The only thing cooler than watching history repeat itself is watching heavy metal history repeat itself. In 1991, Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer were touring behind the greatest albums of each of their respective careers. Anthrax was touring to support “Persistence of Time”, Megadeth was supporting “Rust In Peace” and Slayer was touring for “Seasons In The Abyss.” Even back then we all knew that what we were seeing was something pretty damn amazing. Three of the greatest metal bands of all time on one stage in one night. It was like we made a wish for the ultimate metal tour and it came true. Nearly 20 years later, it happened again and the three greatest thrash bands of all time joined forces to give fans both old and new something they would never forget.
In a time where most metal seems to have lost it’s vision and balls, Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer have returned to not only reattach the balls to metal but to let us all know that they are alive, well and thriving. One thign that I still can’t get over is the fact that there weren’t that many people present to take such an amazing spectacle in. When Anthrax hit the stage at 7pm sharp, there were maybe 500 people in attendance but this didn’t stop the band or those there from pledging their allegance to an all time legendary band. With classic era vocalist Joey Belladonna back in the game, I was a bit nervous as to how they would sound. The opening chords to “Caught In A Mosh” rang out and the place erupted. They were off and sounded goddamn amazing. Belladonna sounded top notch and the band played with all the enthusiasm and energy that they were always
known for. Bassist Frank Bello works the crowd and it’s obvious that he graduated with honors from the Steve Harris (Iron Maiden bassist) school of rocking a stage. Anthrax opted out of playing any later years material and instead melted everyone’s faces with a classics set that featured some pleasant surprises such as A.I.R and Madhouse. The real facemelt occurred when the band reached back deep into their past to pull out “Metal Thrashing Mad” from their “Fistful of Metal” album. This took everyone by storm and showed everyone just why Anthrax is a true legend. Their set was short and sweet and left me and everyone else definitely wanting more. I was ecstatic to hear them sounding so great and looking in top shape. I hope they can keep this line up going and keep all the bullshit politics out of if because people, this is what Anthrax is and should always be.
Anthrax Setlist
Caught in a Mosh, Madhouse, Antisocial, Indians, A.I.R., Metal Thrashing Mad, I Am The Law
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After having to reapply my face once or twice already, I couldn’t wait to see who I had really been there to see: the almighty Megadeth. The band’s stage set was once again a throw back to the original “Rust In Peace” tour set and it literally gave me goosebumps. I immediately felt like I was thrown back to 1991 only this time, I was going to get to hear “Rust In Peace” in it’s entirety. This was going to be my second time seeing this done and I was as excited as I was the first time. The band hit the stage to a PA announcement that was being read by Jello Biafra over the music of the song “Black Sabbath.” It completely set the tone of the set and had everyone pumped. One by one, Megadeth took the stage to a roar and as Dave Mustaine took the stage, the place went ape shit. Without saying a word Mustaine ripped into “Holy Wars…The Punishment Due” and the arena went nuts. The pit started up immediately and you could hear the people singing along word for word. My personal highlight was “Take No Prisoners” which was nothing short of electrifying. I could hear the crowd behind me yelling out the backing vocals of the verses as Dave Mustaine growled them to the people. As the band was killing this tune, a young guy in a wheelchair came rising above the audience as he was going nuts over this song. I had never seen anything like that before. This was one of those moments that will forever be ingrained in my head. “Rust In Peace” is such an amazing album that presents many complexities and challenges so to hear it performed spot on is a facemelt in itself. Mustaine’s voice was a bit off this night but this is thrash metal and Megadeth. I could feel his pain when trying to hit some higher notes but this didn’t matter, they were executing this album with so much precision that I don’t think anyone really gave a rat’s ass that his voice wasn’t 100%. Everything else was 100% and that’s what mattered. This lineup has to be the greatest Megadeth line up since the Menza/Friedman era. Guitarist Chris Broderick nailed the guitar solos note for note without breaking a sweat and drummer Shawn Drover just crushes my fucking head with how good he his. He has a finesse and a style all his own yet manages to interpret the drums from “Rust In Peace” to a “t”.
The return of Dave “Jr” Ellefson earlier this year was a real treat and he has definitely showed that he is the one and only
bassist for Megadeth. Ellefson took center stage for “Dawn Patrol” during which a guy dressed up as Vic Rattlehead (Megadeth’s band mascot) came out to mime the spoken word part of the song. This was really quite effective and fun to see. It was almost as if Megadeth was having their own “Eddie” (Iron Maiden’s band mascot) come out and treat the audience to a cool visual. It’s amazing how something so low tech can have such a huge impact and make a statement to the audience. “Rust In Peace…Polaris” closed out the set and I could literally see the floor littered with faces and they stormed through this one flawlessly. They brought it to a close by reprising “The Punishment Due” and as the last chord rang out, Mustaine snarled “… and THAT was Rust In Peace” as the crowd gave them an ovation that was deafening. Megadeth’s backdrop changed just before they riffed through the song “Trust.” I personally thought that while it wasn’t a bad song, I would’ve much rather heard something like “Washington Is Next” or “Wake Up Dead”. Megadeth totally made it up to me by playing my favorite song from “Endgame” which is “Head Crusher.” That song should be called “Face Melter” because the tight playing between Drover, Mustaine and Broderick is so fucking intense that I can barely wrap my head around it. “Symphony of Destruction” served as the “hit” of the night and even though that song gets hated on, I fucking loved it and it was fucking amazing but it was the encore of “Peace Sells” that really knocked it out of the park. I was so impressed with how humbled Dave Mustaine has become over the years and he seems to be really happy with where he is. He thanked the crowd and said, “You’ve been awesome and we’ve been Megadeth. Good night!” and left the stage. I felt like I had once again witnessed a show like no other. Megadeth as a band has really solidified their status as one of the greatest, if not the greatest thrash band of all time. I was completely moved by this performance and I’m sure everyone else in attendance will say the same thing. Megadeth came, they saw and they conquered.
Megadeth Setlist
Holy Wars… The Punishment Due, Hangar 18, Take No Prisoners, Five Magics, Poison Was the Cure, Lucretia, Tornado of Souls, Dawn Patrol, Rust in Peace… Polaris, Trust, Head Crusher, A Tout Le Monde, Symphony Of Destruction
Encore: Peace Sells
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By the time Slayer was about to take the stage, I was absolutely fucking exhausted. I must have looked like Joan Rivers since my face had pretty much been melted off numerous times through the night but I was ready for the melt again with Slayer. Slayer took the stage with a modest stage set of a wall of Marshal stacks and two huge Slayer eagles suspended in the air as they opened with “World Painted Blood.” The first thing that hit me was the sheer volume. Even with earplugs in I could tell that they were about 5 notches louder than the other bands. This kind of bugged me because it was so loud that it muddied the mix and was nothing but a wall of noise. This is really sad in my opinion because these guys can definitely play and they have some really great and complex rhythms. Instead of hearing it in a live setting it was all just one huge rumble. After addressing the crowd, singer/bassist Tom Araya yelled “War!” at the top of his lungs as the band kicked into “War Ensemble.” Slayer, like Megadeth, is performing an album in it’s entirety on this tour and they chose to represent “Seasons In The Abyss.” This was another thing that made it all feel like one big case of deja vu as this is what they were supporting back on 1991’s Clash of the Titans tour. After his recent back surgery, singer/bassist Tom Araya was stiff as board with minimal stage presence. His voice sounded amazing and larger than life but he just looked so trapped and bored up on stage.
The crowd was going absolutely ape shit over this band yet I couldn’t 
help but feel that they were nowhere near as good as the other two bands on this bill. I also realized that somewhere over the years it became trendy to like Slayer. I see more Slayer shirts on young kids than I ever have in my life and it’s like it’s a cool thing to like Slayer. When I was a kid, Slayer was only cool to us and not to the general public and that seems to have changed. Maybe it’s that a new generation of fans have connected with the brutality of Slayer’s music and that they can just shake out all of their angst and frustrations at a Slayer show. Hell, come to think of it, I think that’s what it was about back in the day. Slayer was never a favorite of mine but I everyone I knew who loved Slayer never talked about how awesome their lyrics or songs were. It was like “FUCKING SLAYER KICKS ASS! RAHHHHHHHH!” Anyways, I think that’s what I was seeing this night because as I listened to their set, nothing about it was making a connection to me. The band played on and while I thought they were really tight, I couldn’t get over how crappy their guitar solos were. Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman have to be two of the worst lead guitarists I’ve ever heard. Not to mention their horrible tones. I thought they sounded amazing doing all those complex rhythm parts but when it came time to take a lead it was almost a joke. I was almost positive they were just fucking with everyone but sure enough, that’s just how they play. Every time they played a lead, my buddy and I looked at each other and made stink faces. The band concluded the “Seasons In The Abyss” album with the title track with sounded fucking brutally good until, again, the solos. “South of Heaven” and “Raining Blood” were equally as awesome to hear but it was “Angel of Death” during which Dave Lombardo took the award for MVP of the night. That guy is fucking amazing to watch and listen to and seemed to be the only one that really had his act together. In all honesty, after their set I had to think to myself if I ever really liked Slayer or just the “idea” of Slayer. .
In a nutshell, it was a magical night for me and to see so many classic bands together was a real highlight and for $30 I challenge you to find a better display of musicianship, integrity and class. I learned three things this night as well. I learned that Anthrax is still the unsung heroes of thrash who will never get the attention and respect that they so deserve. Megadeth are a band that has grown by leaps and bounds and aged like fine wine. Dave Mustaine has become humbled in his old age and has turned into quite a class act giving Megadeth fans nothing but the best. As for Slayer? Well, Slayer is FUCKIN’ SLAYER! Need I say more?
Slayer Setlist
World Painted Blood, Hate Worldwide, War Ensemble, Blood Red, Spirit in Black, Expendable Youth, Dead Skin Mask, Hallowed Point, Skeletons of Society, Temptation, Born of Fire, Seasons in the Abyss, South of Heaven, Raining Blood, Aggressive Perfecter, Angel of Death
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Big ass thanks to my buddy Brook @ Rose Riot Photography for the Anthrax & Slayer photos!
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