High on Fire and Torche @ GAMH

Met up with E in the Tenderloin before the show for some Indian food at Shalimar. Hadn't walked around the Loin in years and it hasn't changed much. Always exhilarating and a bit scary. Hookers, crack head, etc. Great people watching. We grabbed a beer at Olive near GAMH and got in just as Torche was about to go on. The went on with a bang but the dynamic was tempered by the vocals being way too low. And this went on for 3 songs before they sound man finally got it right. What's up with that?! They are great live though. Highly recommended. Love their new album. Next up was High on Fire. Their sound was a bit muddy, but much better than the last time I caught 'em at the FOX opening for Mastodon. Super heavy! They played an interesting set that was quite different from the last few times that I saw them. They started with Turk which is one of my favs. They played a few oldies off of Surrounded by Thieves which was a change. Good to see that they sold out GAMH. High on Fire!

American Carnage Tour! Slayer, Megadeth & Testament @ the Cow Palace!

Matt and I got caught in traffic on the way down and ended up missing Testament! Luckily, we recently saw them but still bummed because they were really good. The old school and new school metal heads are an interesting combo. Lots of aggro vibes. To be expected. Awesome people watching. Jesus freaks were out protesting the show and handing out "Get Out of Hell Free" cards. Can't believe these morons!



Megadeth put on the usual polished show with an awesome light show. They played the entire Rust in Peace album, a few new tunes and followed up with a few other classics like Peace Sells and Symphony of Destruction. What made it worth it to me to see 'em was when they played My Last Words.



Slayer opened up with World Painted Blood which was a great song to start with. Slayer truly has that dark, evil music thing down! I have to say I was a little spellbound. I understand why the bible beaters fear them. They played another new one and started in to play the Seasons in the Abyss album. The pit was probably the biggest and most violent one that I've seen since I've lived in California. One main pit and 2 side pits. Hope Slayer comes back soon!