"'Rebirth By Blasphemy' is a rebirth," states Midnight's sole driving force, Athenar. "It's a change in life and it's a rebirth of doing whatever the fuck you want and seeing what happens after that. It's about saying yes, taking opportunities, taking a fucking chance." These sentiments are backed up by the notorious - and prolific - underground band's trademark blend of speed metal, black metal and punk rock, sounding both fuller and more raucous than ever before. "Overall, I would say the sound is pretty vicious, vicious but I keep things hooky, and that's what I like it to be. I want to still keep it raw but at the same time I wanted this record to be a little more hi-fi, which was my only plan when I started making it."
Dating back to the band's inception in 2002, vocalist/guitarist/bassist/drummer Athenar has always known exactly what he wanted Midnight to be, and over the course of countless demos, EPs, compilations, splits and three full-lengths he has stayed true to his roots. Building up a strong reputation and a rabid following in the underground, Midnight's most recent opus, 2017's Sweet Death And Ecstasy, stood as their most accomplished work to date. "Looking back on that record I think it's a fantastic piece of work, really. It's pretty varied, it has a nice bookend front and back song. I think the lyrics are thought provoking, and I think it'll be a pretty important piece of work over time, up there with the Mona Lisa." Making the jump to Metal Blade Records did not mean any change in the way Athenar went about making Midnight records. "I never really thought about writing a follow up to 'Sweet Death'. If a song comes it comes and where it goes is wherever it goes, but nothing is ever really intended as 'this song will be on the new album'." There is also no denying that, like its predecessors, Rebirth By Blasphemy is a ruthlessly catchy collection, every song, vicious as they are, wielding the kind of hooks that sink deep and don't let go, and this too came naturally. "There's no real intent. I think a rock song in general should be catchy, so if someone thinks it's catchy that's a good thing. If they don't think it's catchy then they probably don't have ears." While the likes of opener "Fucking Speed And Darkness", "Escape The Grave" and "Warning From The Reaper" are all d-beat-driven thrashers, they don't lack when it comes to hooks, and "Rising Scum", built on a titanic stomping beat, reins in the speed but is easily one of the standout tracks on the record, Athenar referring to it as being "quite 1979 Priest-like, just with its drum and vocal."
When it came to penning lyrics for the record, Athenar's perspective shifted over the course of the writing process. "I would say I started out in a very positive frame of mind. One of the first tunes written was 'Escape The Grave', and from there I went on the positive path - and then it turned negative by the end of the album. The title track is very negative lyrically, so I ended it again with complete and utter disgust for humans in general, but then you want that to come out of you. Just like you take a poop and you take a pee, you want the rotten shit to come out of your body, because if you keep the rotten shit in your body, it'll rot you internally." Handling every instrument himself and being quite unfussy when it comes to production typically means that the recording process is a straightforward one for Midnight, and this time was no different. Staying in his home town of Cleveland he opted to record at Mercenary Studios with the assistance of Noah Buchanan, laying the drums down in a day, the guitars in a little more than that, bass in a few hours and then tracking the vocals to two or three songs a day, depending on how his voice was holding up. "I think there's really no production value on the album, it's really just get in there, press record and see what happens. Maybe you can tell that the sessions went pretty quickly when you listen to it. There are so called mistakes, of course, but I wouldn't have it any other way." He also wouldn't have it any other way when it comes to touring this latest collection hard, with a lot of dates with a variety of bands already locked down. "It's the rebirth, it's saying fuck it and getting out there and doing what you're supposed to do, and we're supposed to play music. If people want to damage their ears by listening to it that's welcomed."
Bio by: Dan Slessor
F**king Speed and Darkness
Rebirth by Blasphemy
Escape the Grave
Devil's Excrement
Rising Scum
Warning from the Reaper
Cursed Possessions
Raw Attack
The Sounds of Hell
You Can Drag Me Through Fire
Midnight online:
http://midnightofficial.com
https://www.facebook.com/midnightviolators/
https://www.instagram.com/midnightviolators/
Bio by: Dan Slessor
Wednesday, 11 December 2019
Tuesday, 18 February 2014
Galactic Pegasus - New 2014 Single 1 Minute Preview Video Released!
Canadian Metalcore act Galactic Pegasus are releasing their first single, "Draw The Line", as a Lyric Video via Beheading The Traitor on February, 25th 2014. It will be available for download on Bandcamp as well as iTunes on the 25th. They are also releasing their album EP title, EP release date and track listings next week.
A one minute preview of the brand new single can be played below.
A one minute preview of the brand new single can be played below.
Tuesday, 4 September 2012
Angelmaker - Debut EP 'Decay' - Full Track-By-Track Album Review!
AngelMaker is a 6 piece Deathcore band from North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. They are one of the many metal bands in the Vancouver scene with two frontmen. These guys just seem to pull it off the best! This is a review of their debut EP titled, "Decay" set to be released on September 15th 2012.
Decay is an outstanding EP, possibly the best I’ve heard all year, and clearly the best Debut I have heard from a Deathcore Band. One of the Great things about AngelMaker is that you can clearly understand the lyrics. In my opinion this makes the music much more enjoyable. I also love that fact that this is some of the most catchiest Deathcore music I have ever heard. This EP is just overall a musical heavy metal masterpiece.
1) Decay - This is the perfect intro song for this EP. It starts off with a clean guitar melody with a thunderstorm in the background then the drums lead the track into a much heavier bouncier feel with heavier guitar copying the clean guitar melody on the beginning. Then comes the breakdown call and it goes into a killer really brutal slow breakdown and ends with a faster more upbeat breakdown lead in by some cool drum fills and extremely tasteful guitar licks. This intro is really dynamic and that is what I look for in Metal bands intro songs! This is a perfect way to start off this EP.
2) Hell - This track was the first I heard from this band. This is an extremely catchy song especially for deathcore. Lyrics, guitar riffs, breakdowns, breakdown calls, etc.. They are all extremely catchy. This starts off with a cool guitar intro then into some brutal deathcore. The breakdown call/chant gang vocal part is absolutely hilarious and fits the part surprisingly well. The first breakdown in this song is probably my favourite breakdown on this EP. There are some amazing pinch harmonics in this breakdown which make it extremely heavy. Most drum parts in this song are very impressive also. Many blast beats and tons of amazing fast double kick. 1:54 in the song has an extremely bouncy riff that sounds really cool. This song ends with a heavy slower outro breakdown and it is just a perfect ending to this killer track.
3) Blaze - starts off with a heavy guitar riff then into a thrash beat with an extremely catchy guitar riff that really gets stuck in your head for the rest of the day. In the middle of the song there is this one breakdown call chanted by the whole band, "Drain the blood from your veins, Birth new life from your scattered remains". After this chant there are these really memorable fast high screams. This is a really memorable song on the album most likely due to the amazing guitar riff that really gets stuck in your head.
4) What I've Become (Feat. Darian Mazloomi) - Drum fill into the first verse. Everything is very tight in this song and it sounds killer. Darian Mazloomi of Argent Strand is a very well known amazing deathcore vocalist in the Vancouver, BC area and his part on this track for some reason doesn't seem to stand out much over Angelmaker's amazing vocalists! I absolutely love the pauses in the beginning of some of the breakdowns it makes it much more interesting to listen to. This track ends with a fat "REEEEEEE" and then into the extremely fast double kick part with more guitar that gets stuck in your head.
5) Satan Force: 666 - This track starts off with another guitar riff intro and then into blast beats then into a really tight breakdown. I have seen this band live once and the drummer's (Jesse Price) stage presence was so memorable that I actually remember what he was doing at the 1:36 in this song. I suggest if you live in the Vancouver, BC area and you have a chance to go check these guys out you should do it. There is a really cool fast picking guitar breakdown into panning between both the right and the left speakers and then into a killer breakdown to end the song. This is the shortest full track on the EP but it still slays.
6) Makers Of Nihility - This is the last track off the EP and it is a perfect ending to this EP. It starts off with some cool fast picking and then into this breakdown with really cool tom hits in between the accents of the actual breakdown. There is this one extremely amazing catchy guitar part/solo around the middle of this song that I sing along to every time I listen to it. And then to end this amazing track there is this unbelievable heavy guitar riff and ends the song and the EP so perfectly. This track is clearly my favourite track off this EP!
Like I mentioned earlier, this is a brilliant work of art, a Heavy Metal masterpiece. Every single track off Decay is absolutely amazing. The vocalists absolutely killed it on every track, and stood out throughout the album. The vocal work is clearly very thought out. It is really quite amazing, considering the age of the vocalists. The drum work on this EP is extremely skillful. The amazing fills, insanely tight breakdowns and extremely fast double kick make me believe Jesse Price could be one of the best drummers at the age of 17 that I have personally met. The guitar work on this EP in my opinion is the most impressive out of any instrument. Every breakdown, every solo, every riff... All guitar work is absolutely amazing. The structure of each and every song off this EP is outstanding and the diversity throughout the EP is amazing as well. It is really amazing and rare to see a band this young write an amazing EP such as Decay.
RATING - 4.5/5
Make sure to check out Angelmaker at their EP release show which is their next show on September 30th 2012 at the Tom Lee Music Hall in Vancouver, BC Canada.
Also make sure to check out and download their EP when it is released on September 15th 2012 and check Angelmaker out on Facebook for any further updates!
Tracklistings:
1) Decay
2) Hell
3) Blaze
4) What I've Become (Feat. Darian Mazloomi)
5) Satan Force: 666
6) Makers Of Nihility
3) Blaze
4) What I've Become (Feat. Darian Mazloomi)
5) Satan Force: 666
6) Makers Of Nihility
Review written by: Dallas Turner (Twitter: @DallasTurner)
Parts of review edited by: Justin Smith
Thursday, 5 July 2012
Mayhem Festival 2012 Full Concert Review - Seattle, WA - July 3rd 2012
I have been awaiting this day ever since I heard a rumour that Slipknot could possibly be the headliner for Mayhem Festival 2012 back in October 2011. Slipknot has been my favourite band for the past 3 years and I saw them live only once before Mayhem 2012 back in 2009 with Paul Gray. That was one of the best performance's I have ever seen. They completely blew me away. Mayhem Festival 2012 is Slipknot's first performance in North America since the horrible death of Paul Gray. I was really excited when I saw the 2012 lineup for Mayhem Festival and I could not wait to go and it was a mind blowing day.
I was going to the closest date to my hometown city Vancouver, BC and that was in Auburn, WA on July 3rd. This was a 4 hour drive away from my home. My sleep the night before was horrible due to me being so excited for this day so I only had around 2-3 hours of sleep and I had to wake up around 4:30am to leave my house at 5am. I arrived at the venue early, around 11:15am and I was the first in the early entry lineup. I had early entry pre-order laminate tickets which let me in 15 minuets early into the venue. The early entry doors opened at 1pm and the first thing I did was purchase the new Slipknot greatest hits album "Antennas To Hell" to meet the band afterwards. Then I pre-ordered the new As I Lay Dying Album "Awakened" and got a laminate to meet the band and get the full album 10 days before it comes out. I walked around checking out the merch tents for all the bands and purchased a I, The Breather and a Whitechapel shirt. Then I saw that Asking Alexandria was signing in 10 mins (at 1:30pm) at the yellow Revolver Mag tent so I waited in line for a bit and met all of the members of Asking Alexandria. It was Asking Alexandria's first time back since the "Drunk Danny" incident in Seattle last year. Danny said he was not going to drink in Washington on this tour because he wanted to have a top notch performance. Danny (the singer of AA) also told me that they are not allowed to play their new single "Run Free" live on Mayhem Fest quite yet due to the Record Label not wanting them to.
PICTURES OF AA MEET N' GREET -
After I met AA I went to the front of the Jagar Stage to catch the end of the set from local Battle of the Bands winner 'Drown Mary'. They were a really good band and they put on a amazing performance. After them 'Upon A Burning Body' performed and they completely killed it. This is a band that really grew in popularity after their last release "RED. WHITE. GREEN.". The mosh pit was huge for this band and most people knew the words for most of their songs. This band got everyone off their feet at one point and they put on a great live performance. They are a deathcore band from Texas but they are pretty unique. Their music is very bouncy and it has a party vibe to it. Due to the fact they are on Mayhem this year they will be one of the few bands in the deathcore scene to grow in popularity rapidly.
RATING 7/10
Upon A Burning Body's Full Setlist:
1.Showtime
2.Carlito's Way
3.Texas Blood Money
4.Sin City
5.Game Over
6.Once Upon A Time In Mexico
7.Intermission
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYgGJN-NaH0&
PICTURES -
After Upon a Burning Body got the crowed going Whitechapel came on the stage. Whitechapel is a band I have loved for years. I feel this band are the masters on Deathcore. Their perforce was absolutely amazing. They have so much energy and Phil the vocalist seems to get the entire crowed really going. The 3 new song choices in their set really surprised me. I never really liked "I, Dementia" due to it being a slower Whitechapel song but it really did kill live. The mosh pit was the biggest for Whitechapel then any other band on Mayhem Fest 2012. Phil called for a wall of death during "I, Dementia" and it was one of the biggest ones I have ever seen. Whitechapel's entire set was really entertaining and amazing. They were one of bands on mayhem who really surprised me with their live performance.
RATING 9/10
Whitechapel's Full Setlist:
1.Possesion
2.The Darkest Day of Man
3.This Is Exile
4.I, Dementia
5.Section 8
6.Possibilities of an Impossible Existence
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WICzUsTfY5Q
PICTURES -
After Whitechapel performed an amazing set As I Lay Dying came on stage. I have never seen this band live before and was not expecting their live performance to be unbelievable but it really was. They got everyone head banging and moshing. Their singer, Tim L really seemed to be a lot more 'jacked' for Mayhem. The whole band had a ton of energy and they really surprised me with their amazing live performance but I am still a little iffy with their new song, "Cauterize". It did not really go well in my opinion with some of their other song in their setlist. I feel Tim should stick to screaming rather then singing like he did in this new song.
RATING 8.5/10
As I Lay Dying's Full Setlist:
1.Conbemned
2.94 Hours
3.Anodyne Sea
4.Through Struggle
5.Nothing Left
6.Cauterize
7.Confined
8.The Sound of Truth
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2zDq1wKDoU&
PICTURES -
After As I Lay Dying's surprisingly amazing performance Asking Alexandria came on stage. I like AA's songs but I find them very generic. I was pretty excited for their live performance because every other live performance from a Metalcore band that I have seen is very entertaining and fun to watch but I was disappointed in Asking Alexandria's performance. The look of these guys really is weird. Most of the band is extremely pinned and they are always pushing and puffing their hair up which is really stupid for a "Metal" band to do in my opinion. I feel a band should not care so much about their appearance. The crowd during this band was a bunch of scene girls and some older teens moshing with older thrash metal fans making sure no one "Hardcore Dances". One thing that really impressed me with this band live was Danny's voice. Most likely to him being completely sober for this performance he sounded amazing live unlike many other Asking Alexandria performance's I have seen footage on youtube of. Danny has the most amazing low screams. All in all their performance was okay but not amazing.
RATING 6/10
Asking Alexandria's Full Setlist:
1.Welcome
2.Closure
3.Breathless
4.A Lesson Never Learned
5.To The Stage
6.Dear Insanity
7.Morte et Dabo
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bT7Q6niIRkE&
PICTURES -
After being a little disappointed by Asking Alexandria's set I went over to the Sumerian Records stage to be blown away by a new up and coming band called, "I, The Breather". This band's performance blew me away. Ever since I listened to their new album "Truth & Purpose" I fell in love with this band. The riffs in the songs from this band are very catchy and unique. The band had such energy on stage it was amazing. This was a band on Mayhem that really sounds exactly like their studio versions of their songs. The singer killed it live and really got the crowd going. The mosh pit for this band was the only one I witnessed "Hardcore Dancing". The sad thing about this performance was that the stage they were on (The Sumerian Records Stage) was extremely small and was not raised at all so if you weren't in the first 2 rows you could not really see the band.
RATING 8.5/10
I, The Breather's Full Setlist:
1.False Profit
2.Bruised & Broken
3.Forgiven
4.Mentalist
5.High Rise
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0lJARiBqnE&
PICTURES -
After watching I, The Breather kill the Sumerian Stage I went to meet members of Slipknot. They started signing at 4:45pm and I was the last in line to meet them due to me watching I, The Breather. But I liked being the last one because I was not rushed through the line. The members I met at this date were Sid Wilson (DJ), Chris Fehn (Percussion and Backup vocals), and Shawn 'Clown' Crahan (Percussion and Backup vocals). None of them said one word to me and only Clown would shake my hand. It was pretty cool meeting these guys but I really wished they would have at least talked to the fans that payed to meet them. Also, for anyone who wants to know you cannot take pictures with the guys due to the security not letting you.
MEET N' GREET FOOTAGE - Slipknot Meet N Greet - Mayhem Festival 2012
PICTURES OF THE SLIPKNOT MEET N' GREET -
After my amazing experience of meeting members of my favourite band for the past 3 years, I went in the lineup to meet all members of As I Lay Dying. I had to purchase a $25 AILD laminate to meet them. This laminate gave me a code to enter online to send a hard copy of their new album out on September 25th 2012 "Awakened" 6 days earlier then the release date. It was really cool meeting the guys in As Lay Dying after their amazing performance.
AS I LAY DYING MEET N' GREET PICTURES -
After meeting three amazing bands and watching some unbelievable performances at Mayhem Festival 2012, I walked around the grounds, purchased merch, drank free Rockstar Energy Drinks, and met all of Upon A Burning Body at their merch tent. After I did that I watched the last 2 songs in Anthrax's set. Anthrax seemed to have the most people watching their set out of any other band on the Jager Stage. Also, they seemed to have the most mosh pits out of any other band on the Jager Stage. They really did a good job with their performance it seemed like but I feel I did not watch enough of their set to rate it.
Anthrax's Full Setlist:
1.Caught in a Mosh
2.Got the Time
3.Fight 'Em Till You Can't
4.Antisocial
5.Indians
6.Madhouse
7.I Am The Law
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dcInerpfL0
PICTURES -
After watching Anthrax's last 2 songs live I headed over to the main stage a caught The Devil Wears Prada's set. This band is in my opinion is really good live but no one in the crowed was really into it like every other band I have seen open the Main Stage for Mayhem Fest. TDWP put on an amazing performance and were really tight live. Them being on the main stage maybe didn't have as big of a fan impact as if they were closing the Jager stage where a large amount of their fan base would have been into them. I really wish TDWP was on the Jager Stage and Motorhead opened the Main Stage.
RATING 7/10
The Devil Wears Prada's Full Setlist:
1.Born To Lose
2.Danger: Wildman
3.Outnumbered
4.Assistance to the Regional Manager
5.Constance
6. Mammoth
(Not 100% sure on the order of the songs played.)
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrXvC_wI7CE&
PICTURES -
After The Devil Wears Prada performed I walked around, got some food and met Dimebag Darrell's wife. I arrived back at my seat by the Main Stage in the middle of Motorhead's set and I witnessed Duff McKagan of Guns N Roses jamming "Killed By Death" with the band and that was really cool to watch. Motorhead also played some of my favourite songs by them such as Ace of Spades and Overkill. Motorhead do not really put on a performance but they are a band that is really cool to witness live and Lemmy is a total god when it comes to rock n' roll.
RATING 7/10 (I only witnessed half of their set.)
Motorhead's Full Setlist:
1.Bomber
2.Damage Case
3.I Know How to Die
4.Stay Clean
5.Over The Top
6.The Chase Is Better Than the Catch
7.The One to Sing the Blues
-----Drum Solo-----
8.Going To Brazil
9.Killed By Death (with Duff McKagan)
10.Ace of Spades
11.Overkill
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cv8tP7Zxt7E&
PICTURES -
After watching a legendary Rock N' Roll band Slayer came on the stage. I have seen Slayer 2 times before, those performance's were good but there really was no entertainment. This clearly was the best Slayer show I have ever seen. Every other time I have seen Slayer it was just the band playing with no props or anything, this was a lot different. They had upside-down crosses formed by fake Marshall Amps with flames spurting out of them the entire show. They had the Slayer symbol hanging over them with flames coming out of that as well. Gary Holt, guitarist of Exodus, is still killing it with Slayer. I don't think you could have asked for a more perfect guitarist replacement for Jeff Hanneman. Their setlist was amazing and I couldn't of asked for a better performance from these guys. They really amazed everyone in the amphitheatre including people who were not even fans of the band before Mayhem.
RATING 9/10
Slayer's Full Setlist:
1.Disciple
2.War Ensemble
3.Die by the Sword
4.Hate Worldwide
5.Mandatory Suicide
6.Altar of Sacrifice
7.Jesus Saves
8.Seasons in the Abyss
9.Hell Awaits
10.Dead Skin Mask
11.Angel of Death
12.South of Heaven
13.Raining Blood
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNuPS_WOkjg&
PICTURES -
And now on to the band and performance I have been waiting for ever since I saw them last in 2009, Slipknot!. This performance was surely one of the best performances I have ever seen. This band live is mind blowing to watch and they are truly legends. The amount of people on stage, the show in the background, the stage set up and energy of this band make this performance so unbelievable to witness live. It was a lot different seeing this band live without Jim Root and Paul Gray (RIP) but the 7 members that were there absolutely killed it. With these 7 members always up to no good on the stage it makes for a very entertaining performance. This performance and the setlist was extremely dynamic and was amazing. Overall this was a perfect headlining show for Mayhem Fest 2012 and I really hope Slipknot write a new record for next year.
RATING 10/10
Slipknot's Full Setlist:
742617000027
1.(sic)
2.Eyeless
3.Sulfur
4.Wait and Bleed
5.Before I Forget
6.Disasterpiece
7.Gently
8.Vermilion
9.The Heretic Anthem
10.Psychosocial
11.Duality
12.Spit It Out
Encore:
(515)
13.People = Shit
14.Surfacing
'Til We Die
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04NEBXeJFBk&
PICTURES -
Mayhem Festival 2012 overall was surely the best Mayhem Festival I have ever been to. In the past I have only been to 2 Mayhem Fest's before this, 2010 and 2011. Mayhem 2010 I was mainly into the Main Stage bands, 2011 I was mainly into the Small Stage bands but this year I was in to every band on the lineup. The lineup this year was very dynamic which in my opinion made it perfect. Most performance's this year were top notch and couldn't have been better. Thank You Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival for making an amazing memorable day in my life.
Mayhem Festival 2013:
Mayhem Festival 2012 was amazing but I feel that it can possibly be topped in 2013. As of now I have only been hearing rumours about 3 bands which are Testament, Lamb of God and System of a Down. I would love if all of those band happened to be on the festival next year. I also just got in formed a couple of days ago by a good source that Lamb of god and Hatebreed were promised slots for Mayhem 2013 for signing on the Mayhem Festival 2012 Cruise.
I was going to the closest date to my hometown city Vancouver, BC and that was in Auburn, WA on July 3rd. This was a 4 hour drive away from my home. My sleep the night before was horrible due to me being so excited for this day so I only had around 2-3 hours of sleep and I had to wake up around 4:30am to leave my house at 5am. I arrived at the venue early, around 11:15am and I was the first in the early entry lineup. I had early entry pre-order laminate tickets which let me in 15 minuets early into the venue. The early entry doors opened at 1pm and the first thing I did was purchase the new Slipknot greatest hits album "Antennas To Hell" to meet the band afterwards. Then I pre-ordered the new As I Lay Dying Album "Awakened" and got a laminate to meet the band and get the full album 10 days before it comes out. I walked around checking out the merch tents for all the bands and purchased a I, The Breather and a Whitechapel shirt. Then I saw that Asking Alexandria was signing in 10 mins (at 1:30pm) at the yellow Revolver Mag tent so I waited in line for a bit and met all of the members of Asking Alexandria. It was Asking Alexandria's first time back since the "Drunk Danny" incident in Seattle last year. Danny said he was not going to drink in Washington on this tour because he wanted to have a top notch performance. Danny (the singer of AA) also told me that they are not allowed to play their new single "Run Free" live on Mayhem Fest quite yet due to the Record Label not wanting them to.
PICTURES OF AA MEET N' GREET -
After I met AA I went to the front of the Jagar Stage to catch the end of the set from local Battle of the Bands winner 'Drown Mary'. They were a really good band and they put on a amazing performance. After them 'Upon A Burning Body' performed and they completely killed it. This is a band that really grew in popularity after their last release "RED. WHITE. GREEN.". The mosh pit was huge for this band and most people knew the words for most of their songs. This band got everyone off their feet at one point and they put on a great live performance. They are a deathcore band from Texas but they are pretty unique. Their music is very bouncy and it has a party vibe to it. Due to the fact they are on Mayhem this year they will be one of the few bands in the deathcore scene to grow in popularity rapidly.
RATING 7/10
Upon A Burning Body's Full Setlist:
1.Showtime
2.Carlito's Way
3.Texas Blood Money
4.Sin City
5.Game Over
6.Once Upon A Time In Mexico
7.Intermission
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYgGJN-NaH0&
PICTURES -
After Upon a Burning Body got the crowed going Whitechapel came on the stage. Whitechapel is a band I have loved for years. I feel this band are the masters on Deathcore. Their perforce was absolutely amazing. They have so much energy and Phil the vocalist seems to get the entire crowed really going. The 3 new song choices in their set really surprised me. I never really liked "I, Dementia" due to it being a slower Whitechapel song but it really did kill live. The mosh pit was the biggest for Whitechapel then any other band on Mayhem Fest 2012. Phil called for a wall of death during "I, Dementia" and it was one of the biggest ones I have ever seen. Whitechapel's entire set was really entertaining and amazing. They were one of bands on mayhem who really surprised me with their live performance.
RATING 9/10
Whitechapel's Full Setlist:
1.Possesion
2.The Darkest Day of Man
3.This Is Exile
4.I, Dementia
5.Section 8
6.Possibilities of an Impossible Existence
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WICzUsTfY5Q
PICTURES -
After Whitechapel performed an amazing set As I Lay Dying came on stage. I have never seen this band live before and was not expecting their live performance to be unbelievable but it really was. They got everyone head banging and moshing. Their singer, Tim L really seemed to be a lot more 'jacked' for Mayhem. The whole band had a ton of energy and they really surprised me with their amazing live performance but I am still a little iffy with their new song, "Cauterize". It did not really go well in my opinion with some of their other song in their setlist. I feel Tim should stick to screaming rather then singing like he did in this new song.
RATING 8.5/10
As I Lay Dying's Full Setlist:
1.Conbemned
2.94 Hours
3.Anodyne Sea
4.Through Struggle
5.Nothing Left
6.Cauterize
7.Confined
8.The Sound of Truth
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2zDq1wKDoU&
PICTURES -
After As I Lay Dying's surprisingly amazing performance Asking Alexandria came on stage. I like AA's songs but I find them very generic. I was pretty excited for their live performance because every other live performance from a Metalcore band that I have seen is very entertaining and fun to watch but I was disappointed in Asking Alexandria's performance. The look of these guys really is weird. Most of the band is extremely pinned and they are always pushing and puffing their hair up which is really stupid for a "Metal" band to do in my opinion. I feel a band should not care so much about their appearance. The crowd during this band was a bunch of scene girls and some older teens moshing with older thrash metal fans making sure no one "Hardcore Dances". One thing that really impressed me with this band live was Danny's voice. Most likely to him being completely sober for this performance he sounded amazing live unlike many other Asking Alexandria performance's I have seen footage on youtube of. Danny has the most amazing low screams. All in all their performance was okay but not amazing.
RATING 6/10
Asking Alexandria's Full Setlist:
1.Welcome
2.Closure
3.Breathless
4.A Lesson Never Learned
5.To The Stage
6.Dear Insanity
7.Morte et Dabo
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bT7Q6niIRkE&
PICTURES -
After being a little disappointed by Asking Alexandria's set I went over to the Sumerian Records stage to be blown away by a new up and coming band called, "I, The Breather". This band's performance blew me away. Ever since I listened to their new album "Truth & Purpose" I fell in love with this band. The riffs in the songs from this band are very catchy and unique. The band had such energy on stage it was amazing. This was a band on Mayhem that really sounds exactly like their studio versions of their songs. The singer killed it live and really got the crowd going. The mosh pit for this band was the only one I witnessed "Hardcore Dancing". The sad thing about this performance was that the stage they were on (The Sumerian Records Stage) was extremely small and was not raised at all so if you weren't in the first 2 rows you could not really see the band.
RATING 8.5/10
I, The Breather's Full Setlist:
1.False Profit
2.Bruised & Broken
3.Forgiven
4.Mentalist
5.High Rise
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0lJARiBqnE&
PICTURES -
After watching I, The Breather kill the Sumerian Stage I went to meet members of Slipknot. They started signing at 4:45pm and I was the last in line to meet them due to me watching I, The Breather. But I liked being the last one because I was not rushed through the line. The members I met at this date were Sid Wilson (DJ), Chris Fehn (Percussion and Backup vocals), and Shawn 'Clown' Crahan (Percussion and Backup vocals). None of them said one word to me and only Clown would shake my hand. It was pretty cool meeting these guys but I really wished they would have at least talked to the fans that payed to meet them. Also, for anyone who wants to know you cannot take pictures with the guys due to the security not letting you.
MEET N' GREET FOOTAGE - Slipknot Meet N Greet - Mayhem Festival 2012
PICTURES OF THE SLIPKNOT MEET N' GREET -
After my amazing experience of meeting members of my favourite band for the past 3 years, I went in the lineup to meet all members of As I Lay Dying. I had to purchase a $25 AILD laminate to meet them. This laminate gave me a code to enter online to send a hard copy of their new album out on September 25th 2012 "Awakened" 6 days earlier then the release date. It was really cool meeting the guys in As Lay Dying after their amazing performance.
AS I LAY DYING MEET N' GREET PICTURES -
After meeting three amazing bands and watching some unbelievable performances at Mayhem Festival 2012, I walked around the grounds, purchased merch, drank free Rockstar Energy Drinks, and met all of Upon A Burning Body at their merch tent. After I did that I watched the last 2 songs in Anthrax's set. Anthrax seemed to have the most people watching their set out of any other band on the Jager Stage. Also, they seemed to have the most mosh pits out of any other band on the Jager Stage. They really did a good job with their performance it seemed like but I feel I did not watch enough of their set to rate it.
Anthrax's Full Setlist:
1.Caught in a Mosh
2.Got the Time
3.Fight 'Em Till You Can't
4.Antisocial
5.Indians
6.Madhouse
7.I Am The Law
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dcInerpfL0
PICTURES -
After watching Anthrax's last 2 songs live I headed over to the main stage a caught The Devil Wears Prada's set. This band is in my opinion is really good live but no one in the crowed was really into it like every other band I have seen open the Main Stage for Mayhem Fest. TDWP put on an amazing performance and were really tight live. Them being on the main stage maybe didn't have as big of a fan impact as if they were closing the Jager stage where a large amount of their fan base would have been into them. I really wish TDWP was on the Jager Stage and Motorhead opened the Main Stage.
RATING 7/10
The Devil Wears Prada's Full Setlist:
1.Born To Lose
2.Danger: Wildman
3.Outnumbered
4.Assistance to the Regional Manager
5.Constance
6. Mammoth
(Not 100% sure on the order of the songs played.)
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrXvC_wI7CE&
PICTURES -
After The Devil Wears Prada performed I walked around, got some food and met Dimebag Darrell's wife. I arrived back at my seat by the Main Stage in the middle of Motorhead's set and I witnessed Duff McKagan of Guns N Roses jamming "Killed By Death" with the band and that was really cool to watch. Motorhead also played some of my favourite songs by them such as Ace of Spades and Overkill. Motorhead do not really put on a performance but they are a band that is really cool to witness live and Lemmy is a total god when it comes to rock n' roll.
RATING 7/10 (I only witnessed half of their set.)
Motorhead's Full Setlist:
1.Bomber
2.Damage Case
3.I Know How to Die
4.Stay Clean
5.Over The Top
6.The Chase Is Better Than the Catch
7.The One to Sing the Blues
-----Drum Solo-----
8.Going To Brazil
9.Killed By Death (with Duff McKagan)
10.Ace of Spades
11.Overkill
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cv8tP7Zxt7E&
PICTURES -
After watching a legendary Rock N' Roll band Slayer came on the stage. I have seen Slayer 2 times before, those performance's were good but there really was no entertainment. This clearly was the best Slayer show I have ever seen. Every other time I have seen Slayer it was just the band playing with no props or anything, this was a lot different. They had upside-down crosses formed by fake Marshall Amps with flames spurting out of them the entire show. They had the Slayer symbol hanging over them with flames coming out of that as well. Gary Holt, guitarist of Exodus, is still killing it with Slayer. I don't think you could have asked for a more perfect guitarist replacement for Jeff Hanneman. Their setlist was amazing and I couldn't of asked for a better performance from these guys. They really amazed everyone in the amphitheatre including people who were not even fans of the band before Mayhem.
RATING 9/10
Slayer's Full Setlist:
1.Disciple
2.War Ensemble
3.Die by the Sword
4.Hate Worldwide
5.Mandatory Suicide
6.Altar of Sacrifice
7.Jesus Saves
8.Seasons in the Abyss
9.Hell Awaits
10.Dead Skin Mask
11.Angel of Death
12.South of Heaven
13.Raining Blood
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNuPS_WOkjg&
PICTURES -
And now on to the band and performance I have been waiting for ever since I saw them last in 2009, Slipknot!. This performance was surely one of the best performances I have ever seen. This band live is mind blowing to watch and they are truly legends. The amount of people on stage, the show in the background, the stage set up and energy of this band make this performance so unbelievable to witness live. It was a lot different seeing this band live without Jim Root and Paul Gray (RIP) but the 7 members that were there absolutely killed it. With these 7 members always up to no good on the stage it makes for a very entertaining performance. This performance and the setlist was extremely dynamic and was amazing. Overall this was a perfect headlining show for Mayhem Fest 2012 and I really hope Slipknot write a new record for next year.
RATING 10/10
Slipknot's Full Setlist:
742617000027
1.(sic)
2.Eyeless
3.Sulfur
4.Wait and Bleed
5.Before I Forget
6.Disasterpiece
7.Gently
8.Vermilion
9.The Heretic Anthem
10.Psychosocial
11.Duality
12.Spit It Out
Encore:
(515)
13.People = Shit
14.Surfacing
'Til We Die
FOOTAGE - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04NEBXeJFBk&
PICTURES -
Mayhem Festival 2012 overall was surely the best Mayhem Festival I have ever been to. In the past I have only been to 2 Mayhem Fest's before this, 2010 and 2011. Mayhem 2010 I was mainly into the Main Stage bands, 2011 I was mainly into the Small Stage bands but this year I was in to every band on the lineup. The lineup this year was very dynamic which in my opinion made it perfect. Most performance's this year were top notch and couldn't have been better. Thank You Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival for making an amazing memorable day in my life.
Mayhem Festival 2013:
Mayhem Festival 2012 was amazing but I feel that it can possibly be topped in 2013. As of now I have only been hearing rumours about 3 bands which are Testament, Lamb of God and System of a Down. I would love if all of those band happened to be on the festival next year. I also just got in formed a couple of days ago by a good source that Lamb of god and Hatebreed were promised slots for Mayhem 2013 for signing on the Mayhem Festival 2012 Cruise.
MY RECAP VIDEO OF MY ENTIRE DAY
Set-Times for all future Mayhem Festival 2012 shows can be seen HERE.
Merch tabels and more for all bands can be seen HERE.
MAYHEM FESTIVAL SIGNINGS.
Members of Slipknot: Slipknot Tent at 4:45pm.
Clown of Slipknot: Clown's Tent at 2pm.
Anthrax: Rockstar Tent at 3pm.
Kerry King Of Slayer: Jager Tent at 5pm-6pm.
As I Lay Dying: AILD Tent at 5:30pm
The Devil Wears Prada: Hot Topic Tent at 4:00 and at Rockstar tent from 2-3pm.
Whitechapel: Rockstar Tent 4-4:45pm.
Asking Alexandria: Jager Tent at 2:30-3:30pm and Revolver Tent at 1:30-2pm
Upon A Burning Body: Sumerian tent 5-5:30pm
Members of Slipknot: Slipknot Tent at 4:45pm.
Clown of Slipknot: Clown's Tent at 2pm.
Anthrax: Rockstar Tent at 3pm.
Kerry King Of Slayer: Jager Tent at 5pm-6pm.
As I Lay Dying: AILD Tent at 5:30pm
The Devil Wears Prada: Hot Topic Tent at 4:00 and at Rockstar tent from 2-3pm.
Whitechapel: Rockstar Tent 4-4:45pm.
Asking Alexandria: Jager Tent at 2:30-3:30pm and Revolver Tent at 1:30-2pm
Upon A Burning Body: Sumerian tent 5-5:30pm
Betraying The Martyrs: All Day At Merch Tent
I, The Breather: All Day At Merch Tent
Dirtfedd: All Day At Merch Tent
MY MAYHEM FESTIVAL 2012 TIPS:
-Drink lots of water
-Get there early as possible. Parking is a pain.
-Expect yourself to be in a rush if you’re late.
-Buy Merch early. It will sell it quickly.
-Expect to miss bands if you want to go to the meet and greets.
-Jägermeister meet and greets require you to be 21 & over.
-Leave during the last song of one stage if you wanna make it in time for the next stage.
-Drink lots of water. This is vital to have a good time.
-Double check with your venue to see what you are allowed to bring inside.
-Be prepared to be in lines all day. Be patient.
-Don't get into fights.
-Eat before the show.
-Drink lots of water
-Get there early as possible. Parking is a pain.
-Expect yourself to be in a rush if you’re late.
-Buy Merch early. It will sell it quickly.
-Expect to miss bands if you want to go to the meet and greets.
-Jägermeister meet and greets require you to be 21 & over.
-Leave during the last song of one stage if you wanna make it in time for the next stage.
-Drink lots of water. This is vital to have a good time.
-Double check with your venue to see what you are allowed to bring inside.
-Be prepared to be in lines all day. Be patient.
-Don't get into fights.
-Eat before the show.
-Make sure to keep your eye out for members of bands watching other bands. (I ran into 'The Devil Wears Prada' and members of 'Whitechapel' during Slipknot's performance.)
MAYHEM FESTIVAL 2012 REVOLVER MAG PROGRAM
Inside view of the entire Program - http://youtu.be/tJhQJVuhqjU
PURCHASE THE PROGRAM ON EBAY - Mayhem Festival 2012 - Revolver Program
THANK YOU FOR READING MY MAYHEM FESTIVAL 2012 REVIEW :D
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Merch and More at Mayhem Festival 2012
Slayer:
Slipknot:
 |
| Antennas To Hell |
Whitechapel:
As I Lay Dying:
Asking Alexandria:
The Devil Wears Prada:
I, The Breather:
Motorhead:
Anthrax:
Sumerian Records:
Upon A Burning Body:
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