Slayer

+ Killswitch Engage + Mastodon + Agent Zero

(The Jägermeister Music Tour)

«««««

Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, IL 11/5/04

Review by Aaron Broderick   posted December 29, 2004

I run up to the ballroom. Jägermeister® banners hang from the ceiling. A gigantic inflatable Jagermeister bottle stands at the back of the ballroom towering over what will soon be the Chicago chapter of the most rabid group of human beings to ever walk the earth, aka Slayer fans. I grab a rum and coke and take my place to the left of the stage towards the front. There is certain energy in the air. It tightens your stomach and catches your breath. A feeling of anticipation so intense that it’s like everyone is breathing pure adrenaline. The crowd is rather complacent at this point, waiting for the melodic hardcore metallers from the east coast, Killswitch Engage, to take the stage. After all, we’re all here for one band, really. SLAYER.  Mr. Lizard and his friend (I never understood his name- Dr. something something) appears to entertain a bit by lifting a Jagermeister shot machine with his ear piercings. His friend lifted the same thing with the orbits of his eyes. Part of me wanted the maxilla to break under the weight as he swung the shot machine from his eye sockets. For those who don’t know who Mr. Lizard is, he is tattooed green over most of his body, has his teeth filed to points and his tongue forked.

He introduces Killswitch Engage and they emerge playing A Bid Farewell, from their latest The End Of Heartache. They focused heavily on this album, playing crowd pleasers such as When Darkness Falls, The Rose Of Sharyn, and the moving title track from this latest and soon to be classic album. Other songs were taken from their previous release Alive, Or Just Breathing; with fan faves such as My Last Serenade, Life To Lifeless, and Numbered Days. I’m probably missing a good portion of KsE’s set, because they had a full hour to play. The band was incredibly tight, executing each song with an aggressive finesse that I must say is rarely seen, given the high intensity of their stage presence. They were all over that stage, and truly having a great time. Mr. Lizard came out several times to fuel their guitarist, Adam Dutkiewitz, with a Jäger-shot which would send him into another frenzy across the stage without missing a note. Howard Jones, their singer is by far one of the best metal vocalists in the scene. He can growl and scream as any death metal vocalist, which some may regard as a dime-a-dozen talent here. However, the diversity he brings with his soulful clean vocals offsets the song’s brutality perfectly. This man will one day be cited as a highly influential vocalist in the genre’s of hardcore and metal.

After KsE’s set, I met up with my friends (again), and watched the anticipation reach a boiling point. The crowd was truly growing rabid. Groups of people started chanting Slayer lyrics and another group across the room started chanting “Slayer! Slayer! Slayer!” The floor began to rumble as people stomped their feet. My friend Jeff, who writes for The Daily Herald’s "Time Out" section turns to us and says “OK, when these psychos decide to start killing each other, we’re getting the fuck out of here.” There is a loyalty in metal to Slayer. They never left their roots and they will still push the limits of what will shock you with every album. Their shows are legendary in metal circles. Mr. Lizard appeared yet again with his friend to antagonize some and entertain others by having his good buddy hit him with darts. He then introduces Slayer. The lights go out, and even during the intro, two mosh pits erupt on either side of us. No chance to move. We stood our ground and enjoyed the chaos that ensued.

Slayer finally emerged playing the Grammy-nominated Disciple, the crowd screaming the chorus for vocalist Tom Araya, “God hates us all! God hates us all!”, the mosh pits gaining a fevered pitch of flailing limbs and blurred faces that sped by ever faster in the strobing darkness. They sounded incredible, especially for the Aragon, which has a notorious reputation of sounding like shit. The Jägermeister Tour’s sound people must be some of the best. They made the venue sound amazingly crisp. Fan favorites South Of Heaven, Hell Awaits, Angel Of Death, Mandatory Suicide, Stain Of Mind, and Bloodletting were all played that night. My favorite tracks of the evening, were the more obscure ones, like Die By The Sword, and Fight ‘Til Death, which I never thought I’d hear performed. Other tracks that stood out were Hallowed Point and the dark and ambient Seasons In The Abyss. The latter one was one of the more powerful tracks played that evening.

The band hasn’t sounded this good in years. Every song was executed with the precision of a surgeon’s scalpel. “Feel the knife pierce you intensely” as they urge in Angel Of Death. Hanneman’s and King’s solos that evening were some of their most intense and brilliant, in my opinion. The band’s stage presence was better than I’ve ever seen, as they headbanged like maniacs and stalked the stage like monsters. They were having the time of their lives playing some of the most brutal music known to man. The major draw of this show was the "Wall Of Blood", a huge trussed structure with a built-in sprinkler system that would rain down gallons of theatrical blood onto the stage during the second half of the closer, Raining Blood. The band was drenched in the red stuff, and it was a fitting end to an amazing show.  Killswitch Engage has very uplifting lyrics, where Slayers are very confrontational and often violent, depicting the ugliest faces humanity has. I went home completely satisfied and still buzzing from the excitement of the show. Everyone seriously needs to experience the intensity of Slayer’s live show.

Go see Slayer!!!

• Slayer Official Site
• Jägermeister Music Official Site