December 18, 2011

Report and all photos by Garett

Anthrax, Testament & Death Angel N. A. Tour - 2011

This tour package is almost like a window into the past for me, as all three of these bands were staples of my early high school years.  They were all pretty similar at the time, but each of them would become very different over the course of the next 20 years.  Death Angel broke up and vanished for a good chunk of that time, Testament went in a heavier, almost death metal direction, and Anthrax headed down a more commercial path.  Of course, any metal head worth his salt knows this already, but it is of particular relevance to this show.  The music that these bands have written in recent years, and the very existence of this tour is evidence of the circular nature of many things in music.  These bands took three different roads that all led to the same place, a place that is almost exactly where these three bands were 20 years ago.  We are left with two questions; do any of these bands still have something left in the tank, and if so does anybody still care?

The second that I walked into the venue, both of these questions were answered with a resounding yes.  Death Angel were already half way through their set by the time managed to navigate the line and get in the door.  The place was packed to the point where I can only assume that the show was sold out.  Luckily, I am tall enough to see over most of the crowd, because there wasn’t a lot of room to advance to a better viewing position.  I watched Death Angel rip through the end of one of the songs off of their most recent album, and move on to “Seemingly Endless Time.”  That song has always been a favorite of mine, and the band nailed it.  Just hearing it really took me back, and put me in the right frame of mind to fully enjoy this show.  Death Angel closed with “Thrown to the Wolves,” one of the better songs that they have written since reforming.  I would really like to see these guys play a full set sometime, as the small sample that I was able to watch was just enough to show me that they are still a very good live act.

Northern Lights
1208 Rte 146
Clifton Park NY  12065  USA     (518) 371-0012

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Tuesday November 8, 2011

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Testament holds the distinction of being the band that I have seen the most times over the years.  I have seen them at least 10 times since 1993, and they have never disappointed me; having said that, this was the best show that I have seen from them in recent years.  Chuck Billy always sounds good, but the last couple of times that I have seen Testament he just seemed a little lethargic, and less animated that I remember him being in years past.   This time, Chuck did a great job working the crowd, and seemed to be having the time of his life.  Seeing him recapture some of the energy that made him one of metal’s most competent front-men in his heyday, made me happy for both Chuck and the fans.  Testament’s set list was a nice mix of old and newer material.   “Over the Wall” and “Disciples of the Watch” have always been the highlights of their set list, but newer songs like “Henchmen Ride” and “Persecuted Won’t Forget” translate really well to a live setting.   My only complaint is the complete lack of material from Low and Demonic.  Not that I would want either album to dominate the set list, but a track or two between them would be a nice way to change things up.

Overall, it was a great show.  All of the bands came across as tight, professional and happy to be there.  Northern Lights is a big venue, the type of place that hosts things like The Summer Slaughter Tour,  and has shows for more popular artists such as Bad Religion and Hank Williams III. Basically, it’s about as big as a club can be and still be considered a club.  It was packed to the gills, and my biggest complaint was probably how difficult it was go get to the bar, or to move into a good position to view the show.  Really though, it was nice to see such a large turnout for this collection of old thrashers.  The crowd was very diverse and everybody seemed to be having a great time.  At the end of the day, I guess that that’s what metal shows are all about.

Anthrax was the real wildcard of the show for me.  I enjoyed about half of the new album, but outside of that I haven’t liked anything that they have done since Persistence of Time.  Add in the recent line up shenanigans, and Scott Ian’s knack for coming off like a prick in interviews, and you have a band that I have been extremely apathetic about for many, many years.    I went into this thing with cautious optimism, and came out thoroughly impressed.  First off, Joey Belladonna sounds great.  He is spot on with all of his old vocal parts, and if anything his voice has improved with age.  My only real complaint here would be that they played five songs off of the new album, and only “Got the Time” from Persistence of Time.  I will give them credit for picking most of the best new songs though, and I was surprised by how well those songs blended in with classics from Spreading the Disease and Among the Living.  Old staples like “Madhouse,” “I Am the Law,” and “Among the Living” really stood out but, It was “Indians” that was the most impressive moment of their set.  Other than “Only,” a song that is probably the band’s biggest hit, the John Bush era was ignored.  Ignoring such a huge span of the band’s career might not set well with some fans, but to me it is the right decision for this line up.  I didn’t like most of that stuff to begin with, but from a practical stand point the set list is only so long. They are already ignoring a lot of great songs from Joey’s first run with the band, and I think that adding more from the Bush era would only confuse things.

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