixen, Slaughter, Quiet Riot, and Skid Row
1st MARINET ARENA - BALTIMORE, MD - NOVEMBER 5, 2005
My friend Jen told me about this show, and I was a little on the fence about if I wanted to go. I loved Skid Row growing up, except now they have that new singer, no Sebastian. I just saw Sebastian a few summers ago, so I saw him do all the Skid Row songs I liked. Quiet Riot, I think I have seen them 2 or 3 times previously, Slaughter I saw about 3 times before. But the seller was Vixen. I never got to see them, my friend Chris always said he would take me if they came around, and of course they haven't, or at least not that I knew of. So I decided to go, but the main draw was Vixen. Never Never opened the show, they were a cover band from MD, and maybe it's just me, but they played all super slow depressing rock. Nothing upbeat, and they just were OK. Then, the chick from the radio station who put on the show comes out and says get ready for Slaughter, Quiet Riot and Skid Row. Wait a second, what happened to Vixen?? I sent my girlfriend on a mission to find out what happened and she found out they canceled. I was so bummed, but I still had 3 good bands ahead so I wasn't going to let it ruin my night. Slaughter came up, played a lot of old stuff, Up All Night, Fly to the Angels, Burnin' Bridges, Shake this Place, Mad About You and a bunch more, except I didn't know what they were since I never bought anything after Stick it to Ya. Quiet Riot was up next, played just about every song I saw them do in July. All of their hits, or more popular songs, just basically everything you would hear from their greatest hits. Skid Row was last and they kicked ass, sounded real good. Played a lot of old stuff and mixed it up playing their new stuff, from Thickskin. That album came out years ago and I was hoping to hear some new stuff, but it didn't sound like they have anything coming out soon. Still, new singer is no Sebastian and he sounded like dirt compared to how Sebastian saw the other summer. All of the slow songs, 18, and Remember. Fast songs, Youth Gone Wild, Monkey Business, Slave to the Grind, Piece of Me, Get the Fuck Out, New Generation, I Remember You 2 and a lot more, I just can't remember. All in all, it was worth the money we spent.

ILL NINO - TROCADERO - PHILADELPHIA, PA - September 30, 2005
I love these guys and love seeing them live. Unfortunately my knees don't enjoy me going to concerts, or doing anything that requires me to stand longer than 10 minutes, so I was stuck watching these guys from the bar, where there is seating. It wasn't as fun for me to watch them from up there, I like being on the floor, with all of the 16 year olds, any show is like that, there is just more energy on the floor, rather than in the bar with all of the drunks. Anyway, 13 Even was suppose to open the show, however they didn't play. We got there just as Diecast was going on, and what a disappointment they are. They had probably one of the best albums to come out of 2001, then they release that piece of crap last year. Such a shame. I think they played 2 songs from Day of Reckoning and played Peacemaker (I think) from the Undo the Wicked CD. The rest was the garbage from their new album. Gizmachi was up next and what the fuck are they suppose to be? I don't even remember what they sounded like, but I do remember falling asleep during them. Nothing that I cared to remember and another opening band that gets 45 minutes. Ill Nino came out and it was great. One thing I was a little sad about, this show was about 3 days after their new album came out. Well, thanks for the internet, I've had the new album for about a month now, and I really like it a lot. I was looking forward to hearing more from that album, but they played a lot of old stuff instead. Not a huge deal, because I love all of the old stuff too. Opened with If You Still Hate Me, and in no order, played What Comes Around, Te Amo, Liar, I Am Loco, How Can I Live, This Time's for Real (I think), Lifeless Life, This is War, What You Deserve, a slow song and ended with God Save Us and Unreal. Worth the headache and the knee and neck strain the next day.

LIFE OF AGONY - TROCADERO - PHILADELPHIA, PA - September 22, 2005
I was really looking forward to this show, who doesn't look forward to a Life of Agony show?? I got the new album, it's real good, of course, sounds nothing like RRR, but it's still their style and it's a decent album. I was hoping to hear a lot of old stuff though, which they really didn't play a lot of. Get there and miss the first band, Ignarus but got there in time to see BLOODSIMPLE. This is about the 3rd time I have made an attempt to see these guys, but I have always missed them because they went on first. Even the last time I saw LOA, Bloodsimple opened and I missed them. They rocked. Sounded awesome. Played for a good half hour or so, and played just about the first half of their album. All of the songs I listen to over and over again. Very happy I got to finally see them. Brand New Sin was up next and I have heard all of the hype from Century Media about them, but I had no interest when I finally heard them play. They weren't terrible, but it wasn't anything I was in the mood to hear, that's for sure. They finally got off stage, 45 minutes later (since when do opening bands get 45 minutes to play??) and LOA came on. Started with Don't Bother from the new album. Then kicked it old school with This Time. Switched to new school and played Day He Died. Also did Through and Through, Love to Let You Down, Weeds, Lost at 22, Wicked Ways, Bad Seed, Calm, Underground, River Runs Red and Eyes. I think that was just about the entire set list, no encores. They sounded great, didn't play as many old songs as I would have liked to hear, but still was a great show.

Rock Never Stops 2005 - Sovereign Center, Reading, PA July 30, 2005
Awesome fucking show and an awesome time. So I bought my tickets the day tickets went on sale. I wasn't pathetic to wait in line at the local Tower, but I did jump on line with three browsers trying to get the best seats. We ended up with row BB. I was a little sad, I thought that meant we were almost 30 rows back, but I bought them. When I was telling people about it, they said that was actually row 2!!! We get there, and row 2 is great, with the exception of the 12 speakers in front of our face. When the music played, it was a blast of air hitting us the whole time. Almost like our own air conditioner. I think out of all of the bands, Firehouse sounded the best. They came out, rocked out with almost all of their songs from the first album, I think they at least played a good 30 minutes. All She Wrote, Shake and Tumble, Love of a Lifetime (I think), started off with Lovers Lane and ended of course with Don't Treat Me Bad. Also played a new song, but I don't know what that was called. Quiet Riot was up next, and that singer was something else. He came out in this leopard print velvet suit and because we were in the front rows, when he jumped on the speakers in front of us, we could see he wasn't wearing any underwear. His balls were jingling around like bells at Christmas. They played their hits, Cum Feel the Noize, Bang Your Head, Mama, We're all Crazy Now, and a bunch of others, probably a good half hour to 45 minutes for them. Ratt came next, who I was never a huge fan of, so I'm not sure what exactly they were playing. Closed their set with Round and Round, played Lay it Down, Body Talk and You're in Love. I do have to say, before they played the guards let all of their wives sneak into the front row to stand at the stage. For some old guys, they have some young hot wives. Cinderella played last of course, and rocked out the place for over an hour. Started off with Night Songs, did Shake Me last. In between did Nobody's Fool, Save Me, Gypsy Road, Shelter Me, Last Mile and Push Push. Did 3 songs for the encore and the only one I remember was Don't Know What You Got Till It's Gone. I think they did in their set Coming Home and More Things to Come, but I honestly don't remember. Awesome!

Twisted Sister - Electric Factory, PA - July 15, 2005
Well, this show kicked some serious ass. Probably my favorite show of all year. Well I can't say that, since I haven't been to many shows this year, but a great one. This was only their second time playing in Philadelphia, which I don't understand completely, because it's not like they lived in Afghanistan. First up was Blazed and I found out half way through the set that it was Dee's kid. It was alright, nothing to write home about. He talked, walked and looked like Dee, which was funny. Next was Sound of Urchin and they were terrible. Their drummer was the singer, which I hate when bands do that. So they had no stage presence, they stood there like wax statues. He came up and sang for a song or three, and that was OK, but still wasn't very good. Twisted came on finally and they played for a long time. This was a benefit show for one of their old roadies who needed surgery. Why Dee couldn't have taken it out of his bank account, I don't know, have you seen his house on VH1? He isn't hurting for money, that is for sure. Anyway, I thought they were hoping we would raise 100K and I just read on their site Philly raised 40k. A little off, but no chump change either. Full makeup too. They started off with What You Don't Know, Stay Hungry, Captain Howdy, which is the song I think they said they don't play live anymore, but started playing it for this tour. Can't Stop Rock and Roll, Fire Still Burns, We're Not Gonna Take It, Burn In Hell, The Price, and closed their set with I Wanna Rock and a cover of the Rolling Stones song It's Only Rock and Roll. . They did many more, I just don't remember them all. Came out and did 3 encores, Come Out and Play, Under the Blade, (dedicated to the roadie) and SMF.

Life of Agony - Crocodile Rock, Allentown, PA - April 15, 2005
Now, I had a choice here. Go to the Philly show and see them open for Mudvayne in some big sold out club (Electric Factory), with a bunch of morons running around thinking Mudvayne is the greatest since sliced bread, or drive an extra half hour and see LOA in a headlining show. No brainier there, especially since all of the little morons boo'ed LOA, because they were waiting for their freaks to come on stage. Bloodsimple opened the show, which I did not get to see, because we sat in traffic due to a car wreck on the way up. That pissed me off, I have been a fan of them way before their album came up, I downloaded 2 of their songs from when they first got together and have been a fan since. Didn't get to see them. There were two other bands who played, one I don't remember and the other was American Head Charge. This was a few days before the one guy died. I guess I have that effect on bands. I also saw DamagePlan play a week before Dimebag was murdered. Anyway, neither opening band did anything for me except make my damaged knees ache and scream for me to sit somewhere. LOA came on and rocked the house. Awesome set, lots of old shit from the River Runs Red album, a few songs from Ugly, maybe one from Soul Searching Sun. They also played about 3 songs from the new album, Love to Let You Down, which is such a kick ass song, the song he wrote about his dead dad and one other. Then, at the end, the singer from Bloodsimple came out and did a song with them, which sounded amazing. Makes me very upset I never got to see VOD live. Great show, can't wait to see them again.

Motley Crue - Wachovia Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA - March 4, 2005
So, myself, Mike and my girlfriend Jen left the house for this at 6:30. Normally, we are a half hour away from the city, but with traffic, an hour. The show started at 8:00 so we figured that would be enough time. WRONG. We sat in traffic until 8:15, parked and then ran the mile to the Spectrum. Got there at 8:30 and the second I sat down, the show started. They played some claymation cartoon, cute and then they came on stage. The first set of the show, they played everything imaginable up until the Girls, Girls, Girls album. Then, they left for I think 10-15 minutes for a break and came back and played everything from GGG to the current. Amazing. They finished playing at 11:00 or a little after, we got to the car around 11:30. Granted, they needed to do that since the tickets were 70.00. They had midgets, women and motorcycles. Tommy did a drum solo, with the drum sets at the top of the stage, so he was strapped up and flying between one set to the other. Brought out the boobie cam and all of the ladies showed their boobies. I would have if I had them, but since mine are a A-, I figured no one wanted to see them. Poor Mick was sitting down most of the time on some little block they had for him. Tommy got naked and showed us everything, although I was too far to see. Great fucking show, I recommend everyone to see it.

Ill Nino- Trocadero, PA December 17, 2004
Of course, I love these guys! I know 40 Below Summer opened for them again. They aren’t bad, they have some good songs. The crowd always goes crazy when they do Sideshow. I remember sitting thru a bunch of blah bands too waiting for them to come on. Anyway, Nino takes the stage and the singer was having some problems. He kept pointing to the side of the stage and yelling at someone. Kept making the ‘up’ notion too. Probably his effects weren’t high enough, so he really had to do some screaming for the songs, instead of just faking it. They played Te Amo I Hate you, How Can I live, Unframed, This Time’s for Real, Lifeless…Life (And the singer used the same speech in front of this song as he does every time they play it). I still have yet to hear them play Re-Birth, which is my favorite song on the Confessions album. They did God Save Us, Unreal, and ended with Liar, all coming from the album Revolution/ Revolucion. They did a lot more; I just can’t remember all of the songs. Kick ass show, I was one happy camper when I left there.

Shadows Fall/ Damage Plan – Trocadero, PA November 27, 2004
We tried and tried to get there on time. Doors opened at 7 and they usually don’t start playing until 7:30 (unless you are Premonitions of War, a band I’m dying to see and go one at 7:15 and are finished by 7:30). So Mike and I left to go down there I think around 6:45, which gives us MORE than enough time to get there by 7:30, especially with his driving. We get onto the highway and stop. It’s going a snail’s pace all the way to the city. Needless to say, we get to the Troc at 8:30, yes, you read right, 8:30. We just miss the Haunted, which I’m fuming about. This was a co-headlining tour, so you didn’t know who was headlining until you go there. I tried texting Matt from Shadows Fall earlier in the day to see if he knew, but I think I texted the wrong number. So I’m hoping they go on next and Damage Plan headlines, because I’m not a super huge fan of their music. Sure enough, Damage Plan comes on the stage next. I’m glad I saw them, even though I was annoyed at the traffic, tired because I worked all day, I’m glad I got to see Dimebag play one last time before he was killed. He sure did put on one hell of a performance. They did Walk and another Pantera song, which did kick some serious ass. They played for about 45 minutes. Shadows Fall came on after and they were great. They play all of their stuff, from their Of One Blood album, through the newer ones. They played Fleshold, my favorite song by them, and I don’t remember what else. I know they played the songs they have video for. They played about 45 minutes too. They were definitely worth the wait.

Soulfly- TLA, PA September 14, 2004
Let’s get one thing straight here. I don’t like Soulfly. Well, I shouldn’t say that completely, I liked a few songs from the first album and haven’t liked anything since. I went to this show, because Ill Nino was on the tour, and I’m a huge fan of them. I got there early, didn’t want to miss anything, you know. I can’t remember which band I walked in on. Then, was Crisis, who I haven’t seen in years. Never got into them, still couldn’t get into them. They weren’t bad, I just can’t get into them vocally. Karen kicks ass though, she is so small, her dreads are to the floor and she can belt those songs out. Next was suppose to be Ill Nino, however, the put up the Soulfly banner. Some random dork next to me tried striking up a conversation and told me I was dedicated being there by myself. I told him I wasn’t there to see Soulfly and he told me Ill Nino was kicked off the tour TWO nights earlier. BLAH. I went to the front door, asked the person there if they were playing and he confirmed they were NOT, so I left. Waste of an evening.

Sick of it All – Trocadero, PA August 22, 2004
I have to be honest, I’m writing this in January, and I can’t remember everything about this show. They played with Terror, who I loved and ran out and got a few of their albums. They also had Champion and With Honor on the bill. I remember liking one more than the other, I just don’t remember which one. I was waiting for this show forever, I remember talking to them a year prior, I had just gotten the Live in a Dive album, and was giving me the itch to see them. They did play all of their old shit and of course some new stuff from their album Life on the Ropes. They sounded good, kicked some ass. Can’t wait to see them again.

Central Illinois Metal Fest- Canopy Club, PA August 13-14, 2004
I had a really good time at this fest. I believe the last fest I went to was the MA Fest in 2001, but the bands from Central US don’t go to them. I haven’t been to a Milwaukee Metal Fest in quite some years, so it was nice running into everyone. My main reason to go was the guys I have been talking to for the past 6 years on the DeathMetalHardCore mailing group decided that would be our meeting ground. The head of the group, Mike was traveling in from Switzerland. The other head, Charlie, who doesn’t do anything and doesn’t like anything, also decided he would do. He doesn’t even like metal. From there, Ron from Indiana said he was in. Chris, Pudge, Brett and Drew weren’t able to make it out, but us 4 lifers got there. Charlie and Mike got to the club way before me, I have traveling problems, and honestly wanted to get to the hotel and nap. Of course, Mike called as soon as I got there, wanted to know when I was heading down. I didn’t get my nap, I decided to go ahead and start the weekend. My friend Matt from Lividity, was putting on the fest, and I was more than happy to see him. I haven’t seen him since NJ fest in 2001. Definitely a good guy and one of my closest friends in the scene, so I was looking forward to seeing him. He was the first person I ran into, I think. I can’t remember if it was him or the foreigner. I caught up with Matt for a little while, chatted with Charlie and Mike, pretty much just insulting each other; so nothing new there. I also met my nemesis, Chuck, from the Relapse Message Board. All he and another fellow do is rip on me so I was looking forward to meeting him and really just kicking him in the balls. Much to my total surprise, he was actually really cool. He took us home one night too so we wouldn’t have to pay for the cab. I got to catch up with Dave from Lividity, Rich from Fleshgrind and other random bands I have known for years. I’m standing there next to the tables and I’m looking at this kid who is selling shirts and CDs and he has a Deaden shirt on. He looks just like Von from Deaden, and I am in the area he lives in, but I was like nah, Von hasn’t been in the scene for years, it’s not him. I pulled Matt over, and asked him and sure enough it was. I’m surprised he even remembers me. We caught up for a while, he has a new band out (I can’t remember the name either), they re-released some Deaden shit and all is well. He will get whatever support he wants from me, so looks for updates on the site about his new projects. Ton’s of great bands played, Screaming Afterbirth, Waco Jesus, Incinerate, Putrid Pile was one of the best bands I ever saw, Mastic Scum and of course Lividity played too. They had the TV’s set up with the porn going, what would you expect, it’s Lividity! Day two comes, and I’m not a spring chicken anymore. I can’t take these all day fests. I was planning on staying at the hotel till around 5 or 6 and then heading over. Charlie however decided he couldn’t watch the Golden Girls anymore, and kept calling and calling trying to get me to stop watching Newlyweds and to go. So we call for the cab, get to the fest earlier, barely anyone is there, we are there so early. So, the cab guy gives us our amount, I handed half of the fare plus 2 dollars tip to Charlie, since I was sitting in the back and he was sitting closer to the driver. He hands me my dollar back and then gives the guy exact change and says thanks!!! He didn’t tip him. Then, he blames it on me, saying I’m the accountant and I should know better! Poor guy, working for tips and Charlie stiffs him. Cheap-o. Sure enough, we ran into the old man of the group, Ron. We were looking and calling him all Friday night and he never showed. Him and the Revered Psycho Mathias came down for the Saturday show. Anyway, I think we got there for Vomit Spawn. The guys in Saprogenic had some problems, I believe 2 of the guys got arrested the night before for doing coke in the parking lot. Don’t remember if they played, but I did meet the one kid in the band and he was cool. Estuary, Slough, Dark Disciple, Funerus, Lust of Decay, Mortal Decay and Incantation all played. I got to catch up with Mortal’s drummer Anthony, who I haven’t talked to in a hell of a long time. Also got to meet their bass player Lou, who is super cool and a wrestling fan. So he and I chatted for a while about wrestling. I saw Jill from Funerus, while we were waiting for our cab to leave the club, haven’t seen her in years either. The two bands that stand out in my mind are Putrid Pile, and Stabwound from Sweden. They were real good, of course no one I was hanging out with liked them, but that’s understandable. So many people gave props to that kid from Putrid Pile. It’s hard getting up on stage with a full band- this kid is getting up there himself, no one to blame is something goes wrong. He was good. I had a blast. Enjoy some pictures.

L-R: Psycho, Ron (at bottom), Charlie, Jen, and Mike	L-R: Psycho, Jen, Ron, Charlie and Mike

Sebastian Bach- Trocadero, PA August 6, 2004
Wow. Let me just apologize first to Chris, who I believe if he didn’t move away from me I would have ended up ripping his arm out of the socket. I also have to apologize to Jodi, because every time she looked at me while Bach was on stage, I squealed like a pig, so I might have blown one of her ear drums out. When the Skid’s were big, I was 15 or a little younger, and I wasn’t allowed to have metal tapes, let along go to concerts. So I missed him in his day with Skid Row.
Ever since I heard he was coming around, I kept checking to see if they would have an opening band. Nothing was mentioned. Then, of course, last minute, right before I was ready to leave, I checked the site, and who is opening? The Primadonnaz. I had a feeling, since they open for every hair band that comes into town, but when I read it, it was a big sigh that came out. I had to sit thru their set which was painful. I don’t know why, I just can’t get into them, but I’m sure if I didn’t have to see them all the time, it wouldn’t be so bad. Then, they start preparing for Bach on stage. God I was so excited. He comes out, after a long wait, and I just nearly took Chris’s arm off right there. 15 years of excitement just came out right there. He played lots of old Skid stuff, played a song from his CD from a few years ago and played some of his new stuff too. It all sounded really good. He played Here I Am, Big Guns, Piece of Me, 18 and Life, Youth Gone Wild, I Remember you, Slave to the Grind, Monkey Business, Threat, Frozen, In a Darkened Room and I’m sure a few more I just can’t remember. For Piece of Me, some little slut got on stage and he was playing around with her, and that was the only time he invited fans to get up on the stage. So, during Darkened Room, some girls were trying to get on stage and you saw Bach shake his head no and when the girl got on stage he gave a nasty look to the security guy. The chick went to touch him and he jerked his arm away. I think everyone in the place was super surprised, but hey, she wasn’t invited. That had to be the best night of my life. (Other than seeing Nelson, of course).

Fear Factory- TLA, PA - July 27, 2004
Again, another summer show at the TLA. When I got there, there was maybe 100 kids there, and it actually felt like the air was on. I was pretty happy. Maybe I would sweat like a hog tonight. I was wrong as the first band finished up. Now, let’s get something straight here. I can’t stand Fear Factory. I never heard a song by them that I liked. Never. So when I heard my boys, Sworn Enemy were playing with them, I hated the fact I would be giving my money to FF. But I wanted to see Sworn, what other choice do I have? Walls of Jericho was first up, and again, I thought they put on a kick ass show. I still can’t get into their CD’s though. It’s gotta be the difference between watching them live, and just hearing their CD. That’s the only thing I can think of. Sounded really good, had a good time watching them. Next up was the moment I was waiting for. Sworn KICKED ASS!! I was so happy. They played for a good 30-40 minutes, played Sworn Enemy, One Way Trip, As Real as it Gets, Labeled, Fallen Grace, Time Heals No Wounds and IBS. There were a few others, they were the ones I remembered signing though. Mastadon came up afterwards, and by this time it had to be about 210 degrees. They are an awesome band, I’ll have to go out and pick up some of their shit. Right after they played, I decided to say good bye to my friends, and left. And by the way, Sworn was great!

Lots of shows, Lots of Venues, Lots of Dates
What can I say, I got a little lazy doing show reviews. I never remember to write down the songs the bands plays right after the show, usually because I'm dying to go to bed and then by the next morning, I forget. Saw SHADOWS FALL April 1 at the Crocodile Rock in Allentown, PA. They had a shit load of bands, Red Chord opened, then All that Remains, Burnt By the Sun and then Shad Fall. Red Chord was pretty decent, that was the first time I heard them and my friend Rory raved about them. ATR was next and it was the first time I saw them in a long time. They changed their sound a little bit, it seems Phil is trying to sing more than scream. Their new stuff sounded OK, but I liked their older stuff better. BBTS was next and how could they not put on a good show? They kick ass on their CD's and all of the other times I have seen them live, so why would this be any different? They were great, really good sound too. Shad Fall was up last, and I guess I'm not use to this club yet, I'm use to the Philly shows ending around 11-11:30. They didn't go on till 11:30 and we had an hour ride home. We stayed for 5 songs, heard a new song from their upcoming CD and it kicked ass. I wanted to stay longer, but my knees were about to give out and I was beat. MORBID ANGEL was April 20 at the Troc in Philly. They played with Premonitions of War, Suffocation, and a black metal band who I can't remember. Now, I have seen Morbid back in the day, around 1995 and they were good. They weren't the reason I was going to the show though. I was going to see POW most of all and of course, Suffocation. So, for all of the years I have been going to the Troc, never have they started a show before 7:30. Never. So Around 7:25, I get to the Troc and the band I paid 26.80 for was on their last song! They started at 7:15 and their songs are like 2 minutes each. I was ready to rip someone's eyes out I was so pissed. My fault but still. Black metal band was next, still can't remember who they were, but they were from over sea's somewhere I think. I can picture their album cover in my head, just not their name. After them, Suffo came on and wrecked the place. Lots of people left after them, like myself. I stayed for a song of Morbid and decided to leave. Few days later was MACHINE HEAD at the Troc on April 28. Can't remember who they even played with, but I remember getting there early to watch all of the bands, so it had to be someone I wanted to see. Machine Head played all old shit, it was great. Lots from the first two albums, you know, when they were actually good. Played a few songs from other albums and I think just 2 songs from the new album. But I can't even remember who they played with, so don't quote me on the 2. BRIDES OF DESTRUCTION on May 9th at the Troc. That kicked ass! They played with Amen and I really think that local glam band Primadonnaz's, who I don't care for at all. Anyway, they kicked ass! It was awesome seeing not only Nikki Sixx on stage, but also Traci Guns. Pure bliss. Played just about every song off their album, played 3 LA Guns songs and one Crue song- Live Wire. Great show, one of my favorites this year. TESLA on May 10th at the TLA. By this time, I was super sick for some reason, don't know how or why, but I was feeling like shit. Some small band opened, they were from down south somewhere. I wasn't into their sound, but apparently everyone around me was. Tesla played for about 2 hours. The TLA sucks anymore seeing shows, they don't have a good working AC so it was a sold out show and about 500 degrees. Not to mention with a cold, as much as I was looking forward to the show, I was so miserable there. Played about half of their old stuff, half of their new stuff. At the end of the show, I got their set list. That ruled. GWAR was May 26th at the Electric Factory. Went with my friend Brian who is a GWAR virgin, or was up until that night. They kicked ass, played with a band Bad Acid Trip and someone else, can't remember who. BAT sucked pretty badly. GWAR came on, did lots of old stuff, some new stuff from their album coming out in October. Sounded really good, however there wasn't enough blood and guts for me. Someone told me the tour they do in the summer is the music tour, the tour around Halloween is more blood. So I'll have to check that one out too. June 25th. One of the best nights of my life! Nelson. yes, you read right, I WENT AND SAW NELSON! I paid about $120 to watch the blond boys play 5 songs for 30 minutes. They played their hits, and even played one of their dads songs. Tommy from Styx came out and played with them too. It was a great show, I was in all. They played with Peter Frampton and Styx, but I didn't go to see them, I went to see Nelson. We left after them. Awesome time. Kiss was July 13th at the Tweeter Center in NJ. Great show, played with Poison. Two great bands, how can you have a bad time? Poison didn't get to play that long, but got to play as much of their hits as they could. I'm a little disappointed, CC didn't get on the mic at all. I love him when he talks, Chris and I still to this day talk about what he was saying last year at their show. Kiss played some of their hits, lots of old stuff though. It was a kick ass show, I just wish I knew more of the stuff they played. Kick ass!

SKA IS DEAD TOUR 2004 - Trocadero, PA - May 2, 2004
So last night, Sunday, was the big Ska is Dead tour with a bunch of bands and Suicide Machines, who was the reason I had a ticket.
I got there at 7, because my parking garage closes the entrance I know how to get to at 7:00. Of course, I got there at 7 and it was closed, but I actually took a dare and went around the block and found the other entrance. yah for me. I sat in my car reading till about 7:30 and then decided to go in.
I get there and the fucking place is swarming with kids, no one had to be over 16. First band was on, no idea who they were, and people were dancing. It was hot and it was already starting to smell. I watched for a little while, got bored and decided to take a seat against the wall. I haven't even been there for 5 minutes and I'm ready to kill myself. I hate ska, no question about it. For some dumb reason, I just thought all of the bands would sound like Suicide Machines and I would enjoy myself. HA.
Second band comes on, I'm still sitting. No point in getting up, no idea who they were, but they weren't SM. Half way thru, my hi-nee starts to hurt, so I got up to start looking for someone 1) remotely over the age of 18 and 2) for any person wearing a metal shirt. I just needed someone to kill time with. Chris? Wren? Junior? Jodi? Anyone anyone? Didn't see anyone that looked familiar except the big security guy who is scary. I'm not chatting with him.
Went back to sit and the 3rd band comes on. I actually stood to see if they would be SM, but they weren't, so I sat back down. As I'm sitting, a bunch of 16 year olds came over to the right of me. All dancing, having a good time. Blah. Then, on my left, 2 more kids, girl and guy, come over, and start making out. Fucking gross.
By the time the 4th band comes on, the make out couple had left my left side, not sure if they heard all of my comments, or what, but they moved, went down a couple feet and started making out some more. I couldn't sit any longer so I started walking about looking for metal kids, and by this point, I didn't care if they were 16. Found 2 dudes, who looked like they were having as much fun as me, one with a Madball shirt and the other with long hair. Just hung out near them, at least they were 2 more people over the age of 18.
Suicide came on next, thank god. Brought out some TV's for some political propaganda shit. Whatever. Came out and rocked the place, played about 30 minutes. Played lots from the first album, a few from the 2nd, 2 from the 3rd album and I think 2 or 3 from the new album. They were great, except, were I was standing , I had sweaty kids all near me and the one kid smelled so bad of BO. Fucking disgusting. I could have done without all of the political shit, they are up there, telling all of these 15 year olds to vote Bush out of office. Like any of them can vote. Every band though, Bush sucks, Bush this, Bush that. Just shut up and play.
That was my night.

ILL NINO- CROCODILE ROCK, ALLENTOWN, PA MARCH 10, 2004 and
ILL NINO- TROCADERO, PHILADELPHIA, PA MARCH 11, 2004
Fuck yeah! Finally a headling tour with these guys. Allentown is about an hour and 15 minutes from me, but for the first night of the tour, I had to do the drive to see them. They played the next night in Philly and I went to that one too. Allentown, the sound sucked. It was a small little club, a lot of 16-17 year olds there, and I'll tell you I feel fucking old going to these things. Especially to these "nu-metal" bands. for the most part, all of the bands gave the same speeches, did the same songs in the same order. I wonder how they don't get tired of that shit. Anyway, Element Eighty opened the show, and it was better than Sevendust for them. People knew who they were, they were singing along, I was happy for them. They have their song everyone knows, Broken Promises. 40 Below was next up on the bill and you know, I don't know what the problem of the singer is. I mean, the band isn't that great, but for some reason, he walks around and acts like he is god. Dude, your band isn't that good, no need to walk around like you are the shit. They had everyone chant, Fuck the Darkness! C'mon, they are just too young to appreciate the 80's music sound! They did some of their bigger songs from the first album and a lot of newier stuff. Flaw was next on the bill and I don't like them either. They bore me a little bit. I had to sit thru them for the Life of Agony show. Really have no stage presence at all. I just can't get into them. I could tell a lot of people left when they were done, for both shows, but that's fine- Less ass holes to deal with. Finally my boys got on stage and they actually played about half from the new album and half from their other album. When I saw them at Sevendust, they did mostly the new album. They opened with If You Still Hate Me, closed the show with How Can I Live, Unreal and Liar. In between and in no order, What Comes Around, God Save Us, Rumba, I Am Loco, Te amos, I hate you, Unframed, This Time's for Real, Lifeless...Life (one of my favorites), Cleansing and I think they did Numb or the song after that on the new CD. I can't remember, but I'm pretty sure it was one of them. They kicked ass. The sound was SOO much better at the Trocadero, it made the show more enjoyable. Plus, during 40 Below the first night, I got a horrible headache. I still rocked out but I paid for it on the way home and the next day at work too. They rocked, my 2nd favorite show(s) of the year (Sorry, but no one will beat out Life of Agony in Jan).

CANNIBAL CORPSE- TROCADERO, PHILADELPHIA, PA SUNDAY MARCH 7, 2004
What is up with these Sunday shows? They kill me the next day at work! This was a nice group of bands playing. Vile was up first and I first saw these guys at one of the MetalFest's, I believe in '97 or '98. They rocked live. Very good death band, for those who haven't heard them, go check them out: http://www.vilestench.com/. Next up was the mighty Exhumed. I don't know much about them personally, but I was told their guitarist likes to vomit on stage, at every show. I was a little dissapointed to see he wasn't in the band anymore. I feel like I didn't get my money worth now. Anyway, it was unreal to see the place go nuts for these guys. Pits were everywhere. They did some older stuff along with newier stuff off of their new album from Relapse. I thought they sounded good, but someone else I talked to said they sounded very weak and not good at all. Hypocrisy was next and they bored me. I really didn't pay much attention, I just kept chatting with my friend. They are a nice group of guys, but I don't like them. From what I was told, they did a few older songs, and they did sound a lot better than the new stuff. They took off, and we waited a fucking hour for Cannibal. Some jack ass spilled beer on the mixing board of the place. So the waiting sucked. Plus, this was on the night of the beginning of the Soprano's. I left at 11:15 to be in time for the show, and I got to see about 5 songs. The first 2 songs I'm not sure what they were, but then they played Fucked With a Knife (and they dedicated it to all of the ladies) and my favorite Stripped Raped and Strangled. I left shortly after that. I wasn't very impressed though with the sound, it was extremely muddy. I probably would have stayed a little longer if the sound was decent.

CIRCLE OF FEAR w/ SOME LOCALS- PIRATE'S DEN, GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ MARCH 4, 2004
I have been saying probably for the past year I would come out and check out their show but for one reason or another, I never had the chance to go. I finally made myself go to their show this Thursday night. They had 4 bands on the bill, Spearing Jocasta, Circle of Fear, The Killing and Dead Everything. I got there a little early and got to check out Spearing Jocasta. They were a metal core band, not bad actually. I enjoyed watching their set. Circle was up next and they kicked ass. Played songs from their CD out now and then played some newier stuff, which will be on their upcoming CD, due out this summer, I believe. They had a new guitarist. who was playing his first show with the band, and a fill in guitarist, who was playing his last show with the band. They even dedicated a song to me, and the cool part was it was also a song the singer of Mortal Decay, another Jersey underground band, sang on. I'm a huge fan of them, so I was happy to hear him on the song too. I ended up leaving after them, I promised myself to be out of there by 11:30 and I didn't get a chance to see any of the other bands. You can check out their links: http://www.spearingjocasta.com/; http://www.circleoffear.com/; http://www.thekilling.com/

GOD FORBID WITH BLOOD HAS BEEN SHED, WALLS OF JERICHO AND A LIFE ONCE LOST- TROCADERO, PA FEB 29, 2004
This was the record release party for the new God Forbid album. I'm not a big fan of their CD's, but they put on one hell of a live show, so that's really why I wanted to go. I got there late, b/c my parking lot closed the one entrance and had to get the guy to re-open it. So I only caught the last 60 seconds of A Life Once Lost. From what I heard, it wasn't bad. Walls of Jericho were next. I have heard so much hype about them, I downloaded some of their songs probably 2 years ago and I thought they blew, so I never paid much attention to them. Seeing them live, they actually sounded better. They have a chick singer, who looks so small, but she can let loose up there. They were really good. Blood has been Shed was up and I only heard them for the first time on Headbangers Ball the night before when they played one of their video's. They weren't bad, pretty good live. They had the place moving. God Forbid came on and sounded awesome. They did a couple songs off of their last album and played some new stuff. I only stayed for half of their set, my knees swelled up from standing too long (arthritis is a fun thing to have). But from what I saw, they rocked the house. The crowd was packed, everyone was having a good time. Good show, I would have liked to stay longer, but maybe next time.

PRETTY BOY FLOYD- CLUB SOMETHING, PHILADELPHIA, PA JANUARY 23, 2004
Still in shock from seeing such an awesome show by LOA, I traveled to this one, despite the weather calling for snow. Small little club, can't even remember what it is called. On South Street in Philadelphia. Anyway, had 3 openers, no idea who the first 2 were. The 3rd of course was the Primadonnaz's, who opened for them the last time they came. I watched the first band, wasn't very impressed, them my friend Loren showed up and we just hung out at the back of the club till Primadonnaz's went on. The singer came out in spandex shorts and knee high fishnet stockings. That was a site I hope I never have to see again. Very scarey. But apparently, I'm the only one with that view, because there were women putting dollars in the guy's fishnet stockings. The only song I remember they did was "Don't tell your Mama you're a Drag Queen". And the reason I remember that song, is because my friend was singing along with it, which I found pretty amusing. Finally, after much torture, PBF got on and rocked out. Most of the same songs they played from the month before when I saw them. Played 2 songs off of their EP and played a new song. Of course, I'm having a good time, signing along and Loren is making fun of them the whole time. He didn't even know their songs, just was going to have a laugh. He was actually surprised I wanted to see them. He got us in trouble with the singer too, they wanted the crowd to sing some part and I was laughing at Loren and the singer said, Maybe if you guys would stop laughing, this would be coming out a little better. The whole bar was filled with people too, unlike the last time when I saw them. Good show. not as good as the month before, but still rocking.

LIFE OF AGONY- TROCADERO, PHILADELPHIA, PA JANUARY 21, 2004
Holy Fucking Shit. I don't even know what to say about this show. The BEST show I have seen all year and I'm sure it will be the best I have seen all year. Apartment 26 from England opened up the show. They weren't horrible, weren't great, kinda reminded me of 40 Below Summer. Not super heavy, but they had an OK sound. The place was pretty empty when they came on, and I was beginning to think if this was the turnout for the whole show. Flaw came on next and that was a yawn. I'm not into them, so I really didn't pay attention. The crowd loved them though and filled up a little more, but the place still seemed a little empty to me. As soon as they got off the stage, it was s swarm of people who filled the floor. The pit and the floor started before LOA even took the stage. They were playing the clips from the RRR album. As soon as they finished the band came out and the whole place errupted. They were unbelievable. Played most, if not all of the songs from the River Runs Red album, a few, maybe 3 I think from Ugly and nothing from Soul Searching Sun. They did play a new song from their album coming out and that kicked ass, sounds like the old shit. I felt like I was back in the olden days seeing them when I was 17. Best show ever.

ILL NINO/SEVENDUST - ELECTRIC FACTORY, PHILADELPHIA, PA JANUARY 8, 2004
3 bands down, 1 more to go (Nothingface, although I did get to see them at Ozzfest). Ill Nino is probably my current favorite band right now. I've been waiting and waiting to see these guys forever and I finally got to see them. They were coming around with Element Eighty and Sevendust was nice enough to bring them out. Personally, I can give a fuck about Sevendust, I don't like them, they have one good song on every album and that's all.. Element Eighty opened and you know, I kinda felt bad for them. No one knew who they were. As they were walking on stage, everyone kinda stood there and just stared. No one really moved, no one even moved their heads when they were playing. I've heard of them, they play them on my internet radio all the time and I downloaded their album. They are a rock band, kinda with the Sevendust sound, so I can see why they were on the tour. I thought they were good and by the end, the crowd was into it. Now for my boys. The drummer came out with another drummer who played the bongo's, or whatever they are called. The big long drum. Another guy came out, and I forgot my glasses, so I couldn't see exactly, but he had some kind of keyboard set up, and it looked like he was playing timballies (I spelled that wrong). So the 3 of them started off with this kick ass drum solo. It really sounded awesome with all 3 drums going. Then, the rest of the guys came out and rocked out with one of my favorite songs, Te Amo...I hate you. Kicked ass. I don't know the order but they also played How Can I Live, Unframed, Lifeless...Life, This Time's for Real and Have you Ever Felt. From the older album, they did God Save Us, Unreal and they closed with Liar. They played for a good 40 minutes. Love ever minute of it. After they played, I got myself a TShirt (thanks Mike) and left. I didn't want to sit thru Sevendust and ruin the night. Needless to say, even though I bitched about spending over 50 bucks on two tickets to see 1 band, it was well worth it.

STILLBORN FEST - ELECTRIC FACTORY, PHILADELPHIA, PA DECEMBER 26, 2003
This was a great show. We got there during one of the smaller bands playing, can't remember who it was. Might have been Strech Armstrong, I'm not really sure though. Madball was the first full band we got to see. They kicked ass. Little disappointed, Freddy did not get into any fights with anyone on stage. Maybe next time. They did their normal songs, Set it off, Demonstrating my Style, Hold it Down, Can't Stop, Won't Stop. Did a new song from their brand new EP which you can get off of their web site (www.madballnyhc.com). New stuff sounds great. I picked up the EP and it sounds like their newier stuff, which is what I like best. They ended and along came the godfathers of hardcore, Agnostic Front. Half of the people there probably didn't even know who they were. I have their tapes, which I haven't listened to in years, but I still was looking forward to seeing them. They are one of the bands who started it all, so you have to give them respect. Sick of it All was next and my friend Chris and I have been talking about seeing these guys since the sumemr time. I'm a little pissed though, they got completely ripped, only played about 15, maybe 20 minutes top. Played one or two songs from their new KICK ASS album, did some old stuff of course. From what I remember, they did Scratch the Surface, pretty sure they did Call to Arms, Disco Sucks Fuck Everything, I think Built to Last and I honestly can't remember the other songs, it's been a while. But other than only getting a short amount of time, they put on another stellar performance. Chimaira came up next and out of everyone that played that night, they had the best sound. The Electric Factory already has shitty sound as it is and it's rare to hear something good out of that place, but out of all of the bands, they were the best. They did some slow ass song, that I swear lasted like 10 minutes. I don't remember it off of any of their CD's, but that's probably because if I heard it, I would have just skipped to the next track. Another thing I don't understand about them, their first album, they had Painting the White to Grey. Then the next album comes out and they put it on there too.They don't play it live though! Oh well. They did their MTV songs and the crowd went nuts. Hatrebreed was last and I don't even think they got to play for an hour. I have all of their stuff, but I really didn't recongize a lot of what they played. They sounded good though, the place went nuts for them. We left at the end of their set, because I didn't want to get stuck in the 5 hours of traffic if I left when everyone else did. Great show, hope to see more like it.

CHIMAIRA WITH SOILWORK - TROCADERO, PHILADELPHIA, PA SOMEWHERE BETWEEN NOV AND DEC 2003
Well, this was one of the bands on my top four to see, so I'm glad I got to see these guys. These guys played with Bleeding Through who I really wasn't very impressed with. They are a death metal band, and they have this chick keyboard player. I did not hear once her keyboards. I think she just pretended to play to get all of the guys in the crowd interested. They also had my friends band Cannae, from MA played. They were first and I didn't recognize the name so i showed up late and missed them. But I heard they ripped. Soilwork played too and they were good. They played a lot from the newier album, which is good, but not as good as their older stuff. So I haven't paid much attention to it. They sounded awesome live though and when they come around again, I'll be sure to check them out. Chmaira came out and kicked ass. They said, they were just going to shut up and play, and that is what they did. Didn't fill the show up with lots of chat, which is good. They played Power Trip, Cleansation, Impossibility of Reason, Pictures in the Gold Room, Severed (one of my favorites), Let go, Lumps, Dehumanizing Process, Overlooked, Eyes of a Criminal, Down Again, Dead Inside, Pure Hatred. They also, which was super cool, did this medley, where they said this is a bunch of songs the people want us to play and we never do. They did a bunch of them and it sounded awesome. It was def one hell of a show.

PRETTY BOY FLOYD - THE BALCONY, PHILADELPHIA, PA - November 9, 2003
When I found out these guys were coming around, I nearly creamed my pants. The big glam bands, they are on tour just about every other year and I can tell you I have seen Poison just about 10-15 times since they started their yearly touring. The smaller glam bands, PBF, Vain, even Faster Pussycat, you never hear about them coming around. I was at work when I heard the news and that actually put me in a good mood for the rest of the day, which let me tell you is quite a task. They played with two other bands, Bleed and the Primmadonnez. Billy Morris from Warrant was also suppose to play, but I don't think he did. I don't even know who he is, and like my friend Chris described it, "He was in Warrant for as long as Vinnie Vincent was in Kiss". Bleed was an actually decent rock band, but the singer, reminded me of the singer from Creed. Although, the guy was super cool, I tripped walking into the place, just about landing on my face and he helped me out there. So I can't say anything super horrible about him or the band. But the other band who played with them, they should have died with the 80's scene back in the 80's. The Primmadonnez. The singer was in a red suit and I believe he had red leather pants to go with it. His hair had two areas where it shot up and then dropped down. Very odd. The guy who was on the left of the stage had a space suit on and when he took that off, he was wearing the might Misfits shirt, which redemmed himself, until I saw all of the fishnet around his arms. They were the only two who stuck out in my head from the band. They weren't even a good glam band. Everyone loved them though. So maybe it's just me and my bad taste. PBF came up and they were so damn good. They broke out with Leather Boyz with Electric Toyz (my fav), 48 hours, Toast of the Town, Your Mama Won't Know (another favorite), I Wanna Be With You, Rock and Roll Outlaws and Wild Angels. Also ended the night with Only the Young. Just about played the entire first album. I'm tired of seeing glam bands and they are just there promoting their new shit and play a song or two from the old album. We are there to see the old shit! So this was just amazing for me to hear all of the old stuff. Also did a song from an EP, that I didn't have and don't remember what it was. I got pointed at too. Oh yes, and it was for me. The singer was doing something with the 30 of us there and he pointed and said "You and You and You". The 3rd you was for me, I was standing on the stairs so I could see and I turned around just to see if he was pointing at someone else and no one else was there. Just me. And I wasn't even dressed like a whore! I felt like I was 15 years old again hearing their songs. This was my favorite concert of all time. The only thing that come probably come close, is seeing Skid Row with Bach, which probably won't happen, so this will stand #1 for a long time. (JENS NOTE: THEY ARE COMING BACK TO PHILLY JANUARY 23RD, TWO NIGHT AFTER I SEE THE LEGENDARY LIFE OF AGONY...YOU CAN BET I'LL BE THERE!)

E- TOWN CONCRETE w/ GOD FORBID and ZAO - TROCADERO, PHILADELPHIA, PA - October 16, 2003
1 band down and 3 more to go(Ill Nino, Chimaira and Nothingface). Etown has been on my list of bands I'm WAITING to see and I finally got to see them. Great show by them, I was impressed. I got there right before Zao took the stage and I wanted to see them, I have heard pieces of their music and really liked it, so I wanted to check them out live. The singer, is a little odd. He was smacking his ass on stage, licking his finger and running it down the front of hinself, just basically acting non-manish (is that a word?). It was very entertaining though. God Forbid played next, and I really wasn't a huge fan of the CD I got from them and I have seen them live before and wasn't impressed there either. However, they put on one hell of a show that night. They sounded awesome, their old stuff and the new stuff I never heard before. The whole place was moving for them. They were filming a video too, so they had this small guy with a camera and these two huge dudes following him around, it was a sight to see. E-Town came on next and I can tell you what the first 4 songs were and after that, it's a bit blurry. It's my bad, I didn't write the songs down and it's been about 2 months since the show. They played a lot of older stuff, only a couple songs from the new album, which is awesome for me, since I got into them back in the day and that's what I wanted to hear. They kicked the show off with Time2Shine, next was Mandibles, then to Soldier, I believe, (it was something from the second album, and I'm pretty sure it was that) and then Punch the Walls. They needed to get the video hits out of the way first I guess. I'm sure they did Doormats, Hindsight, Cycles, Fathers Marathon, Pacemakers, Stranglehold, which was stopped during because of a fight. I believe they also did So Many Nights and Hold Up. Nothing from the very first EP though. They are re-releasing the first two full albums so they are easier to find now. Shit, I couldn't find them when they actually were out, I had to get someone to buy them for me who lived in the same town as them. Great show.

ANTHRAX - TROCADERO, PA - August 29, 2003
I heard rumors before this show, that they would be playing all old school shit, which made me one of the happiest fuckers out there. I really don't like anything they have done recently, or for that matter, without Joey, so I was happy. Got there during the first band, don't know what they were doing, but they weren't that great. Omegalord was the band. They had a total of 5 drunk dudes moshing around for them. They were a thrash band, but something that should have died with the thrash bands in the 80's, as far as I'm concerened. Next up and why, I have no idea, was 40 Below Summer. I think if I were them, I would fire whoever got them on the tour. I like them, I have their last album, but why would they be on an Anthrax show? They were boo'ed the entire time they played and I think the loudest people boo'ing them, there the idiots moshing around for Omegalord. Didn't have a very good response from the crowd, so maybe next time they will stick to their own kind instead of agreeing to a tour they wouldn't fit with. Anthrax finally took the stage and played for an hour and a half. They came out to What Doesn't Die, then to Time and then, to an all time favorite, Caught in a Mosh. I never thought I would ever hear that live. They also did Antisocial, Inside Out from the Volume 8 CD, Efilnikufesin (NFL), and of course, their new hit Safe House, Black Lodge and Only. I'm missing a lot of songs they played, mostly because I was in all they were playing them. They ended the night with another favorite of mine, Be All, Metal Thrashing Man and Bring the Noise. No, Flavor Flav didn't come out to join them, but they did an OK job without him. They didn't play Indians, which I was a little sad about, but all of the other old shit, made up for it. One of the best shows I have ever seen.

POISON - ELECTRIC FACTORY, PHILADELPHIA, PA - August 15, 2003
For the Philly show, it was only Poison. No Skid Row and no Vince Neil. Trust me, I'm not complaining, who the hell wants to see Vince without the Crue and Skid's without Bach?? So some local opened the show around 8:30 and played for about half hour I think. Then we waited and waited and waited. Poison came on an hour later, started the show with Look What the Cat Dragged In. Fucking sounded great. Then did some song Squeeze Box, I never heard it before, but everyone else seemed to know what it was. Did all of the old stuff, Talk Dirty to me, and even, for the first time did I Won't Forget You. They actually did it twice, Bret fucked up the begining and he had to do it over. Every Rose has it's Thorn, Something to Believe in and some other song, Stand for What you Believe. Even did Ride the Wind. Of course did Fallen Angel and ended with Kiss's Rock and Roll All Night. CC had a wonderful guitar solo that just lasted forever. It just kept going and going. I thought he would never stop. Then he did the highlight of the night. He said how he has been in Philly for 3 days, he hasn't slept for 2, Philly is kicking his ass and then it comes. He says and I quote: "Philadelphia is like the Memphis, TN of the United States." What the fuck that means, I don't know and it seemed to get a good laugh in the crowd. I just looked at my friend ChrisX and asked if he was on something. Rikki did a solo as well, but wasn't as painful as CC's. When they came back for the encore, it was Nothing but a Good Time, of course! Great show, a little annoyed I paid 41.50 to see them play for an hour, when every year I see them with 3 other glam bands and pay the same price. All in all, it was a great show.

O Z Z F E S T 2 0 0 3 - TWEETER CENTER, CAMDEN, NJ - August 7, 2003
So it's my day off, but 2 days before the show, I see Shadows Fall is playing at god damn 10:20 in the morning! So I still had to wake up early to get there in time to see them. It was timed perfectly though, I wanted to be there by 10, so I could see the second half of Killswitch, who was suppose to start at 9:55. We get into the place at 9:45 and Killswitch is already playing! I'm like what is going on! So by the time we make it to the second stage, apparently it wasn't in the same spot as last year, Killswitch was on their last song, at 10:00! Shadows Fall went on and kicked ass. They played all new stuff, including the song they have the video for, Stepping out of Balance and a couple more. They sounded great and had circle pits at 10:00 in the morning for christ sakes! Nothingface was up next, who I was dying to see. I have been a fan of them for years and never saw them live. They did mostly all new shit, but they did play Bleeder off of the Violence album, which I must say is my favorite. Unloco was next and I had no interest in seeing a second rate Ill Nino, so we walked around a bit. Wanted to skip Endo as well, but ended up seeing the second half of them. They had a couple OK songs, but nothing to write about. Sworn Enemy was next up, who kicked some ass. Ozzy came out to introduce them too. They did some old stuff as well as new stuff, including their mtv video song, Sworn Enemy. By this time, everything was running a good 20 minutes early. Another hour to kill, while Grade 8 and Depswa played. I have both disc but it was raining and my feet were killing me, so I opted out of seeing both of them. Next band I wanted to see was Chimaira, and I had the idea, to go about 30 minutes early to the stage, just to make sure I wouldn't miss any of them. As we are walking to the second stage, sure enough, they start playing. I believe I missed a song, which is a song too many to miss. They kicked ass. Motograter was next and I'll tell you, I really enjoyed them. They had 2 singers, both painted in paint and 3 drummers! They had an awesome sound and the crowd really was into them. After them, we found a bench to park our asses at for the next 1.5 hours. It was more important to sit out of the rain than to see Memento, Hotwire and Voivod. I did want to check out Cradle and of course, I got there as they were finishing up their first song, which was off of Dusk and Embrace, I believe. Played lots of newier stuff, but they did play Dusk and my all time favorite by them, Forrest Whispers Thy Name, or whatever the hell it's called. They didn't get a great reaction from the crowd though. I was in the back, most people around me were making fun of them or just looked confused. Even Dani made the comment, What's wrong with you guys, you aren't watching Chevelle yet. Pretty amusing I though. Chevelle started off the main stage and it was just blah. Pretty much no different than their album. Played a song from some soundtrack and a new song. I was just glad to be sitting. Disturbed played next and kicked some serious ass. Mostly stuff off of the new album, but did play Stupify and I think another song from that album. I left during Manson. After being there since 9:45 in the morning, there was no way I was sitting thru an hour of them, an hour of Korn just to get to Ozzy. Good bands though and it was a good time.

IRON MAIDEN; DIO; MOTORHEAD - DTE Energy Theater (Detroit) - August 6, 2003
Though they all carry the positive party line the members of Iron Maiden know that their days as a significant drawing power are lowly numbered. The realization of their post re-union decline is why they have announced that their current tour will be their last so, has the attempt to pull more people into the summer shed circuit paid any dividends? Of course it has but not quite what the Metal legends had hoped for I am sure.
In Detroit the group sold tickets to less than a third of the house’s capacity but did manage to dress the place out a bit with the distribution of a rather large amount of free tickets. The weather held as well, always important when you are playing outside, so in the end there was a respectable audience for Iron Maiden to say their farewells to but first there were a pair of classic acts, both with longer histories and more class than to try and sucker their audiences with claims of retirement.
Lemmy Kilminster and his longest standing version of Motorhead pounded out their usual deafening set of classic hits including “Overkill,” “Ace of Spades” and “No Class.” The kick of “Killed by Death” was particularly harsh but with only a half-hour on stage Motorhead came and went far too quickly to be fully appreciated.
By the time Dio strolled on stage the bulk of those who were coming had arrived and forked hands flew in tribute to the man/band from every angle of the audience. There is a charisma to Ronnie James Dio that could easily carry his group through an hour-long set such as this but Dio simply doesn’t seem the type to ever rely on personality to coast through a performance. Quite to the contrary Dio hit the audience fast, hard and often serving up near a dozen legendary chunks from across his Heavy Metal career. Black Sabbath’s “Mob Rules” and “Heaven and Hell” could have been enough to call the whole evening a success but then there was the wholly unexpected left turn from Dio’s tradition of putting on Rainbow’s “Man on the Silver Mountain.” Instead Dio opted for an incredible take of the Rainbow classic “Stargazer.” The choice simply floored the audience. Of course the bulk of the set came from the Dio band’s own catalog, “Holy Diver,” “The Last in Line,” “Rainbow in the Dark,” “Stand up and Shout,” “Dream Evil” and a pair from the current “Killing the Dragon” disc, the title track and “Rock and Roll.” Add to this a pair of solos, one by drummer Simon Wright with another from returned guitarist Craig Goldy and it was easily the best teaser anyone could have for a full Dio set should they return as headliners.
With the usual extended break between groups marching right up to the point of annoyance Iron Maiden appeared on a spartanly dressed stage to roll through most of their greatest hits. Bruce Dickinson appeared to be about as hopped up as anyone in the audience and spent the first song, “Number of the Beast,” tripping over things but pulled it together nicely by the time “The Trooper” required him to run waving the Union Jack about. “Revelations” was a nice treat as were “Iron Maiden,” (the only Dianno era track for the night), and “The Clansman.” “The Clairvoyant” was a done by numbers bore made worse by sound problems that eliminated half of the guitar solos, actually this problem plagued much of Maiden’s set. Personally, I could have done without both “Fear of the Dark” and “Man on the Edge” in favor of another Dianno era gem but they were not badly done at all.
The band has a new disc ready to come to stores which Dickinson informed would be entitled, “Dance of Death” and from that new disc they tossed out a less than impressive track called “Wildest Dreams.” A handful of other songs were thrown in to fill up the set including respectable versions of “2 minutes to Midnight” and “Run to the Hills” and then the lights came up and everyone went home. End of story? Not if there is a buck in it.
Just as you can count on Iron Maiden to puke out another dozen compilation and/or live discs while repackaging all the old albums a time or two more feel comfortable in looking for Iron Maiden to tour again despite protestations to the contrary. When the music is this good you can forgive the pretentious goofiness of bands like Kiss and Iron Maiden who claim that the end is near when they know damned well it is not. (David Lee Wilson isentertainment@juno.com)

Dying Fetus/Skinless/Divine Empire/Misery Index/Structure of Lies - August 5th, 2003
It’s 6:30pm and we should already have left for the concert due to doors opening at 7 and I have to cross the entire valley in a car that tends to overheat on the freeway in that much Arizona heat. So, I’m rushing Dayna and my Roommate to get the lead out so we can make it before Misery Index finishes their set. We pull out at 6:40 and I book it for the freeway, not even stopping on my side of the valley for cigs or beer (Which we have to get before the concert because in AZ they stop selling beer at 1am and I know this concert won’t let out before then) so I’m hauling ass down the freeway listening to crap on the radio because Dayna and my Roommate (heretofore after known as Matedire) are both Radio-Nazi’s. There’s just something about pulling into the venue with Audioslave blasting out the windows of the hooptie that makes me want to curl up and die of embarrassment. Thank god I was looking so super duper fly that night in my totally l33t Cradle of Filth long sleeve. So we get to the east side of the valley with the engine of the car intact and head for, The Big Fish Pub. I stop at two different convenience stores on the way from the freeway to the venue; one for smokes, one for alcohol, and miss the venue because I was expecting it to be a bigger building. Turns out, it’s one half of a mini-mall, very metal indeed. So I grab the parking spot in front of the door. As we’re pulling in, we realize it’s futile to hope that a metal show would ever start on time and they haven’t even opened the doors yet. Add to that the fact the merch tables are outside, and you get an idea of how much this place sucks. And suck it did. So we swelter in the heat outside for a good half hour 45 minutes while they get a team of senior citizens with Alzheimer’s and bladder control problems to do the sound check When we’re finally let in, we make a rush for the 21 and over section in he hopes that it won’t be as crowded as the under 21 area will be. We were wrong. But we did find a cool room in the back with a booth and a pool table and a monitor of the stage hanging from the ceiling. Not a bad place if it had suitable air conditioning. At this point we commence waiting for the show to start.
Structure of Lies - Okay I already saw this band open for Vader and Berzerker a while back and while they didn't annoy me, they sure didn't do anything to appeal to me either. Plus the bassist looked like he was Gay-alternative. Not a metal looking motherfucker in the whole band. So when they came out on stage this time, I was only reaffirmed of my original opinions. They do seem to have gotten better at playing, as one song they played off their split with Misery Index was actually tolerable. Well-played and not sloppy at all. That’s all I'm going to give them. They’re still bland as hell.
Misery Index - In between bands Dayna and I decided to start drinking. Well actually Dayna got a drink and I started staring at it like a long lost girlfriend. It was fucking hot. Really really fucking hot in there. The venue was just terrible and if we weren't first in line to get in, thanks to my masterful parking job, we would of had to stand all night due to the lack of seating. So Misery Index comes on and they pull out all the stops. Not a single favorite song of mine was missed. Highlights were "Pulling out the Nails" "Manufacturing Greed" and "Servants of Progress" off the Nuclear Blast debut. Dayna complained about the "coffee can, machine gun" drums as she puts it, but the new drummer seems to be able to mimic Talley's skill behind the kit to a certain degree. Granted I swore I heard triggers though. Sparky was a maniac, just shredding up on stage as he did long before he left Dying Fetus. And Jason was definitely on top of his game that night. Vocals were clear and understandable, so the soundman did a good job, but it was obvious that they weren't worn out from the road just yet. Which was nice to see for a change. All in all, the third best set of the night from my favorite band there.
Divine Empire - Umm...Me and Dayna started pounding back vodka and Redbulls around this time and started playing pool with my roommate. So obviously there wasn't much about Divine Empire to catch my ear. Better than Structure of Lies though. They played a style much in the vein of Maryland death. (Dying Fetus, Misery Index) But I think they were trying to be too catchy. I remember banging my head to a couple parts but nothing about those parts stick in my head right now. Kind of a sorbet for the evening. I do recall though at one time I was tempted to check out their albums. If I see one of them at the record store I’ll probably pick it up. So nothing exciting live, but potential is there for sure.
Skinless – Now I don’t use the term, “Better than Star Wars” often, and I won’t be using it now. But damn did they come close. From inciting a battle between the sides of the crowd to the lead singer crowd surfing all the way from the stage on one end of the venue to the bar at the other end and doing shots of Tequila, Skinless had the best stage show of the night. Pulsating with energy and a brutal aggression that everyone was feeling. It’s quite a spectacle to see the Skinheads and the Indians off the reservation headbanging in unison. And Skinless had them doing it their entire set. They slayed. A lot of stuff they played was off their new album, which I haven’t gotten yet, but they ripped the crowd apart. All I know far as song titles are, The Optimist. Which is probably my favorite aside from Merrie Melody. which they didn’t play. Even after I yelled it about 12 times till I lost my voice. I highly recommend anyone that’s a fan of Brutal Death or Goregrind to go see this band while they can. This is one hell of a show that’s not to be missed by anyone if they can help it. Best performance of the night.
Dying Fetus – Now I like to think of Dying Fetus as second only to Nile as far as American Death metal acts go. They’re not only that good, or at least was that good; they're also damn popular. As far as my take on them went, when they had their original lineup with Gallagher, Netherton, and Talley, they were the best Death Metal act in the states, PERIOD. But if you’ve been following this band you know that Dying fetus split up and the new dying fetus is four new guys and John Gallagher. So I wasn’t expecting very much from these guys as I expected them to fall short of any comparisons to the original Dying Fetus.
But boy was I wrong. They were good. And not just good, they were damn good. They blew me away. I was stoked. I sat there in awe, or a hyper kinetic headbanging motion, just entranced by the quality of performance the crowd was being given by this band. They played ALL of my favorites songs, Praise the Lord (Opiate of the Masses), Justifiable Homicide, Intentional Manslaughter, We are your Enemy, Vengeance Unleashed, One Shot – One Kill, Kill Your Mother/Rape Your Dog, Skull Fucked, etc. They played everything! It was quite possibly one of the best times I had with a band I knew as much about as I did Dying Fetus. Great set, second best performance of the night.
In Closing – After picking up a Babydoll for Dayna and the new Misery Index album, I ran into Jason Netherton in the crowd. We talked for a bit about Misery Index, Kevin Talley’s new band and whether or not the Fergs are a pair of George Hamilton clones. He got a laugh out of that. So after the show we all piled into the car and headed home, stopping only for Smokes and Mexican food. Which we all pigged out on, upon our arrival back home. A great time had by all. And I’m leaving out a lot of the fun we did have due to its not metal relevance. But trust me what a wild, weird, wacky, and amazing night.
GO SEE THIS TOUR WHILE YOU CAN! YOU ARE NOT METAL IF YOU MISS THIS TOUR!
<<<<<<<<<<|===0 ZeKK 0===|>>>>>>>>>>

Motorhead/Dio/Iron Maiden - Worcester Centrum, Monday 21 July 2003
Thanks to a friend of mine and his roommate for the lift, Blitzkrieg Smirnoff and I headed out to Worcester to see Iron fucking Maiden!!! This was the first stop on the "Give Me Ed 'Til I'm Dead' tour. We had to leave late to avoid Boston rush hour traffic so we missed Motorhead, but if we'd left earlier we still would've missed them and been pissed off to sit in traffic. So Dio was taking the stage as we got there. I missed Stargazer as I was in line to get beer, but I got it in time to see Dream Evil, Heaven And Hell and some other stuff I didn't recognize, I don't know much about Dio. Stargazer sounded good from the beer line but Heaven And Hell was my favourite. There was also a ridiculous drum solo set to the 1812 Overture and an even more inane guitar solo. It's been at least 7 years since I have seen a big stadium concert so I forgot that they still do those things. Dio's voice sounded really great and he was pretty active on stage, it was hard to believe he's like 100 years old or something. I'd rather to see him sing with Black Sabbath though.
When they left the stage I was fired up by the beer and B. Smirnoff was excited by his imagination of Dio fighting Bruce Dickinson after the show. We knew this was going to be a good night. Due to long queues in the bathroom I was pointing Percy at the porcelain when I heard "Woe to you, O Earth and Sea..." Quickly taking care of business I ran upstairs to see Iron Maiden had taken the stage and Bruce Dickinson was already running all over the place and hurdling monitors like a madman. The whole stage was covered in cloth depicting the various Iron Maiden albums, and behind them was a changing backdrop of various scenes featuring Eddie. Unortunately where we were sitting we couldn't see the backdrops well, or the giant smoke-belching Eddie head that came out at the end really at all, or even Nicko (his drum kit was set back into the raised stage so he could only really be seen from the front). But we had a good view of most of everything else, and we could see Nicko get up to dance a piss weak Highland Fling before The Clansman, which was somewhat amusing.
The sound was good, with the exception of some intermittent PA problems that seemed to have lot of crackly noise in the left channels from time to time. The band were clearly loving it to be on tour again, energy evident in abundance. The crowd was the typical New England response, not great but they made some decent noise from time to time. They seemed especially quiet during the new song though. The best part for me was Bruce's antics, alternating between seeming pissed off about various things and pissing off the other band members, such as deliberately dropping drum sticks onto Nicko's kit from above without warning. Early on, during The Trooper, something seemed to be aggravating him about the British flags he was waving, there were two of them, but he kept getting frustrated and flinging them backstage for some reason. I never was sure what was up with it, my best guess is that someone was supposed to be opening some hatches in the upper stage (he stamped hard on what looked like an access panel at one point) but wasn't doing it. Anyway it made Bruce the man to watch, both for attitude and his impressive athletic feats. Plus we were to be the lucky recipients of two kick arse Bruce rants! First, before Revelations, he started telling the crowd he was feeling sick, and then launched into a tirade about how it was because some "drug addled prick" was smoking dope down the front, and that he wasn't into it because he wanted to feel some aggression not to feel like a stoned loser, and that the dope head should fuck off. I laughed and laughed even though it seemed a little sanctimonious considering Bruce admits in the Iron Maiden biography that he smoked many pots when he joined the band. Then before they played the new song, Bruce started talking about people bootlegging the new material and swapping it over the Internet. He said he knew that it upset some bands, especially certain ones that started with 'M', but that they really didn't mind, because in their opinion the reason that album sales were down for most record labels was because most new mass-market music these days is shit. Amen! Then he asked some people down the front how much an album cost in the USA, in beers. The consensus was 4 beers, Bruce seemed to think that was a low number but agreed that was OK if it was Sam Adams. So his argument was that if the new album sucks, then people should rip it and burn it and swap it as much as they liked, but if it was good then they should do the right thing and spend the 4 beers on it. Fair enough and crowd response was pretty supportive.
Unfortunately if the new album is like the song they played, it just might suck. The song they played is called "Wildest Dreams". The first thing I noticed was that the chorus is really annoying ("I'm on my way" over and over). It was hard to tell in the concert setting, but some of the guitar parts seem OK, overall it seemed to be a more stripped-down, raw sound than what we've come to expect from 90s Maiden. In many ways I think it sounded more similar to their earliest material, perhaps an attempt to return to their roots? However I don't think it quite succeeds, at least not on this track, because it still retains the monotonous vocal structure that they couldn't seem to step away from on Brave New World. Still plenty of time changes and so on as you'd expect though. I just hope it's not the best track on the album. If this song is more like The Wicker Man, in the sense of choosing one of the blandest and most radio-friendly tracks to be the foremost single, then there could still be hope for the album.
The full track list was as follows, I think I got them all but the order
may not be totally correct:
Number Of The Beast - The Trooper - Die With Your Boots On - Revelations - Wildest Dreams -
The Wicker Man - Hallowed Be Thy Name - Brave New World - The Clairvoyant - The Clansman - Fear Of The Dark - Iron Maiden - Encore: Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter - Run To The Hills
An odd set list I thought - heavy on Piece Of Mind, nothing at all from Powerslave, and unexpected choices in Die With Your Boots On and Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter (and I would have expected Ghost Of The Navigator instead of Brave New World). I was hoping that they wouldn't play Run To The Hills (I hate it) but knew I couldn't be that lucky. As always I would have preferred a lot of changes to the set list, but since I had essentially given up on ever seeing Iron Maiden with Bruce years ago when he left, I was pretty happy just to be seeing it at all. It will be interesting to hear what changes they make to the set list elsewhere. Bruce himself did a fantastic job, both visually and in terms of singing quality - his voice faltered a couple of times, but the fact that he can run about like he does while still making any noise at all is pretty phenomenal. I have to agree with sentiments expressed earlier on this list, that Janick Gers' guitar is no longer plugged in. I was trying to detect any change in the guitar sound due to him flinging it about, rubbing it on his leg, stepping on it etc. but could not. Still, he was pretty entertaining to watch, and he can throw his guitar a long way up in the air. It made Adrian Smith look wimpy when he tried to do it.
Overall very good concert and well worth making the effort to go to if they're coming near you. This is probably the best time to see them, as the next tour will doubtless feature a more straightforward set as they make way for a lot of material from the new album. (Zoz)

Fuck the Commerce VI Neiden, Germany 5/29 - 5/31, 2003
Wednesday, May 28th
Me and about 25 other certified lunatics from Switzerland board the train to Neiden at 10:15 am. The first few beers hit my stomach around 11 am. Needless to say, I'm viciously drunk when we arrive in the evening, but funnily enough, I'm actually still able to set up my tent. ABSORBED from the Netherlands are opening up the "warm up show" at the bar. They basically play DM with really annoying HC vocals. I walk out after one song. HATESPHERE are up next, and although their performance is tight and the stageacting is awesome, I walk out halfway through the show because I have a horrible headache. Besides, this Scandinavian Thrash thing has never really been my thing, although I respect Hatesphere for having been around back when a certain guy called Jensen still made good music. If you catch my drift. Anyway, it's time for me to hit the sack, so I miss HOLY MOSES.
Thursday, May 29th
I get up at 8:45, somebody practically forces a beer on me 30 minutes later. And thus the boozing resumes. At 1 pm when DESPONDENCY are playing, I'm buzzed pretty good, which may or may not be the reason I actually like them this time. INGROWING from the Czech Republic are up next, and they deliver their usual tight-as-fuck Grind performance. Most of the audience doesn't quite seem to be awake yet, so there's only three guys in the pit when they're playing "Corporation Pull-In" by if-you-don't-know-who-you're-not-worthy. One of them is me. Cool show. Up next is GRONIBARD, and, uh... does the entire French Grindcore scene consist of total nutcases? These guys make Inhumate look sane. The singer's wearing a wedding dress, the bass player a housemaid's dress, and the guitarist is wearing a skin-colored g-string which the singer pulls off of him halfway through the show. The music is accordingly sanity-defying Porn Grind. Funny stuff. PURULENT from Columbia are up next, and even though I'm glad for them for getting the chance to play this festival, I'm afraid I think they just plain stink. Cookie-cutter new school Death Metal with pigsty vocals that basically drown everything. Yuck. SQUASH BOWELS are a lot better, of course. A ripping Grind performance and a great setup for... ...the criminally underrated MASTIC SCUM, who thankfully get the reaction they deserve this time. People go apeshit, and the band is loving it. Much as I like Mastic Scum though, they're no match for the incomparable PHOBIA. Jesus fucking Christ, these guys kill. The moshpit looks like a warzone. If you've never seen Phobia play, for the love of God do yourself a favor and make sure you catch them next time you get the chance. They play a lot more old songs than on the club tour this time, which adds to the overall Crust flavor of the show. Phobia is easily the best band of the day. Certainly better than BELPHEGOR, which I decide to give a miss. Instead, I try to sleep off some of my now 12-hour long boozing frenzy in the tent, which turns out to be a stupid idea. When I wake up, I'm still drunk, but I've got a maddening headache to boot. Sigh. Everyone knows I love NECROPHOBIC, but tonight just isn't their night. The sound sucks, and I'm pretty sure I heard more than one or two fuckups. Plus they just seem totally out of place at this Grind-dominated festival with their borderline gay outfits and their constant posing. I dunno, I liked them when they were headlining, but they just don't belong on this festival. HATE PLOW, of course, couldn't fit the bill any better if they tried. Dave Culross is back (although I'm not sure if he ever quit - I do know he's not in Malevolent anymore, and I kinda doubt Phil wouldn't fire him from Hate Plow), meaning the performance is the usual ultratight whirlwind of blastbeats and catchy riffs. Rob's guitar breaks after a few songs and he has to play the rest of the show sitting down because apparently, he doesn't have a belt for his replacement guitar. It doesn't stop the band from basically destroying everything in sight. After Hate Plow, it's time for me to hit the sack. My headache is becoming unbearable, plus I'm wicked tired.
May 30th
Day two starts with CUNTGRINDER wearing KKK hoods and me deciding not to imbibe any alcoholic beverages at least before noon. One of these two is a good thing, and I won't tell you which, but here's a hint: It's not the KKK hoods. Otherwise, Cuntgrinder is pretty decent Porn Grind, but nothing to write home about.I miss LEHAVOTH, and the two people whose tastes I have the most faith in tell me they were damn good. Sigh.TEARS OF DECAY, of course, are greeted like prodigal sons. They don't live too far away from Neiden and of course they have a lot of friends at the FTC, including most of us Swiss folks and all the NRWDM nutbags. As usual, I feel like shooting their sound guy after two songs, but they sti