Hatebreed brings their celebratory 25th Anniversary tour to Las Vegas with support from Skeletal Remains, Prong, Agnostic Front and Obituary.
To say this lineup is packed is an understatement. Five amazing bands on one bill, it is no wonder it is a packed house for a Tuesday night. This lineup has something for everyone from classic heavy metal to death metal and, of course, hardcore. Up first is the newest band in this lineup, Skeletal Remains. Beginning in 2011, this death metal band is no newcomer to the scene, but on a lineup with bands that have been doing this thirty-five years they are. This four-piece band from California released their third album last year and in this thirty-minute set they show the crowd what they are all about – death metal with a bit of a thrash sound. With this performance, they initiate the crowd into a night set for blistering music.
New York heavy metal band Prong is up next. They have played Las Vegas a bit over the past years so between that and their history they draw a large crowd. Singer and guitarist Tommy Victor and bassist Jason Christopher are all over the stage interacting with the crowd. For three people, they are a loud band that gets the crowd going. Of course, they play the crowd favorite and most well-known song, “Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck,” but each time they perform this they manage to make it sound new and interesting. At the end of their set, some lucky fans are given the setlists and guitar picks. It is now time for the first hardcore band of the night Agnostic Front. Also hailing from New York, they are determined to give the crowd a good taste of East Coast hardcore. They are the longest performing band on the bill tonight and that shows in their performance in a good way. It is intense. Vocalist Roger Miret and guitarist Vinnie Stigma have an intense energy to their performance that does not let up for one second. The set includes songs like “Dead to Me,” “Friend or Foe,” a crowd favorite “All Is Not Forgotten” and “Addiction.” The eleven songs show the crowd why they have been doing this as long as they have. Death metal band Obituary is up next. At this point, after three bands most shows would be wrapping up but this one is just getting started. The stage lights are dark and the smoke machines begin to fill in. The band calmly takes the stage. They begin instrumentally, then singer John Tardy walks out and launches into the vocal. This is pure death metal, exactly what you expect from old school death metal. The smoke, hair flying, fast guitars and vocals create the whole package. Songs like “Circle of Tyrants” and “Body Bag” really get the crowd moving before closing out the set with “Slowly We Rot.” The set perfectly illustrates who this band is. It is finally time for Hatebreed. It has been a long time since they have played a full headline set in Las Vegas so the crowd is excited. For many, the last time they saw this band was on a brief thirty-minute set at Warped Tour a few years ago in 115 degree heat which Jamey Jasta makes mention of during his set later. Celebrating 25 years and nine albums this metalcore band has longevity. Jasta explodes onto the stage and he doesn’t stop moving for one second of the performance. Guitarists Wayne Lozinak and Frank Novinec play the fast riffs and with bassist Chris Beattie and drummer Matt Byrne added to it the music is fast, driving and intense. Jasta’s vocals don’t slow down and no one misses a beat. They are clearly loving every minute of the performance. Jasta talks to the crowd a bit, apologizing for it being so long since they played and mentioning the Warped Tour show. It is clear he cares about the fans.Hatebreed songs are not only intense and fast but they are shorter, all around three minutes in length so the set is able to include a lot of songs from all their albums. Opening with “To the Threshold,” “A.D.” and “Perseverance,” the crowd gets to see what they can expect from the set. It continues on with the blistering pace, playing all the favorites including “Last Breath,” “Doomsayer” and “As Diehard As They Come.” There are so many more great songs included in the set it is impossible to list them all. Through the performance the energy of the crowd builds and the band seems to feed off of this. The set opens strong and continues strong, but it closes with more intensity than would seem possible with “Live For This,” “Destroy Everything” and “I Will Be Heard.” After the end of this, the band doesn’t run off stage, they take one of their signature pictures with the crowd who are reluctant to leave until the very last moment.
After twenty-five years Hatebreed is still going strong, this crowd appreciates that and they are going to hold Jasta to his promise of coming back soon, but in any case tonight, with five storied bands across genres, no one leaves this show disappointed.
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