Metal Threat Fest 2016: Review!

Ragnarokkr Metal Apocalypse and Maryland Deathfest were the two metal festivals that I have always regarded as the finest the U.S. has to offer for quite some time, but now they both have to compete with the mighty Metal Threat Fest. Held in Reggie’s Rock Club, the same Chicago venue where Ragnarokkr takes place, this festival specializing in black and thrash metal just made its debut this weekend.

I was only there for the Saturday show this time, but let me tell you, it was more than worth the long and boring train ride I had to take to get there!! Sauron - I arrived at the venue pretty late on Saturday night, and the first band that I wanted to see, underground Michigan black/thrash trio Sauron - was already unfortunately well into their set when I got there, so I did not witness the whole performance. However, I was grateful that I did not miss the whole set. Bassist/vocalist Doomy G. Blackthrash spoke with the same vicious, raspy voice that he used for his singing and his evil laugh was one of the best things about their performance. Of course, Mike Skinthrasher’s aggressive drumming and Victor Ruiz’s excellent leads also added to the fun. Victor was standing in the same spot on the smaller stage where he was playing with Borrowed Time at Ragnarokkr 2013, which gave it a little bit of a nostalgia factor. Victor also had a small group of fans cheering for him and giving him some well-deserved recognition. They played a few songs from the upcoming third album and among the songs they played that I caught from the first two were “Angel Hunter”, “Unholy Art”, and they closed with “Witch King”. Sauron was the only smaller stage band that I bought an extra ticket to see, so I had to head over to the main stage to catch the ‘80s speed/thrash bands that were going to be tearing it up for the rest of the night.

Destructor - What a thrill it was to finally catch Cleveland’s thrash heroes in action!!!! The band suffered from technical difficulties for ten minutes or so, but still played a show with every bit of conviction and energy you’d anticipate from them!! They even played a song that they had just written, which I believe was called “Birth of Dominance” or something. The two guitarists and bassist often played side by side, but watching drummer Matt Flammable gave me this sense that he seemed perfectly in his element in the background by himself. The drum kit was his workspace, and he was totally in control of it. After the show, guitarist Nick Annihilator informed me that guitarist/vocalist had written many songs that were never released over time, so we can expect plenty of new material from them in the future.

The set list:

Fight
The Triangle
Take Command
Overdose
Iron Curtain (my favorite song in the set)
World of War
Birth of Dominance
Metal Spike Deep
Pounding Evil

At War - Another ‘80s act whose age was not reflected in the energy of their performance, and nothing stood in the way of their viciousness either. I am mostly familiar with their 1986 debut album, “Ordered to Kill”, and luckily that was most of what they played haha. They had about four songs that I did not recognize. Bassist/vocalist Paul Arnold talked about how much Lemmy Kilmeister and Motorhead influenced him and dedicated a cover to him that he declared the band always has and always will include in their live set. I’m sure that had a lot to do with why he was playing a Rickenbacker bass, too, but the vest he was wearing was his own personal touch to coincide with the band’s war-themed lyrics.

The set list:

Some song I didn’t recognize
rdered to Kill (my favorite song in the set)
ILSA (She Wolf of the S.S.)
Creed of the Sniper
A couple more from the second album
Dawn of Death
The Hammer (Motorhead cover)
Eat Lead

Razor - This band started a little later because of some equipment-related issues (they apparently had to borrow some gear from another band), but the venue started to get a lot more crowded as they came on. Once they started, they were on fire!!! One of the first things you’d notice about them was the huge contrast in image between guitarist Dave Carlo and bassist Mike Campagnalo. To the right of the stage, Mike had a pure metal image clad in long hair, leather, and spikes; and to the left of the stage, you’d find Dave with no hair, a baseball hat, and collared shirt. That didn’t matter though, because both musicians along with their comrades Bob Reid on vocals and newcomer Rider Johnson (I think he lifted his stage name from the villain in “The Hitcher”) on drums, played an outstanding show comprised entirely of violent old-school gems. Carlo talked about how much he loved Exciter and was influenced by John Ricci’s guitar playing in the same way that Paul Arnold expressed Lemmy and Motorhead being so inspiring for him as a musician. No matter how harsh and fierce their live show was, Bob Reid proved to be another one of the most humble metal musicians I ever encountered. We told them how great they were live, and he just said, “Hey, we try. We do it for fun.”

The set list:

Instant Death*
Cut Throat
Violent Restitution
*Behind Bars (with a special guest appearance by Municipal Waste’s Ryan Waste on backing vocals)
Iron Hammer*
Stabbed in the Back
Electric Torture
Sucker For Punishment
Parricide
Cross Me Fool
Take This Torch*
Evil Invaders*

Exciter: Despite the fact that I had already seen them at Maryland Deathfest just a month and a half earlier and had never seen the other bands before, Exciter was still the band I was looking forward to the most!!! Early on, I became a little concerned that I was witnessing the exact same performance as last time except in an indoor venue instead of an outdoor one. I was completely taken aback and knocked on my butt!! The set list was a lot longer this time, they played some surprise songs that I was not expecting at all (when they announced their closing song after the encore I absolutely flipped), and I think they even had more energy than they did at MDF!! Dan Beehler’s voice was even more hoarse than last time, but he was absolutely tearing on the drum kit. I think they might have improved as musicians since their glory days. They had truly topped themselves!!!

The set list:

I Am the Beast
Rain of Terror
Death Revenge*
Victims of Sacrifice
Iron Dogs
Delivering to the Master*
Violence and Force*
Long Live the Loud
Stand Up and Fight
Heavy Metal Maniac
Some boring and unnecessary guitar solo
Evil Sinner*
Rising of the Dead*
Pounding Metal
Beyond the Gates of Doom*
Swords of Darkness*


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Tags:  Metal Threat Fest, Suaron, Exiter, Reggies 

Nicholas Statuto    September 07, 2016