Album Review: BLACK SABBATH

Live Evil (40th Anniversary Super Deluxe)

Review by: Jim Harrison

Rating: 10

Live Evil (40th Anniversary Super Deluxe) was released on June 2 by Rhino Warner Records as a 4-CD/4-LP box set with two versions of the acclaimed live album. The remastered version by Andy Pearce and a remix version by Wyn Davis. The set also includes a sixty page book with awesome photos, artwork and liner notes, a tour replica poster and a 1982 Mob Rules tour replica concert book.

This album was originally released in January of 1983 and was Black Sabbath’s first official live album recorded April 23-24, May12-13 in Seattle, Dallas and San Antonio during the Mob Rules tour. This album quickly gained momentum hitting both the UK Top 30 and the US Top 40 becoming one of the best live metal albums. As a young metal fan in the early 1980’s this was one of the first albums that I became familiar with not only Black Sabbath but Ronnie James Dio as well. The mix of both Ozzy and Dio eras of the track selection is awesome. Dio brings his own vocal magic to the whole album and Iommi, Butler and Appice showcase just how strong this band’s talent became by then.

The album starts with the intro E5150 and then rips right into Neon Knights. The classics N.I.B, Black Sabbath and War Pigs shine with Dio giving them a rebirth with his own vocal dynamics showing that he was up to the task of not wanting replicate but to put his own mark in these. Tracks, Children Of the Sea and Mob Rules mix in perfectly becoming classics in their own right cementing the fact that Dio was the perfect voice live for Sabbath in this new era. My two favourite tracks on this album are Heaven and Hell and The Sign Of the Southern Cross. Both tracks are two of my favourite Sabbath songs of all time. Appice’s drums that start Heaven and Hell just pound into Iommi’s guitar riff mixed with Butlers booming bass, and Dio’s crowd banter is legendary, I still remember the first time I heard this live. I wish this album was actually longer.

The remastered version sounds great and the remix version using the original analog tapes is fantastic bringing back the original magic with an updated sound. It’s not about improving this but making the experience that much better and they do a great job presenting that. Whenever there is a remix or rerelease of a monumental album like this my usual thoughts are what did they change? Did they give the album enough proper attention to attribute to keeping it true to the original? This was accomplished and with the added detail of the great packaging, including the book, poster and program adds to how special this is. This will be a hit with collectors and Sabbath enthusiasts as well as younger fans really showing off how awesome this live album is. This is a 10/10 experience and I highly recommend it.

Geezer Butler: Bass Guitar
Ronnie James Dio: Vocals
Tommy Iommi: Lead Guitar
Vinny Appice: Drums

INGESTED, DEVOURMENT, VOMIT FORTH, ORGANECTOMY, MENDACITY

June 2nd, 2023

Toronto, ON @ The Velvet Underground

Photos By: Kim Baarda

Words By: Jason Deaville

MENDACITY

Innisfil, Ontario brutal death metallers, Mendacity, started this warm, rainy Toronto night off with a set of solidly played, technically proficient slam. Crushing through songs from their previous two EPs (2013’s Immolation and 2019’s Coercion) the three-piece definitely got the early-arrivers pumped for what was to come of the night.

ORGANECTOMY

Christchurch New Zealand’s Organectomy should have been higher on this billing. They truly gave the most entertaining and energetic performance of the evening. Frontman Alex Paul was a monster, spitting unholy, crushing bars left, right, and center. Their set consisted mostly of tracks from 2022’s Nail Below Nail, a fantastic album that melds slamming brutal death metal with more traditional, old-school death metal. If you have a chance to catch these guys, do not miss out.

VOMIT FORTH

Up next was Connecticut extremists Vomit Forth, who gave perhaps the most traditional death metal-sounding performance of the night. Yes, this four-piece can crush craniums with pitriffs straight out of the book of slam, but there was a definite nod to early 90s death metal. Their set was a nice collection of songs from last year’s Seething Malevolence album, as well as tracks dating back to their post-pandemic EPs.

DEVOURMENT

Brutal death metal doesn’t get more extreme or perverse than Dallas, Texas legends Devourment. These guys basically wrote the rule book way back in the late 90s, and look where we are now. Slam would not be what it is today if not for the pioneering efforts of these hard-working, forward-thinking fellas. Tonight, Toronto was in for something special.

The first and most obvious observation was the absence of vocalist Ruben Rosas. In his place was Abominable Putridity frontman, Angel Ocha. I don’t think anyone in the crowd minded this change, as Ocha is a guttural monster, and definitely did the night’s collection of Devourment tracks justice.

A stunningly brutal set that left the sold-out house salivating for more.

INGESTED

Brutal deathcore merchants Ingested stormed the stage like the crazed English lunatics they are, and they didn’t let up until the very last note was played. There was hardly time to breathe as the guys breezed through tracks from their most recent album, 2022’s Ashes Lie Still.

Vocalist Sean Hynes has certainly perfected the charismatic frontman role, posturing and posing and brutalizing for the line of cameras all pointed in his direction.

At this point, Ingested could tour with anyone and still fit the bill. I would love to see them get on something a bit out of their comfort zone to showcase their brand of extremity to fans of metal who might not have ever listened to brutal slamming death metal. They could definitely be the gateway band for many.

Album Review: NOCTURNAL BREED

Carry the Beast

Review by: Jim Harrison

RATING: 9

Nocturnal Breed is a extreme blackened thrash band from Norway who will release their anticipated seventh full length album Carry the Beast, through Dark Essence Records. This album is a cornucopia of thrash, black metal, doom and has a hint of a punk vibe as well. Members S.A Destroyer, I. Maztor and Tex Terror make up this talented three piece. From their previous albums they have stayed the course just tweaking their sound making it unmistakably original but bringing a base of an old school thrash direction. This album brings a darker, raw sound that makes this record so appealing.

The album starts with a spooky, doom sounding title track that gets you ready for what’s waiting. Vocalist S.A Destroyer’s voice sends this track in an ominous direction. Second track, Thrash Metal Hate Saw (The Last Act of Terror) is one of my favourite songs on the album. This is reminiscent of some old school thrash, fast and loud. Maztor’s guitar playing rips perfectly with Destroyers Voice and the heavy drum pounding by Tex Terror meshes the song perfectly. This is the second track set for early release on June 9, 2023 and I predict will be a fan favourite. Track three is the first early release, Knights of Denim (May 12) This is an awesome teaser getting fans excited for the album release and I can bet they will pick up many new listeners with this killer track. Projecting a solid thrash sound this would be a great live. Salt In the Wounds keeps the brutality going pushing more of a doom sound with some fantastic guitar riffs. Atomic Cruiser slows the tempo down but keeps inline with the darker parts of this album. This track fits perfectly in the middle of the record and the chanting echo on the vocals are a cool effect. Raise the Flag…and the Hordes Will Follow pushes the darker thrash sound to the limit, this is a cool song. Destroyer’s vocals are showcased on this track. The next two songs are Nosforata and Lady Vampire, bring a definite horror theme. Lady Vampire has a great melody and would be another great live track. The guitar and the drums stand out and this is another favourite of mine. The album closes out on a high with I Ain’t Marching. This has a punk vibe plus I get kind of a Motörhead feel as Destroyer’s voice has that Lemmy growl. This will be another fan favourite.
The album also includes three bonus tracks that I can only describe as three separate horror films put to music. Dark, original and meant to be played on a loud quality system. The sound is phenomenal. The bonus track Blitzhammer is what metal is all about, brutality at its best.
This album is a must for metal fans who are looking for a complete package of well crafted songs, first rate musicianship and superior vocals.
I recommend checking this out.

S.A Destroyer: Vocal / bass
I Maztor: Lead guitar
Tex Terror: Drums

DARK FUNERAL, CATTLE DECAPITATION, 200 STAB WOUNDS, BLACKBRAID

May 27th, 2023

Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix

Photos By: Kim Baarda

Words By: Jason Deaville

BLACKBRAID

Hailing from the solitude and splendor of the Adirondack Mountains in Northeastern New York, black metal phenoms Blackbraid started the night off with a set of songs that entranced and hypnotized the unsuspecting early arrivers. Opening with ‘The Spirit Returns’ (from the forthcoming album Blackbraid II), the band immediately set a tone inspired by the beauty of nature and native American mythology, weaving together to create a tapestry of spiritual-yet-still-vicious musical art.

Sgah’gahsowáh (aka Jon Krieger), who also serves as the band’s songwriter and creative, showcased his natural ability and comfort as a front-man on the second song, ‘The River Of Time Flows Through Me.’ Like a hunter priming a spear, Sgah’gahsowáh launched his mic stand straight into the air and proceeded to destroy his prey with a volley of blood-curdling black metal shrieks.

At this point, the energy in the venue was one that saw the band and fans merged as a singular soul in a cosmic void of mind-altering black metal. Invoking the fated hand of twilight, the band launched into ‘Moss Covered Bones On The Altar Of The Moon’, another song from their upcoming sophomore effort. They followed this up with the equally alluring ‘Barefoot Ghost Dance On Bloodsoaked Soil’, which highlighted, to perfection, the band’s use of traditional Native American atmospherics.

If tonight’s performance was any indication, Blackbraid are absolutely deserved of the hype that surrounds them at this time. We at The Metal Pit anxiously await the new album, which drops on July 7th.

200 STAB WOUNDS

Murder metal. It’s a thing. One needs to look no further than the legendary Macabre, who basically wrote the rule book for Murder Metal. The second band of the evening, Cleveland, Ohio’s 200 Stab Wounds, have apparently been studying very hard from the Macabre handbook, as they delivered an absolutely brutal set of stab-you-in-the-face songs from their three releases (2020’s Piles Of Festering Decomposition, 2021’s Slave To The Scalpel, and 2023’s Masters Of Morbidity).

Not only is their unique brand of old-school death metal (with touches of slam) filled with blood-soaked fun, the guys actually seem to play the serial killer persona up a bit. Guitarist, Raymond MacDonald, had a bit of a John Wayne Gacy thing going on, and bassist, Ezra Cook, an imposing figure on stage, could be mistaken for Jason Vorhees.

200 Stab Wounds certainly lived up to their name tonight, inflicting severe damage both mentally and physically. It could take weeks to recover from this.

CATTLE DECAPITATION

At this point in their career, vegan musical extremists Cattle Decapitation are clearly at the top of their game. As it relates to their live performance, if the house audio can handle the cacophony, you can rest assured that the boys in Decap will give a performance equally as impressive as their studio releases… and sometimes, like tonight, perhaps even slightly better.

Of immediate note, vocalist Travis Ryan stole the show. His vocal performance was pitch-perfect and absolutely crushing. This doesn’t take anything away from the rest of the band, as each member give it 1000%. Their setlist was a mixed bag of meatless goodies, handpicked from their nearly thirty years of recorded music.

DARK FUNERAL

Swedish melodic black metallers, Dark Funeral, proved tonight why they are headliners. First and foremost, is their ability to master the crowd through their surreal and otherworldly blackened metal magic. With the stage swath in icy, deep blue tones, the band’s frigid and glacial performance sent a chill through the venue. Vocalist, Heljarmadr, commanded the throngs of black-clad fans with ease, who hung on his every word.

The darkened ones steamrolled through over an hour’s worth of songs, pulled from their extensive catalog dating all the way back to their self-titled EP from ’94. Some highlights of the evening included ‘My Funeral’, ‘Secrets Of The Black Arts’, ‘Unchain My Soul’, ‘Let The Devil In’, and ‘Where Shadows Forever Reign’.

Helloween & Hammerfall Concert Review

May 23, 2023

Toronto, Canada @ History

Review/photos: Billy Klare

Helloween brought their United Forces 2023 world tour to Toronto, Canada on May 23 with special guests Hammerfall. This leg of the world tour includes this only Canadian date and twelve additional stops in the United States. Helloween return with the full “Pumpkins United” line-up including Kai Hansen (guitar / vocals), Andi Deris (vocals), Michael Kiske (vocals), Michael Weikath (guitar), Markus Grosskopf (bass), Sascha Gerstner (guitar) and Daniel Loble (drums). All four Helloween eras are represented with the original Kai led era, Kiske era, Deris era and the latest united version of the band.

I was fortunate enough to see the Pumpkins United tour in 2018 on three different occasions in Germany (Wacken Open Air), New York and Montreal. All three concerts were outstanding so my expectations were sky high for this Toronto show and I’m delighted to report it was another amazing Helloween performance. It’s clear this expanded version of the band still enjoys touring and playing together.

During the Pumpkins United tour, Helloween performed alone each night with lengthy extended sets but changed approach on this tour to include Sweden’s Hammerfall opening the show each night. Michael Kiske noted in recent interviews that show attendance is still uncertain in parts of Canada / USA so they wanted to diversify the line-up and help limit touring risk. Based on my previous personal experiences, the 2018 New York & Montreal shows were sold out but my friend attended the recent Dallas, USA show a week before this Toronto show and sadly the attendance was limited to just 300 – 350 people. I don’t know exact Toronto attendance numbers but I’m pretty sure it was at least a thousand strong and potentially more (it’s a large newer venue so difficult for me to judge).

The show started with Hammerfall playing their own brand of melodic power metal which was likely influenced by 1980’s Helloween to some degree. The Hammerfall setlist was surprisingly broad with at least one songs from most of their discography (12 or 13 songs in total). The crowd enjoyed the performance helping sing all the catchy choruses. I saw many fans wearing Hammerfall T-shirts that night. I’m more of a casual fan but really enjoyed “Blood Bound”, “Let The Hammer Fall”, “Any Means Necessary” and the last song of the night “Hearts on Fire”.

It was finally time for Helloween and the crowd was excited and eager to get started. The stage design was pretty straight forward. The elevated drum kit was surrounded by a large orange inflatable pumpkin with a large TV screen at the back of the stage playing various Helloween animation and other relevant clips throughout the show. The elevated drum riser provided room on each side that band members utilized during the show.

Helloween kicked off their set with “Skyfall” from the latest self-titled album released in 2021. They also played “Mass Pollution” and “Best Times” from the new record. While I enjoyed hearing the new songs live for the first time, they just don’t hold the same nostalgia factor for me like the older classic material. Similarly, audience reaction was generally positive for the new songs but not to the same extent as the classics.

The audience helped sing many of the old songs word-for-word including “Future World”, “Eagle Fly Free”, “Save Us”, “Dr. Stein” “How Many Tears” and the lengthy “Keeper of the Seven Keys”. I couldn’t wipe the smile of my face during these amazing songs that I grew up with. My one minor complaint of the night was the limited representation of the genius “Keepers I” album (only Future World was played). I certainly understand there’s no way to tackle everything on this tour with the band shifting to a normal set length and a new album of material to play. It’s clear to me the “Keepers I” and Deris era material was trimmed from the previous extended Pumpkin United sets.

There’s often significant debate in the Helloween community around the Andi Deris era of the band but I was a big fan from day one. We were treated to a few songs from some key Deris albums including “Perfect Gentleman”, “Power”, and “Forever and One”. Andi sounded great live which is no small task when your singing beside the legend that is Michael Kiske.

I loved the interaction and banter between Kiske and Deris as they sang together throughout the night. It’s evident to me they still enjoy performing together and egos are not getting in the way. It’s nice to see band cohesiveness remaining so strong. One key memory of the night was Kiske & Deris taking center stage sitting on stools singing “Forever and One” equally sharing the lines and chorus.

I continue to be impressed with Sasha on guitar who holds his own next to the legendary Hansen & Weikath which must be intimidating for a much younger guitarist sharing the stage with these metal veterans. Sasha has excellent stage presence and spoke to the crowd on multiple occasions, asking the audience at one point who was here from Quebec. He clearly knows the significance of the Montreal, Quebec metal scene and it’s importance within the overall Canadian metal scene. As a Montrealer, I thought that was pretty cool.

The best memory for me occurred mid-set when kai took over the vocal duties and performed a medley of “Metal Invaders”, “Victim of Fate”, “Gorgar” and “Ride The Sky” followed by “Heavy Metal (Is the Law)”. Kai’s voice hasn’t aged as well as Kiske or Deris but getting the opportunity to hear the earliest original Helloween songs led by Kai who started the band is priceless for a long-time Helloween fan. It’s heavy metal history and I’m glad this material remained in the reduced setlist.

The night ended on a high note with another classic Helloween song from Keepers II – “I Wan’t Out”. Significant audience singing participation encouraged by the band with large orange and black inflatable pumpkins falling into the audience. An incredible way to end a memorable night. Damn, I once again left the show without one of those coveted giant pumpkin souvenirs.

I highly recommend this 2023 United Forces Helloween tour. These are true legendary heavy metal musicians who reunited to bring the fans a very special show. I think it’s probably safe to say this touring event won’t last forever and no guarantees of another world tour with the same original members (especially for us Canadians & Americans who only get a few shows every few years). It’s worth taking a mini-vacation traveling to one of these tour stops if you can. You won’t regret it.

Note: The attached photographs were taken by me on my I-phone in the middle of the crowd and not intended to represent or replace professional level photography. I just wanted to share some clips from the show.