We were late to the concert. We both work in Norfolk and the concert was at Knickerbocker's in Lincoln, a two-and-a-half hour drive from our home. Thus, unfortunately we missed Woe of Tyrants and Evile. My fiancee was disappointed because Evile was her favorite name of the six groups, although she probably would have hated them if she heard them.
At any rate, we made it seemingly right on time for Warbringer's set. Vocalist John Kevill has a pretty good stage presence and some entertaining between song banter. The guitarists sounded great and the sound quality overall was quite impressive. The band is only about five years old, but they have a seasoned quality and an impressive live show. They could be huge.
Highlights: the snot rocket, "Total War", "Pray for Death".
Next up was God Dethroned. This was easily the most melodic band of the groups we heard. I loved their album last year, but as good as the recording was, their live show is even better. They were quite possibly the highlight of the night as their sound came off heavy as hell and melodic at the same time. I was slightly disappointed they did not play "No Survivors" but not surprised as that song has a guest vocalist who has far more range than Henri Sattler.
Highlights: "Under a Darkening Sky", "Passiondale", "Fallen Empires".
Then we came to Vader who essentially steamrolled the entire crowd. Despite being from Poland, they have a very committed following, even in Lincoln, Nebraska. They were heavy and brutal as fuck. The band is a little intimidating live, sounding like a caged animal, but they put on one hell of a show. It would have been great to just see them tear up the stage for an entire night. My only disappointment was that they did not play "What Color is Your Blood?".
Highlights: "Sothis", "Impure", "Demon's Wind", "This is the War".
And that brings us to the headliner: Overkill. The pioneering thrash metal band has proven to have more energy and power than many of their contemporaries. They were fast as hell and showed no signs of age whatsoever, despite this being their 25th Anniversary tour. It was D.D. Verni's birthday, and he still looks like a lost member of the Backstreet Boys. They played a long time, and my fiancee got bored, nearly fell asleep twice, and then started playing with my phone. The band brought some 12 year old up on stage at the end of the show to play "Fuck You" at around midnight, a move I am convinced could have gotten the band cited for contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Nevertheless, one hell of a show.
Highlights: "Ironbound", "Fuck You", "I Hear Black", "Coma", "The Green and Black", "Rotten to the Core"
Note: This is from Wikipedia, it is not a picture from last night.
I picked up two shirts while there: one for Overkill, and one for Vader. I surprised the merchants by tipping them. This was my first real crazy concert experience. The other groups I have seen were not nearly as extreme. It was thus also my fiancee's first experience with an extreme metal show. She survived it too. We'll have to do this more often.
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