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Band:At the Gates Album:Slaughter of the Soul Record Company:Earache Records Writer: Eric \"CFH\" Johnson Media: \"Blinded by Fear\" Click Album Cover To Buy Now

At the Gates/Darkest Hour/Municipal Waste/Toxic Holocaust, July 24, 2008, Roseland Theater, Portland, OR

Local thrash band Toxic Holocaust kicked off the show. Prior to the set, I had not heard of the band except for one instance when a regular at this site dedicated a thread to it. I'm pretty sure I checked the band out right then and there, but if I did, I forgot about it shortly afterwards. I now must say that that was not only a mistake, but what rock have I been under for the past nine years? Since 1999, this absolutely badass thrash band has been in my home town.

As for the set, it depicted a band that would have fit in like a glove with bands such as Exodus and Vio-Lence during the 1980's since the songs were ferocious, and they displayed killer musicianship.

Set list:

"Death Master" (Thrashbeast from Hell) "Atomik Destruktor" (Evil Never Dies) "March from Hell" (An Overdose of Death) "War is Hell" (An Overdose of Death) "Metal Attack" (Thrashbeast from Hell) "The Lord of the Wasteland" (An Overdose of Death) "666" (Evil Never Dies) "Wild Dogs" (An Overdose of Death) "Nuke the Cross" (An Overdose of Death)

Up next was Municipal Waste. Along with headliner At the Gates, it was the main reason why I attended this show, and to say that it was anything less than on fire would be the understatement of the century. To make a long story short, Municipal Waste's live show is perfect for those who love hardcore/thrash crossover along the lines of Nuclear Assault, and enjoy pounding twelve-packs of beer in under an hour.

Set list:

"Headbanger Face Rip" (The Art of Partying) "Terror Shark" (Hazardous Mutation) "Mental Shock" (The Art of Partying) "Beer Pressure" (The Art of Partying) "Black Ice" (Hazardous Mutation) "Thrashin' of the Christ" (Hazardous Mutation) "Thrashin' is My Business, and Business is Good" (Municipal Waste) "Sadistic Magician" (The Art of Partying) "Waste Em' All" (Waste Em' All) "Unleash the Bastards" (Hazardous Mutation) "Poser Disposer" (Municipal Waste/Crucial Unit Split CD) "Nailed Casket" (Hazardous Mutation) "Bangover" (Hazardous Mutation) "Born to Party" (The Art of Partying)

Following the conclusion of a wicked journey back to the 80's with bludgenous, grooving thrash courtesy of Toxic Holocaust and Municipal Waste, metalcore band Darkest Hour took the stage. Now I have no problem acknowledging that Darkest Hour held its own, played a great set, blah, blah, blah, but why in the fuck is a metalcore band on a tour with two thrash bands and a founding Gothenburg, melodic death metal band? Sure Darkest Hour can deliver on stage, but it was 100 percent clear that the audience was not all that interested in its music in comparison the other bands' music.

With that out of the way, John Henry served as the only vocalist of the evening who was impossible to understand, and of all people he was the one who didn't announce each of his band's songs like Joel Grind (Toxic Holocaust), Tony Foresta (Municipal Waste) and Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates) did. However, since the band's music was great for what it was, Henry's "bear on the mic" delivery was easy to ignore. Regarding the music that was great for what it was, a large part of it came through in lead guitarist Kris Norris' playing. Specifically, this guy is one of the rare virtuoso caliber guitarists who actually focuses on playing effective solos instead of wanking.

Thanks to the existence of a metalcore band on this tour, it was up to At the Gates to pick up the slack in momentum once it took the stage. From the moment that "Suicide Nation" kicked in, however, the band succeeded and then some. Throughout its set, At the Gates gave a clinic on how to combine brutality and melody. In terms of individual performance, Anders Björler showcased guitar playing that was the smoothest out of a group of truly incredible guitarists that included Joel Grind (Toxic Holocaust), Ryan Waste (Municipal Waste), Kris Norris (Darkest Hour) and fellow At the Gates member Martin Larsson.

Set list:

"Suicide Nation" (Slaughter of the Soul) "Cold" (Slaughter of the Soul) "Terminal Spirit Disease" (Terminal Spirit Disease) "Raped by the Light of Christ" (With Fear I Kiss the Burning Darkness) "Under a Serpent Sun" (Slaughter of the Soul) "Windows" (The Red in the Sky is Ours) "World of Lies" (Slaughter of the Soul) "The Burning Darkness" (With Fear I Kiss the Burning Darkness) "The Swarm" (Terminal Spirit Disease) "Forever Blind" (Terminal Spirit Disease) "Through Gardens of Grief" (The Red in the Sky is Ours) "The Beautiful Wound" (Terminal Spirit Disease) "Unto Others" (Slaughter of the Soul) "All Life Ends" (Gardens of Grief) "Need" (Slaughter of the Soul) "Blinded by Fear" (Slaughter of the Soul)

Despite a bullshit sub-genre issue, each band did a great job in terms of delivering truly crushing music, and when it comes down to it, what else really matters?

Band:At the Gates Album:Slaughter of the Soul Record Company:Earache Records Writer: Eric \"CFH\" Johnson Media: \"Blinded by Fear\" Click Album Cover To Buy Now

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