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Easter Sunday is usually about Jesus, rabbits and chocolate eggs, but those festivities take a back seat when Bay Area thrash metal legends VIO-LENCE are in town. Seeing as seemingly every classic thrash act has reunited in this social media age, it seems obvious that VIO-LENCE would do so for more than a one-off show. In 2019, guitarist Phil Demmel and vocalist Sean Killian reactivated the West Coast thrashers. However, Demmel parted ways with the band last year, leaving Killian the sole member of the line-up. Is an older vocalist with the rest of the band composed of hired guns enough to maintain an exhilarating and enthused live show?
Before the headliners can answer that, another 80s thrash metal icon hits the stage. EXHORDER reformed again in 2017, after ending their previous reunion in 2011 four years later. These Americans are widely credited as playing fellow Louisiana metallers PANTERA‘s style of heavy groove-laden thrashy assaults first, yet never secured the level of success or notoriety as the cowboys from hell (and there are very clear differences between the two). Vocalist Kyle Thomas has repeatedly stated that PANTERA worked harder than EXHORDER and they’re friends with no bad blood.
As soon as EXHORDER commence their set, a respectably-sized mosh pit kicks off and two crowd surfers rapidly put the security to work. The opening song is the rebellious My Time, a track from the band’s 2019 Mourn The Southern Skies album. Considering this release was EXHORDER‘s first in twenty years, it’s impressive that a younger tune can get the adrenaline flooding the venue like this. Slay‘s sound is slightly messy though; the drums overpower the other instruments but not to the point of sabotaging the listening experience. Thomas picked up the guitar in 2020 and tonight, he handles those duties as well as his vicious rasp-shouts. He performs solidly, although has to keep looking at the neck of his guitar during the classic Slaughter In The Vatican material. The other new guitarist is Pat O’Brien, formerly of CANNIBAL CORPSE, who joined the San Francisco thrashers’ ranks last year. A punter swoons to him “You’re a legend!”, which leaves the guitarist looking very pleased and thanking the fan.
Last year, EXHORDER rolled out their fourth album Defectum Ominum, and promote it now with the likes of Forever And Beyond Despair, The Tale Of Unsound Minds and Year Of The Goat. Thomas‘ stage banter is humorous, keen and very appreciative of playing live. The band’s dynamic energy transpires into the attendees, and the hyperactivity means mosh pits never really pause for long. Of course, the crowd gets most thrashing with the SLAUGHTER IN THE VATICAN anthems. Death in Vain and Legions Of Death go down as an unrelenting storm, while a bruising one-two closing combo of Desecrator and Exhorder rally the fanatics into their most frenzied pit of the night so far.
Rating: 9/10
VIO-LENCE really have a high bar set to meet to match the support’s performance. The Americans set alight to the venue with opener Liquid Courage from their 1990 Oppressing the Masses full-length. This begins a set containing light speed riffs, dark tunes without being devilish and unbridled aggression that will make you accidentally crash your car – this is 80s thrash metal in its purest ideological form. Sean Killian‘s vocals often divide opinions, sounding like a hybrid of Joey Belladona from ANTHRAX and Russ Anderson of FORBIDDEN but less accomplished and with a far narrower range. However, it suits the music, and he maintains it in the live environment while possessing a theatrical stage presence. His backing band is mostly a tide of headbanging long hair, striding across the stage knowingly putting on a hell of a show. The sound works out better for VIO-LENCE than the special guests, thankfully.
Most of the vintage Eternal Nightmare and Oppressing The Masses are aired out, satisfying the most ravenous of VIO-LENCE die-hards. Engulfed By Flames, Phobophobia, Serial Killer and Kill On Command hit like a tonne of bricks that the attendees won’t forget any time soon. A lot of the vocalist’s stage banter to introduce the songs sounds cheesy, but considering the immature lyrics that often get slammed for being too much in the 21st century, it’s understandable why he takes this approach. The undying mosh pits impressively swell to occupy most of Slay‘s floor for most of the set – a fitting tribute to the notoriously violent shows they put on back in their heyday. An hour and ten minutes later, Killian announces that their show is coming to an end soon. The sound of disappointment nearly strangles all of the oxygen in the room, but the congregation does get to enjoy World in a World to lay the night to rest.
It’s a shame that the show has to wrap up but, but the headliners demonstrate their sincerity for playing live by ensuring they take a few pictures of everyone in the crowd. It’s clear that VIO-LENCE takes a real pleasure from performing live, especially compared to most of the other classic 80s thrash titans. Perhaps it’s because they reactivated much later and therefore appreciate intercontinental tours more. No matter the cause, these veterans are certainly still worth catching live in 2025.
Rating: 9/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Glasgow from Duncan McCall here:
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The post LIVE REVIEW: Vio-lence @ Slay, Glasgow appeared first on Distorted Sound Magazine.
