After watching Death Angel absolutely rule Slim's only three months earlier, I gotta admit that I didn't think there was any way that they could possibly do it again. Now that the band has been on tour for a few months (their first in over seventeen years) I figured it would be damn near impossible for them to give the same amount of energy as they did the last time they played their hometown of San Francisco. I also knew it was going to be tough for them to not only match the intensity of that show, but to also sound as amazing as they did that night back in February. And you know what? I was right. The band did not match the intensity or energy of their previous show at Slim's… they exceeded it to the tenth power. And they did not rule Slim's this time. They fucking owned it.
Walking into Slim's just as God Forbid hit the stage, (I missed both Light This City and Soilent Green due in part to some pre-Memorial Day beer drinking) I was immediately taken aback by the twin guitar assault of brothers Dallas and Doc Coyle. Sounding a bit like the classic Gary Holt and Rick Hunholt guitar tag team of Exodus, the brothers Coyle provided a pretty nice thrash attack, and together with bassist John Outcalt, drummer Corey Pierce and vocalist/bad ass Byron Davis, God Forbid put on a pretty nice little set of old school inspired, yet still fresh sounding Thrash Metal. Vocalist Byron Davis was a pretty imposing figure on stage this evening, and it didn't take much for him to work the crowd into frenzy while the band behind him tore through the set list. "Anti-Hero,” "Wicked" and "Force-Fed" all raged pretty hard, and by the time God Forbid wrapped up their set with "Fallen Hero" and "The End Of The World,” all I could really do is agree with what was printed on the back of one of their shirts for sale over at the merch table: Heavy As Fuck.
As Death Angel hit the stage they proceeded to launch into "Lord Of Hate" off their latest album Killing Season, it was pretty damn obvious that this was going to be a show for the ages. The band was absolutely on fire from the word “go” this evening, and pretty much picked up right where they left off the last time they played at Slim's. Guitarist Rob Cavestany was amazing as always, and to this day he continues to blow me away with his machine-like riff precision, while still thrashing around on stage like a man possessed. Counterpart Ted Aguilar was a guitar bad ass as well, and tonight he seemed to be playing at a new level of intensity. Bassist Dennis Pepa was his usual manic self, while drummer Andy Galeon just beat the shit out of his kit. As for singer Mark Osegueda, he simply screamed out song after song with his razor-sharp vocals, and songs off Killing Season including "Dethroned,” "Buried Alive,” "When Worlds Collide" and "Sonic Beatdown" all sounded even heavier live, and mixed in with "Bored," "Voracious Souls" and “Kill As One,” I couldn't have asked for a better set list. Also thrown in for good measure was a very brief intro to "The Ultra-Violence" and the opening of the Exodus classic "Piranha.”
When Death Angel finally left the stage, all I could really think about was how this band continues to absolutely kill live, and at this point it seems like they will only continue to do so. Just before walking out of Slim's I turned to a friend of mine and asked what he thought about what we just witnessed. His response? Man, that was fucking epic! I couldn't have said it any better myself.
Death Angel – Killing Season is out now on Nuclear Blast: Buy Now at Amazon.com.
God Forbid – Sickness and Misery is out now on Century Media. Buy Now at Amazon.com.
More on Death Angel here: www.myspace.com/deathangel and www.deathangel.com
More on God Forbid here: www.godforbid1.com and www.myspace.com/godforbid
Downloads:
God Forbid – "Anti Hero" – [mp3]
God Forbid – "Better Days" – [mp3]
God Forbid – "Broken Promise" – [mp3]
