Tag: obituary

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                    [post_date] => 2025-04-30 15:22:26
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                    [post_content] => This past Saturday, April 26th, in the year of our Lord, 2025, Obituary, along with Nails brought their tour celebrating 35 years of Cause of Death to The Bellwether in Downtown Los Angeles.



Tampa Florida’s Obituary released their second album, Cause of Death in 1990—35 years ago. I was a freshman in high school. I had never heard anything like it and I found out pretty quickly that NO ONE else had heard anything like it, either. My teenage feelings of suffering and despair and confusion and anger finally had a soundtrack. I was just getting into thrash metal and hardcore punk and picking up a guitar for the first time. My preferences leaned toward frenetic chaos with a high bpm. Fast and hard. But Obituary and Cause of Death showed me a new way—grinding, low tempo, heavy riffs that slowly dragged bodies across the floor. Sludgy breakdowns building to blast beat eargasms that changed my life forever. Slayer and others showed them the way but it was Cause of Death that had that mix of thrash and sludge that really got me off.  That cassette lived in my Walkman for a good 3 months, uninterrupted. It formally introduced a designation called Death Metal that would seed the heavy metal subgenre explosion for the next 3 decades.


Death Metal’s Relentless March: Obituary’s Enduring Influence
In the pantheon of death metal, Obituary has always stood apart. Formed in 1984 and originally known as Executioner, the band quickly found its identity in a swampy, guttural, and uniquely Floridian brand of sonic devastation. By the time Cause of Death dropped in 1990, they had already laid serious groundwork with 1989’s Slowly We Rot, but it was their sophomore effort that elevated them from promising pioneers to genre-defining legends.

 
related: Memoirs Of My First Acid Bath Show...
The 35th Anniversary Tour for Cause of Death isn’t just a trip down memory lane—it’s a testament to how enduring, brutal, and relevant this band and this album remain. In 2025, death metal is still thriving globally, but it owes much of its blueprint to what Obituary committed to tape in the late ’80s and early ’90s.


The Bellwether: A Shrine for the Sick
The Bellwether in Downtown Los Angeles is quickly becoming one of LA’s premier venues for heavy music. Tucked into the industrial edges of Downtown L.A., the theater has clean lines and great acoustics, and is among the top sonic experiences for venues of it's capacity- but on Saturday night, it transformed into a blood ritual chamber for the faithful.
related: Slayer's Final So-Cal Show at Five-Points Amphitheater
Before Obituary took the stage, the energy inside was already on a razor’s edge. Longhairs and leather jackets, patched vests and fresh merch, old-school lifers and young fanatics crowded the floor. The unifying factor? A shared reverence for Cause of Death and/or any of the bands on the lineup.  By the time Terror, Spirit World and Pest Control had finished their sets, blacked out heshers and ese's became aggressively grabby with people's girlfriend's in passing.  The mood inside was rank with jubilation and a bit of danger.






			

				
			
				

			

				
			
				

			

				
			
				
		


 
Nails: The Perfect Precursor to the Apocalypse
California’s own Nails opened the show with their trademark blend of grindcore and hardcore fury. If Obituary is the sound of the undead dragging themselves through a swamp, Nails is the explosion that follows a nuclear detonation. Their short set was an aggression- tightly wound and expertly executed. Songs like “You Will Never Be One of Us” and “Wide Open Wound” tore through the venue with alarming ferocity.


related: Earth Crisis, Strife and Snapcase Teardown Teragram Ballroom
It was a smart booking choice. Nails may play in a different stylistic zone, but they bring the same commitment to heaviness and raw emotion. Their presence on this tour reinforces the impact that Cause of Death had across the broader spectrum of extreme music. Death metal, grindcore, doom, blackened crust—everyone takes notes from Obituary, whether they admit it or not.


Obituary Live in 2025: Still Morbid, Still Crushing




When the lights dimmed and the intro to “Infected” started, the crowd roared like the opening of a demonic portal. Obituary launched into their set with a ferocity that belied their decades of service. John Tardy’s vocals are still a guttural marvel—non-lyrical in the traditional sense, but evocative of pain, power, and possession. His performance proved once again that there’s no one else who sounds quite like him.

The band played Cause of Death in its entirety, in order, a gift for the longtime fans. Each track landed like a tombstone hurled from a great height:



“Infected” set the stage with its unmistakable groove and death-thrash overtones.

“Body Bag” followed, every note coated in grime and dread.

“Chopped in Half” got the loudest early cheer—still one of death metal’s most iconic riffs.

“Circle of the Tyrants” (the Celtic Frost cover that became theirs) felt especially powerful live, a reminder of the band’s roots and inspirations.

“Dying” slowed things down into a hypnotic dirge.  This was the moment I had been waiting for.  For me, this was the seminal track off Cause of Death and maybe, their careers.  The lengthy and brutally mid tempo intro sets the dynamics for the entire song into the first breakdown.

“Turned Inside Out” brought the crowd back to life, ending the album playthrough on a triumphant, stomping high note.

Watching them perform this material with such intensity 35 years later felt less like nostalgia and more like renewal. It’s a brutal reminder of the album’s vitality.
The Lineup: Old School Meets Ageless Energy
Obituary’s current lineup is a dream for longtime fans: the Tardy brothers (John on vocals, Donald on drums), Trevor Peres on guitar, Terry Butler (ex–Death, ex–Six Feet Under) on bass, and Ken Andrews as second guitarist. This configuration has gelled into something formidable. There’s no coasting on legacy here—every riff was tight, every beat precise, every solo delivered with conviction.

Trevor Peres’ tone remains one of the most identifiable in metal: mid-scooped, bone-dry, and filthy as hell. Donald Tardy’s drumming is still a masterclass in restraint and groove—he’s one of the rare metal drummers who knows when not to play. Andrews and Butler round out the machine with steady, punishing force.
Cause of Death: A Sonic Autopsy, 35 Years Later
Released in 1990 on Roadrunner Records and produced by Scott Burns at Morrisound Studios, Cause of Death is a landmark album in the death metal genre. It bridged the gap between the raw fury of Slowly We Rot and the increasingly technical path the genre would take in the early ’90s.

The album is marked by its deliberate pacing, crushing riffs, and cavernous production. The artwork by Michael Whelan (originally intended for a Death album) became instantly iconic. I wore that t-shirt into a dust rag.  But more than anything, Cause of Death showcased Obituary’s refusal to conform to expectations. While their peers were speeding up and getting more technical, Obituary chose to slow down and dig deeper.

Songs like “Dying” and “Turned Inside Out” are perfect examples of death metal as a slow-motion demolition. Rather than machine-gunning everything into oblivion, they made you feel every ounce of weight behind each note. It was—and remains—a masterclass in heavy music.
A Live Experience Rooted in Community
At The Bellwether, it was impossible to miss how many generations were in the crowd. Obituary shows draw lifers, punks, and younger fans who are discovering death metal through streaming algorithms or social media rabbit holes. Everyone in that room felt connected by something primal and powerful.

Although some fights broke out toward the end of the show, the pit was active but respectful, more like a communion of fury than chaos. When the band broke into “Don’t Care” and a few newer cuts after the Cause of Death set, the energy never dipped. It was a perfect synthesis of past and present, proof that Obituary isn’t just surviving—they’re thriving.
The Legacy of Cause of Death and Obituary’s Role in Metal’s DNA
You can’t talk about death metal without Obituary. Cause of Death helped shape the genre’s identity and set the tone for countless bands that followed—many of whom couldn’t replicate the band’s chemistry, groove, or sheer sense of doom.

While other Florida death metal legends like Death, Morbid Angel, and Deicide pushed boundaries in different directions—technicality, speed, Satanism—Obituary stayed focused on what they do best: crushing grooves, sepulchral atmosphere, and an almost bluesy sense of rhythm buried beneath the filth. That choice made them timeless.

The 35th Anniversary Tour is more than a celebration; it’s a statement. It tells younger bands and audiences: this is where the sound was born. This is still how it’s done.

For those looking for Obituary 2025 tour review, Obituary live at The Bellwether, or Cause of Death anniversary tour setlist, this night delivered:
Full performance of “Cause of Death” in album order
John Tardy’s vocals remain unmatched
Obituary proves why they are death metal legends
Nails’ blistering opening set laid the groundwork for annihilation
The Bellwether confirmed as a premier LA venue for heavy music
Obituary 2025 tour merch is a collector’s dream—grab it while you can
Final Thoughts: Death Metal Never Dies
Obituary’s 35th Anniversary celebration of Cause of Death is more than just a victory lap. It’s a brutal reminder of where death metal came from and a clear indication that the genre, and this band, are not going anywhere. The Bellwether show was transcendent, nostalgic, and vital all at once.

For those of us who grew up with this music, this tour is a gift—a reminder of why we fell in love with heavy music in the first place. For the new generation, it’s a brutal education. Either way, it’s knowledge is essential.

If you’ve got the chance to catch this tour—do not miss it. Obituary is still writing the book on death metal, and Cause of Death is its sacred text.

Words: Danny Baraz

Photos: Taylor Wong
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                    [post_date] => 2021-08-26 09:41:39
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                    [post_content] => There was a time when for me, going to Psycho Las Vegas meant budgeting only enough money to eat McDonalds for three days while I slept on a friend's couch in some lawless Vegas neighborhood so far off the strip, Ubers wouldn't dare travel to such unsavory corners. Now, in the post-pandemic world, I report on Psycho with new purpose. This year, I was staying in a Delano scenic suite high above the city and budgeted enough money to properly chase the American dream.

Raoul Duke's American dream in Hunter Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was a metaphor for the limits of human consciousness. With freedom as the central American covenant, what greater expression of patriotism is there than breaking free of reality's chains by dosing yourself past every threshold? Now though, as I take that same trip as Duke in 2021, my search for the American Dream is a futile attempt to connect with a time long gone. You might assume I mean the world before the pandemic but I also mean that beautiful era in music history where rock and metal bands could draw crowds as far as the eye can see. How do we recover these glory days? Going to Psycho Las Vegas is a good start, I might've been wearing a mask but for this time I was lodging in style. In some strange ways, my life actually got better after 'the reset'.



I wasn't alone in my search for the American dream. There were others swimming against the current too, fighting to keep their dreams intact. Some of those people were the organizers of Psycho Las Vegas, who had their own dream. Lets call it the "The Dream of Psycho Las Vegas". With the best metal festival lineup ever featuring Mercyful Fate and Emperor falling apart in 2020, they dreamed of putting on 2021's festival against all odds.

It was during Obituary's set that I tapped into The Dream of Psycho Las Vegas. It bit me like a virus, and for a moment I saw through the eyes of the festival itself. I saw a hidden world of possibility for metal and underground music. In this dream, bands like Midnight, High on Fire or Down played arena stages instead of clubs, as if giant venues weren't just a for mainstream acts anymore. The Dream of Psycho Las Vegas is to raise the ceiling for all forms of underground music. I opened my eyes and realized I was watching Obituary in such an arena with a giant mass of screaming fans behind me and it was all thanks to Psycho Las Vegas.
related content: A High And Beautiful Wave: Psycho Las Vegas 2019


There were doubters every step of the way, but there was no way Psycho Las Vegas 2021 was going to be postponed, called-off, or cancelled. Having dodged so many bullets and kept the ship above water no matter what turbulence came their way, it almost became a matter of principle, realizing this dream. It's a tale of courage and a triumph of the human imagination, that against all odds, the center held and we packed Mandalay Bay with every sort of rocker. Together, with every attendee having each others' backs, we were going to fight for our right to party.

The original Psycho Las Vegas 2020 and 2021 lineups were filled with numerous international acts from all over the world. As the majority of these bands became victims of Covid immigration restrictions, changes kept harping on this vigilant little metal fest. Then a few domestic bands began dropping out, catching covid, or trying to avoid this new delta variant pandemic--others refused to perform while any mandates were enforced. "They're dropping like flies" fans remarked on message boards, while praying for the festival's success. Despite all this, there was never any sign Psycho Unlimited was going to back down.



Finally, when I arrived at Mandalay Bay on Thursday for Psycho Swim, I realized there was no stopping this runaway train. Hell or high-water, this was happening. We were going to pack the arena and House of Blues to the brim. We were going to swim together and mosh in the pool together. Let the chips fall where they may. Those that caught sick afterward, swear they would do it all over again.
Psycho Swim
Before heshers, punks, and desert rockers began pumping in and out Mandalay Bay to clot at its four stages, the Daylight Beach club was open for the festival's pre-show, Psycho Swim. Tattooed naked flesh bathing under a hot Vegas sun as stoner, garage, psych and metal bands played for us in a photograph of vintage Vegas come to life. Such moments of pure luxury and TLC for rockers are so rare, they might only be possible at Psycho.



Here Lies Man

I had been meaning to catch these Psycho certified psych rockers for a long while, considering they've successfully married psych rock and afro-beat and I am a life long lover of Kuti family music. Fela's influence was evident in the music's jamming organ flourishes and upbeat rhythms, I found my feet shuffling in a psych rock flurry. My spirits were lifted by this music that seemed so connected to the Earth.



Blackwater Holylight

These Portland doom rockers have more witch drip than a coven of cauldron stirring ladies. Finally bringing some much needed female energy into the doom game, the world of underground music could some day be this band's oyster. With so many women thriving in punk, it's good to see such representation in metal too. They ripped Psycho Swim up, weaving slow, churning doom spells to entrap us. Blackwater Holylight is the perfect band to introduce doom to the psych rock, Desert Daze crowd.



Polyrhythmics

What would Psycho be without some kind of lounge element? Even though they're from Seattle, Polyrhythmics put the Las Vegas in Psycho Las Vegas with light, satirical, instrumental kickback music that acts as social lubricant for us Psychos to mingle. Incorporating wind and brass instruments for a big band feel, their covers tickle a very curious nerve that sends a soft rush of serotonin through every part of your brain.



Death Valley Girls

Janky Smooth have been big supporters of DVG since the beginning. Seeing them at Psycho Las Vegas elevated both the band and festival in our eyes. The band joined the Psycho family and gained a new audience inclined to more extreme sorts of music. By having Death Valley Girls play, Psycho Las Vegas became certified insiders to the LA underground music scene. As for their performance, this was the best set I've seen Death Valley Girls play. They were ferocious, making this summer outdoor setting felt like a garage. Time and place meant nothing, DVG hadn't played a show for over a year so they let completely loose and impressed the hell out of everyone.
related content: Halloween At The Roxy W/The Evil Ones: Roky Ericksen & Death Valley Girls


Bongzilla

A stoner metal band so in tune with their fans, they dropped Weedeater references because we were all so high, we could've mistaken one band for the other. That's not true, there's a certain metal edge to Bongzilla's riffs that cut through the haze like no other stoner metal bands do. Mike "Muleboy" Makela's demonically screeching vocals sound like they require at least three blunts straight to the dome. The riffs were so heavy and intense, the pool water shivered. Bongzilla perfectly ushered in the night at Daylight Beach Club and as the sun set over Las Vegas, Psycho Swim turned a darker direction.
related content: Midnite Communion V: Los Globos Doom Spa With Bonzilla And Bongripper


Old Man Gloom

Old Man Gloom were so shockingly heavy and brutal they inspired very vicious lines of thinking in all those who paid witness. Lots of demons were exorcized with this intense set to end the evening. Everyone was on their feet and out the pool, moshing and headbanging like crazy. The band was insanely tight, everyone playing off each other, as if they were trying to impress each other by upping the ante heavier and heavier. Serrated riffs and gnashing vocals cut each audience member into imperfect halves.

We all felt more bestial after Old Man Gloom, hungry for more metal after having been given such a small taste after a diet of psych all day. We had to take our frustrations out on the night, numbing our minds, dulling our senses, and perverting reality with whatever plants or substances were available. We slept little but dreamed entire Psycho sagas, the fever was only beginning. We were getting high off each other, not sick off each other.


Friday
Staying in a Delano scenic suite, all that stood before me and the hot Las Vegas wind was a thick pane of glass and two thin cloth curtains. Outside, Luxor's ebony pyramid obelisk sent a beacon of light straight up into the heavens to summon aliens down to party. I could stay up all night, long passed the music, just staring out into that vast circuit board of neon demons, lost souls, dope fiends, pimps, tricks, succubi, wrestlers and rockers. When that giant night light finally went out and the sun rose to blister the building's golden side, I knew it was time for a long shower and quick cigarette.



Staying at the Delano offers exposure to all sorts of celebrity variants, especially on a busy weekend like this. Rock stars, wrestlers, boxers, tourists and Michael Jackson acolytes mingled among the Mandalay masses. On my way to take a quick smoke in the Delano's secluded smoking area, I reached into my pocket and realized I was without fire. I made my way to the Eyecandy lounge hoping to find a lighter, only to find a light in the form of a man. This man, who has played music with such bands as Kyuss, Blast!, The Dwarves and now Stöner, was Nick Oliveri. Nick was gracious enough to have a cigarette with me outside where none other than Phil Anselmo was hanging out. I was real with Nick but couldn't help but stoop to pure starstruck, idiotic fandom around Phil. After getting a selfie with both legends, I made my way to the festival with whatever music celebrity shine those men had rubbed off on me. The Psycho hour arrived.

DEATHCHANT

There is actually hope for rock and roll. Of all the young, fresh blood I encountered on this trip, I saw the most potential out of DEATHCHANT. They had the tattoos, the hair, the fashion and the girls of a band everyone can identify as cool. Desert rockers with a love of metal and punk that could've rode their hogs through the casino floor, ripping up the carpeting, to arrive at the Rhythm and Riffs lounge and demolish that too. With guitars that blast and peak with Schenker style proficiency but with a dark and bluesy edge, it's a classic sound that's been dirtied up and served raw for a more barbaric and drunken crowd. Lemmy would be proud. Iommi would be proud. DEATHCHANT could very well bring back the rock and roll attitude that makes people aspire to be lawless. Los Angeles is sorely in need of this band. There's other cats out there trying to do the same thing, but I don't believe a single one of them but DEATHCHANT. I want to see DEATHCHANT play more LA shows ASAP because once they do, they will change the scene.



Toke

These riffs were so thick you could almost see them form a haze that hotboxed the House of Blues. If you saw this band after a fresh few hits of a hash-laden joint, you'd know they create the perfect sound to ride any high into oblivion. You could leave your entire body and demolecularize into a bunch of smoke spirals dancing with every riff. There was so much groove, so much vibration buzzing out the amps, so much thunder crashing out the drums, it was an experience that lit up every nerve-ending in your body. Do an experiment, blast Toke on repeat and see a layer of shatter wax form and solidify over every object and wall in the room.

Khemmis

On the road to Psycho, milling through a playlist of artists at the festival, my first reaction to Khemmis was disinterest. This was my kind of doom metal. The vocals were too clean, the riffs too beautiful. Usually, I want a sonic funeral out of a doom band. That was not Khemmis because more than any band I saw on Friday, Khemmis' guitars brought me back to life. They can be slow and brooding, but the climbing, ascending nature of their sound coupled with their harrowing vocals, told an epic story that listeners could feel clear as day. This set didn't just inspire praise, it inspired pure awe.

King Dude

The first time I saw King Dude, he was a picture of perfect cool, a Luciferian James Dean. This time, it seemed like he borrowed a page from Death in June because this was like watching a ritual from some desert tribe on a black sand planet with a burning black sun--like an evil Mdou Moctar. Dressed in black robes and shawls that covered every inch of body, King Dude strummed out maladies for this dead new age we've entered as his percussionist provided the war drumming. A large white cross was projected behind them with a fire burning down everything we once knew about the world. This was high art. This was a statement. This was the philosophy of Frederich Nietzsche turned music. King Dude sang us stories of pain and sorrow but the totality of the experience, the clothes, songs, and visuals told the story of a sad future that was as certain as the grave.



Obituary

This performance perfectly encapsulated the future of metal. To begin with, Obituary is to me, the greatest death metal band alive. There are other bands with more iconic albums and histories but as far as active, touring bands go, no group does it better. Where some death metal bands opt for pure brutality, Obituary chooses grooves that somehow tap directly into every hesher's central headbanging vein. The idea of having Obituary play an arena, immediately makes the gears in ones head spin, imagining what sorts of chaos can transpire. Whereas audiences were hesitant to mosh and crowd surf for other bands, they threw all risk out the window to party as hard as possible for Obituary. Remember the Dream of Psycho Las Vegas, the thought you can only be crazy to have, that underground music may someday be as popular as pop. Psycho Las Vegas is a necessary step in the evolution of extreme bands like Obituary, to some day compete with the likes of Metallica or Green Day for space on such big stages. If you can visualize this dream then it can become reality, just give it time and more Psycho Las Vegas festivals.
related content: OC Rots Slow: Obituary, Abbath, and Midnight At The Observatory


The Sword

The Sword are the one metal band every strictly psych rock kid should like. With epic tales as the subject of songs with heavy, bombastic, fuzzy riffs, Mandalay Beach banged as waves and bodies came crashing into each other. This was the final set of my Friday at Psycho, The Sword had sliced across the Vegas night with a sound so sharp and heavy it cut from coast to coast.
Saturday
Friday evening I returned to my room to find a goodie bag waiting on my desk. Left there by some thief in the night, I sifted through all the gifts left by Psycho Claus and found cups, coasters, cards, and more. The bag had a Psycho Waxx decal because this was the first year of Psycho Unlimited's in-house record imprint. Specifically curated for Psychos by Psychos, the label intends to press live recordings and special releases like Love me Forever: A Tribute to Motörhead, onto vinyl. All festival long, Psycho Waxx's Instagram would post the slew of artists that went into the studio to record Motörhead covers. These artists included Mothership, Matt Pike, Lord Buffalo, Blackwater Holylight and many more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IX8jCp5CuE&feature=emb_title

I went to sleep dreaming of what sorts of other merchandise I could snag. I wanted shirts, pants, tatts, wax, 777 pins and Danzig posters that glow in the dark. So, the first place I went was the Psycho Showroom. As it so happens, heaven has a huge selection of band shirts, some from bands that weren't even playing the festival. I wanted one thing in particular, a Down shirt. Thirty dollars poorer, I rode my shopper's high to the first band of my day, Unto Others.

Unto Others

Classic speed metal from Portland, Unto Others taps into the elements that made metal such an important genre from its very beginning. Their intentions and passion are unmistakable because they lay it all out there.

Eighteen Visions

House of Blues was the destination to be for this early afternoon set which marked my first hardcore set of the weekend. Eighteen Visions might just be the best metalcore band of their era, I certainly give them credit even though I'm much less accepting of other bands in the genre. Eighteen Visions can't be denied, they show nothing short of stage mastery during a performance and kick out the jams to make Psycho mosh pits turn into Psycho slam dance sessions.



Deafheaven

Infinite Granite was released the day before this performance so part of me was hoping I'd get to George Clarke singing clean vocals. Even though my hopes were dashed by a mostly black metal set, with favorites off New Bermuda, I could understand why the band held off from performing the new stuff. They simply need more time to perfect it because Deafheaven performances aim for perfection. There's no such thing but the band comes close to achieving it, with guitar work that always hits the right mark and choreography by Clarke that turns the performance into a ballet, making some songs more emotional and other songs colder and more distanced. Regardless, I fall more in love with Deafheaven every time I see them because their music requires each player to dig so deep, that the audience descends into their musical quicksand with them.



Thievery Corporation

Perhaps Thievery Corporation were the one group most out of left field on the Psycho Las Vegas 2021 lineup but when I saw Rob Garza on a sitar, I immediately saw the inherent "Psycho" in the band. Thievery Corporation is such a familiar name for mainstream festivals like Coachella that they've turned making audiences feel together as one into some kind of science. The band plays a hodgepodge of music from different genres and cultures to achieve this phenomenon--everything from reggae, Indian music, middle-eastern music, hip hop, and more, all exploding out the minds of a band who at their core were an electronic duo form DC with big trip hop dreams.

Silvertomb

Type O Negative has been one of my favorite bands ever since I was first introduced to extreme metal. Silvertomb, featuring Johnny Kelly and Kenny Hickey, went on to play a mix of doom and desert rock that brought a large crowd out to the Rhythm and Riffs lounge. Just hearing those chilling Type O synth flourishes made the hair on everyone's necks stand up. Though the music is completely different than Type O, I love the direction they've gone. There's a certain coolness and classic sensibility to their dark sci-fi, desert tunes.

Flaming Lips

Able to make any music festival more dream-like and fantastical, where the Flaming Lips go, euphoria and smiles from ear to ear follow. Their set began with "Race for the Prize", a song that has never been more relevant as science races for a Covid cure in real time. Wayne Coyne in all his humility dawned a mask onstage while he sang, more so to lead by example and show that he was no more invulnerable to Covid or above the Las Vegas indoor mask mandate than anyone else in the arena. As soon as their signature pink giant robot inflated and they went into "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots", the entire audience cheered with a barrage of karate chops. The hits came rolling in until closing their set with "Do You Realize?", when every metalhead had a tear in their eye or their arm around their loved one or their phone recording to show the moment to a friend they love. We left the arena with an aura of psychedelic color around us that acted like a shield from any dark vibrations, unless of course we let them in...which we did time and time again, first with Danzig, then Cannibal Corpse, and finally with Cult of Fire. By the end of my night, that aura was completely blackened.
related content: Silver Lake Perris: Desert Daze 2019
Danzig

I think I've seen Danzig perform more times than any other artist. In that two decades of concert-going and Danzig worship, there were plenty of songs I wished were mainstays in his sets but I never had the privilege of hearing. It was only at Psycho Las Vegas 2021 that I ever heard a few of my favorite Danzig songs performed live, mostly because these songs were on Danzig II: Lucifuge. Songs like "Killer Wolf", "Devil's Plaything", "I'm the One", and more, are songs that Danzig acolytes regularly blast in the car but rarely see live. Prior to the show, everyone was wondering if Glenn could pull off the singing, seeing as Lucifuge is a very vocally demanding album and his voice has suffered with age. For this headlining set though, his vocals were pristine. Quite frankly, he killed it and so did Tommy Viktor on guitar. This had to be one of the highlights of my entire festival.
related content: All I Want For Christmas Is "Blood And Tears": Danzig's Halloween Hell Bash At Fivepoint Amphitheatre
Cannibal Corpse

Cannibal Corpse was one of the few death metal legends I had never seen until this year's Psycho and boy howdy, did they leave a mark. Power Trip's Mandalay Beach set in 2019 set the bar for how a pool mosh pit ought to erupt but Cannibal Corpse raised that bar as water was spraying in every direction coming from the ring of fire circle pit that blazed without a moment's restraint. With Corspegrinder tearing through his vocal chords and that hellish Florida death metal groove bringing everyone to the edge of insanity, there was no comparable level of aggression anywhere during the festival.
related content: Photo Recap: Decibel Magazine Tour With Cannibal Corpse At The Fonda


Cult of Fire

Ritualized fire burned a trail across the Atlantic as a masked black metal band from Prague named Cult of Fire brought their Vedic death cult inspired antics to the House of Blues for the burning out of Saturday's flame. Where a band like Batushka is inspired by Byzantine imagery with gold trims, oval shaped skulls and elongated Christs; Cult of Fire, on the other hand, takes their inspiration from Vedic lore, as the Goddess Kali with her necklace of skulls and evil sharp-tongued smile adorned their visuals. If the Temple of Doom had a band, Cult of Fire would eat their still-beating hearts out their chests. As their bassist and guitarist sat atop serpentine thrones, their singer belted out a chant of minimalist, black metal vocals. Even though there was a subtle satire to their show, when it was all over, we felt like we were part of a ritual, baptism by sonic fire that burned to the bone and sucked out the marrow.


Sunday
Four days might be too long for a Vegas vacation. The mind starts to warp after three. By Sunday, we realized there was no way of getting off the ride this far after buying the ticket. All the damage had been done, we made it this far and survived but we were driven a bit mad, all of us in some kind of collective fever dream, a Lord of the Flies for Las Vegas. You start to see all the festival's catchphrases serve a purpose, they don't call it America's Rock and Roll Bacchanal to be cute. At one point at Mandalay Beach, fans began worshipping dildos in Dionysian madness. We were not in our minds, you see. That's the only way you can make sense of us and everything we did these four days. Tourists started eyeballing us more strangely, we were sick but they caught the fear. They were afraid of us, not that we'd snap at them but that with so many of us all in one place, their rules wouldn't stood a chance against us.



Morning at the McDonald's across the street from Mandalay Bay began to play out like sick jokes. Before leaving my hotel room, I had to choose between an Integrity shirt and a Midnight shirt and went with Midnight since it was more colorful. It must've been a stroke of intuition because when I arrived at McDonalds, I came across a chaotic scene and twist of fate. The lobby was closed to the public and only taking orders via app, damning all the homeless and phoneless to go hungry. Shooting the shit with a few festival goers, they started busting my balls about my shirt only to reveal I was talking to none other than Jamie Walters, singer of Midnight, who's flip phone couldn't order him the simple coffee he wanted. We talked about a slew of things, from how Anti-Seen should play Psycho 2022 to how this particular McDonalds was a constant shit show. Returning to Mandalay Bay, coffee in hand, I couldn't wait to see Jamie again onstage.

Integrity

I've always been a big fan of Dwid Hellion's demonic genius. Even though he's built like a tank, sometimes people get the idea he's a big softie, something that might cross your mind if you heard him DJ. However, when you look into the apocalyptic hardcore metal landscapes he imagines, you come to know this man's dreams are deeply connected with darkness. Dwid's signature growls and screams coupled with Integrity's metallic guitar riffs have made them transcend the hardcore roots from which the band came. Sets that grab you with such striking intensity as Integrity on the main stage, make you reconsider everything you once thought was extreme music.
related content: Catch One Hell Of A Night With Integrity And Pageninetynine Presented By Psycho Entertainment


Midnight

Midnight have grabbed the torch that was lit by bands like Motörhead and Venom and taken that dirty rock and roll sound deeper underground than anybody. This raw, rabid hybrid of metal and punk can feel downright satanic as Jamie sings with his gnarled, gnashing vocal. Proudly hailing from virus-infested Cleveland (in Jaime's own words), the band turned this set into one giant rager for the deranged lowlives in all of us. The band gave a member of the audience a bottle of Jack Daniels to swig and pass around and by the time the set was over not a single inhibition was left in the room.
related content: Speedy Speedy Speed Metal: Midnight At Union


Amigo the Devil

Amigo's acoustic music is as metal as folk gets with satire-rich lyrics that make you think, feel, laugh, and sometimes cry. Amigo's humor is only surpassed by his passion and his passion is only surpassed by the size of his heart. You can feel it in his songs, not only that he's a ball to be around but that he's probably a great friend because his songs speak to everyone with an air of familiarity. Funny and sometimes morbid, there's something extremely human about every song he shared with the Rhythm and Riffs lounge.
related content: Down Home Ho Down: Roots Roadhouse 2019
Down

There's no matching the bands that make up the New Orleans supergroup known as Down. Be it Pantera, COC, Goatwhore or Crowbar, the combined essences of these groups came together to honor the city they were from and with the NOLA album, they gave everyone a raw, sludgy, dark, and often times too-real-for-poetry taste of the South. This was one of the sets I was most excited about, seeing as Pantera was my favorite band growing up. As soon as Pepper Keenan and Kirk Windstein started jamming, the arena shrunk into a very murky, smoke-filled New Orleans dive. This was pure rock and roll, down to the bone. When Phil arrived to be greeted by the smell of pot in the air, the set was kicked off with "Pray for the Locust". Within a few songs, I realized I knew every lyric that was coming our way and began singing, grooving, and smoking with everyone. Finishing the first part of their set with their biggest song, "Stone the Crow", the band returned for an encore that featured "The Seed" and one of the heaviest stoner reveries of all time, "Bury Me In Smoke".



Broken Hope

A good friend of mine has a tattoo of Broken Hope. Asking him about the tattoo led me to the music and after admiring all Broken Hope's evil, gory imagery, I knew I had to see this band live. To me, they are the best of the gore death metal bands, surpassing icons like Cannibal Corpse. Their music is much more unapologetic, guttural and violent. A Broken Hope show leaves any venue a bloody mess, so after Down was finished and we were all nicely stoned, I needed to be snapped back awake with a sound that could very well get me killed if I took a wrong step in the pit. Each player knew how to put on a show with their instrument while the singer, Damian Leski is a completely power house, the perfect sort of monster to front a death metal band. The entire set I was headbanging and grooving, my body so happy to be under such an evil spell. With blood and guts raining down upon us with every growling lyric, I truly felt shook up after this set.



Stöner

One of the most anticipated sets of the festival had to be Stöner, seeing as it was a reunion of former Kyuss members Brant Bjork and Nick Oliveri. Because Nick was my spirit guide for this festival, I felt obligated to witness him and it turned out to be one of my favorite sets of the whole festival. I never knew I liked stoner rock as much as I liked this. Part of the reason for that is because I feel most stoner bands have a sound that isn't essentially stoner. Stöner though, was the textbook definition of good stoner and desert rock. Unlike metal, the feeling of lawlessness imbued to a listener of Stöner's music has nothing to do with darkness or violence. It doesn't even have much to do with sex. It's totally about freedom and living by your own rules. This music accepts that the system we're in sucks but instead making a big fuss about it, the truly free find ways to make the most of a raw deal. Brant Bjork's guitar sounded brilliantly dusty and thick. Nick's bass grooved and puffed along like a motorcycle's marijuana infused-exhaust. Then Ryan Güt's drumming topped it off with the sonic message that in this life you gotta dance to the beat of your own drum if you ever want to survive without going sane like the rest of these robots. Stöner was the perfect band for the few humans left among us.

Repulsion

I decided to finish my Psycho Las Vegas by seeing grindcore legends Repulsion. After experiencing such a wide range of emotions during this festival, from joy to love to pain to loss, I knew disgust was the only thing missing from making this journey complete. Repulsion were fucking amazing, with drumming so wild and schizophrenic and singing so brutal and extreme, it almost felt like grindcore had overpowered every genre represented previously in the weekend.


Epilogue
Monday morning I woke up to the news Eric Wagner, legendary singer of Trouble and the Skull had died of coronavirus. This was only a few days after he was set to play Psycho Swim. Seeing as The Skull was the band I was hoping to see most on Thursday before they had to be switched out, hearing the news made my heart sink into my chest. I felt enough genuine sadness to almost reconsider all my positions about trying to live the life you deserve in the midst of this crisis. Over the many forums revolving around Psycho Las Vegas, news broke of a few positive Covid tests after attending the festival. I suppose only time will tell if this gamble paid off but my hunch is it most certainly will. Life had to be lived, it couldn't stop for anyone. The best we can all do is take the necessary measures to protect ourselves and the people around us.

I left Psycho with two lessons stuck in my mind, both I arrived at purely experiencing live music. They didn't need to be overt or explicit with any message, I could feel what these sets meant in my guts. Obituary on the main stage represented the future of underground music. With festivals like Psycho, extreme and underground bands that have worked their asses off their entire careers might get the chance to play the same venues as pop icons. This isn't about artists becoming so popular that their music gets watered down--this is about artists getting every bit of credit they deserve. Stöner's set taught me that the only way to not to let this life run you down is to live by your own rules. In a sense, Psycho is the place where people crazy enough to be free can congregate and teach others how to do the same. So long as you don't want to be sane, Psycho will always be a home for you.



Lastly, I'll finish this review with a few lists.

Bands I wish I saw:

 	
Pig Destroyer
 	
Poison the Well
 	
Adamantium
 	
Cephalic Carnage
 	
OSEES
 	
Drab Majesty
 	
Dying Fetus
 	
Eyehategod
 	
Full of Hell
 	
Dengue Fever

Top ten favorite sets of Psycho Las Vegas 2021:

 	
Down
 	
Danzig
 	
Obituary
 	
Stöner
 	
Flaming Lips
 	
Broken Hope
 	
Midnight
 	
Deafheaven
 	
Cannibal Corpse
 	
Khemmis

Bands I want to see play at Psycho Las Vegas 2022 (because fantasy booking is what music nerds do):

 	
Wormrot
 	
Anti-Seen
 	
Taake
 	
Bloodhound Gang/Jimmy Pop
 	
Crypt Sermon
 	
Current 93
 	
Skepticism
 	
Merzbow
 	
Sturgill Simpson
 	
Emma Ruth Rundle and Thou

Words by: Robert Shepyer

Photos by: Anthony Mehlhaff
                    [post_title] => Hell or High Roller: Psycho Las Vegas 2021
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                    [post_content] => Later this month, I'll attend my first indoor concert since March 2020. People will not be wearing masks or social distancing. I'll have dipped my toes into the cultural soup I've swam in the majority of my adult life, relearning all the in's-and-out's of concert going. Stage-dives and mosh pits have been relegated to my long term memory banks awaiting to be unearthed. Although most metalheads will be breaking their concert fasts soon (if they haven't already), Psycho Las Vegas is the spiritual grand re-opening of the metal scene in the wild American west. As the first large festival to take place since the beginning of the pandemic, Psycho is a test much like the ones Hunter S. Thompson indulged in with Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters. Our senses may have been perverted, inverted, dulled and destroyed by lengthy quarantines but our imaginations are in better shape than ever and if I can imagine Psycho Las Vegas being the most insane heavy metal summit of my life, then I can will it into being.
related content: A High And Beautiful Wave: Psycho Las Vegas 2019




Before the world shut down, Psycho's 2020 lineup was one of the most anticipated slates of the year. It was part of what was going to make 2020 the most memorable year for live music in years with Mercyful Fate's only American date set for their reunion tour, a rare performance by Emperor, and Down's reunion. With the lineup reassembled against all odds, Psycho Entertainment was able to get the gang back together for 2021 sans Mercyful Fate who will be headlining next year's 2022 festival.

For those who have never attended Psycho Las Vegas, as a Los Angeles resident, it's the pretty much the best festival a stone's throw away. At Psycho Las Vegas, you can theoretically mosh and gamble at the same time, swim while a band is thrashing at the Beach stage and see bands that deserve arena sized venues getting to play to such crowds--like Weedeater on the main stage at Psycho 2019. That year was the first time the festival expanded into a home for all underground music. Now the common thread between any band on a Psycho lineup is simply that they enhance your trip. Since this is going to be the most important concert moment of my year, I'd like to thoroughly go through what bands I'm day dreaming about right now.
related content: Doom in Paradise: Psycho Smokeout At Catch One







Psycho Swim
Here Lies Man - This Afro-beat and psych inspired rock assault is the perfect soundtrack to add some color and jive to any trip on the come-down. It's an instant pick-me-up with plenty of eccentric peaks and valleys to ride the tide to.

Blackwater Holylight - These doom rock maidens have made an immediate impact on the West-coast's psych and stoner scenes so it's good to see them find their rightful place on a Psycho Las Vegas lineup. Peep this band if you want to see the future of sludge.

The Skull - These legendary musicians, formerly of the doom metal band Trouble, are incredible live. I saw them touring with Saint Vitus a few years back and was blown away and shocked they didn't sell out the fucking show with how great they were. Seeing them at the Beach stage is going to be wild.

Death Valley Girls - This bands is a staple of Los Angeles underground music. To see them on the lineup is simply proof that Psycho Entertainment has their finger right on the pulse of our scene. If you're at Psycho and from Los Angeles and miss this set, then you're not really a die hard head.
related content: Halloween At The Roxy w/The Evil Ones: Roky Ericksen & Death Valley Girls

Friday
DJ Painkiller - The Cha Cha's own, DJ Painkiller Kim Galdemez, is the face of LA's metal scene. This heavy metal heart throb hosts the best metal nights in LA, so it's only right she spins records at our little venture to the desert. Following her Born For Burning events are a must.

Pinback - I'm shocked that one of my favorite bands is playing one of my favorite metal festivals. It's almost like the lineup was curated just for me. Anyway, these math rock geniuses will provide a nice breath between all the hearing-loss we experience with a set of songs that will assuredly be good seeing as Pinback has never made a bad song.
related content: No Such Thing As A Bad Pinback Song At The Glasshouse


Mgla - Every true metalhead has been dying to see Poland's Mgla play. They're one of the names that jumped off the lineup the moment people saw it. Get ready for the most frigid black metal shock up the spine.

Satyricon - I thought I saw Satyricon's final tour but I'm happy I was wrong. They are one of the most badass black metal bands of all time. Everyone and their mother is going to boogie to this set, feeling that deep, headbanging sense of evil in the air that the band conjures up.
related content: Satyricon's Final Los Angeles Show At The Regent: A Night Too Blackened To Forget


Obituary - It's only right that the best death metal band ever is playing Psycho Las Vegas this year. Obituary knows exactly how to deliver death metal equal parts brutality and fun. Non-stop crowd surfing and moshing are to be expected for this one.
related content: OC Rots Slow: Obituary, Abbath and Midnight At The Observatory


Emperor - Historically, I consider Emperor the 2nd most "important" black metal band of all time only after Mayhem. Mayhem tours every so often but seeing Emperor in America is a rare experience guaranteed to melt your fucking face off. Their black metal is the sound of the most hellish war and I can't wait to see everyone's year-worth of pent up aggression be spilt out onto the floor.
Saturday
Silvertomb - If I could choose one band to see that I never got the chance to, it would be Type O Negative. Today, seeing Silvertomb is the closest I'll ever get so I'll take it. Thanks for making one of my dreams come true, Psycho!

Poison the Well - Last year, Poison the Well played a reunion one-off that sold out in mere minutes. This Psycho Las Vegas will be their first show since, so it is a must-see for anyone in the know. There may be a purist or two that isn't into this sort of metalcore but rest assured, this set will pop off harder than anything on Saturday.

Pig Destroyer - I can't wait to see Pig Destroyer. It'll be my first time. They're one of the gnarliest grind bands out there and will play the most extreme eargasms of the entire festival.

The Flaming Lips -  One of my favorite bands, it would be nothing short of a dream come true if the Flaming Lips were playing the beach stage for us to swim while the band went into their dreamy maladies. If this won't be the case, I'll still be head-over-heels happy with whichever stage they transport me from, so long as I go to that special place they take me to.
related content: Silver Lake Perris: Desert Daze 2019


Danzig - Danzig is one of my heroes, I've seen him numerous times but to finally hear songs of Danzig II: Lucifuge again, makes this outing especially important for any fan. Songs like "Killer Wolf", "I'm the One", and more haven't been part of his sets in years, so hearing them live again will make Saturday's metalheads swoon and headbang.


Sunday
Repulsion - Let the grind continue into Sunday with one of the genre's most classic and brutal bands. I have a sinking feeling this set will host some of day's most intense and guttural moments.

Midnight - No one can touch the fun and intensity of Midnight's pure thrash assault on the senses. Wherever your head will be at on Sunday, this set will screw it right back into place to bang no matter how sore your neck or how throbbing your headache.
related content: Speedy Speedy Speed Metal: Midnight At Union


Full of Hell - No one sounds like pure madness as much as Full of Hell. They simply reach sonic depths so gnarly, the mind struggles to fathom what it absorbs during their sets. Every time I see them, I'm shocked at what new Barker-esque hellscapes they introduce me to.
related content: When Quaint Gets Core: Home Sick 3 At The Glass House Pomona


Amigo the Devil - After all the pain we're going to inflict on each other, Amigo will provide the closeness and laughter to cement the bond us metalheads create over the weekend. I wouldn't be surprised if I saw a few heshers cry.
related content: Down Home Ho Down: Roots Roadhouse 2019


Down - Pantera was my favorite band in middle-school. Without them, I would've never been introduced to extreme metal in all its varieties. So, anything Phil Anselmo ever gets himself into always peaked my interest. I still lament passing on buying the last En Minor shirt at Psycho 2019. This year, with Down reuniting to close out Psycho's main stage, I will be sure to leave the festival with a memorabilia in tow, be they shirts, bruises, or a horse throat after singing all those broken, brooding New Orleans sludge metal requiems that this supergroup is famous for.

Words by: Robert Shepyer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
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                    [post_content] => For the longest time, I was consumed with the debate on who should be considered the best death metal band of all time. The usual suspects always make the list of the death metal big four: Death, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, and then the last spot seems to fluctuate between a myriad of bands. Taking their current status in the scene in regard, I thought Possessed had surpassed Cannibal Corpse and Morbid Angel, earning them the top spot. They still sound incredible live and put on wild shows that nearly topple the venue. However, after their sold out show at Orange County's Observatory, I'm sorry but the top of that list is a spot reserved only for Obituary. You can take the band's history as a partial reason why, they've been "slowly rotting" for 3o years now but for me, it's all about the sonic power and how they make me feel. Having seen all the competition, nothing compares to Obituary.
related content: The Battle Of The Bays: Obituary & Exodus Clash At Teragram Ballroom




This was one of most anticipated tours of the year for metalheads, with a stacked lineup that featured Devil Master on first. Having witnessed their Psycho Las Vegas set and been totally blown away by both their rigid riffs and gothic ambiance, I had high hopes that were met during this opening set. With spider webbing and corpse paint adorning the stage and players, Devil Master imprints itself on your mind, rotting it away.
related content: A High And Beautiful Wave: Psycho Las Vegas 2019












Midnight was perhaps the most anticipated band of the evening as far as the true underground was concerned. Their Catch One headlining show from last year drove home the idea they are indeed one of the most wild live metal bands you could ever see. It's a Venom-inspired thrash sound with dirty riffs, bass, and drums that get a crowd going to a fever pitch. Add in the executioner's hoods, bullet belts, leather, jumping guitarists, and absolutely insane mosh pits and you've got a recipe for a beautiful disaster.
related content: Speedy Speedy Speed Metal: Midnight At Union
























Two legendary bands would grace the stage this evening and before Obituary, that second legend was former Immortal singer and black metal rock and roller, Abbath. With the attitude of the coolest uncle you've ever had and a true rock and roll stiff drinker, this dragon of a singer delivers some of the most insane and noisy black metal you can ever hear. His set was long and full of virtuosity from every member of the band. The entire range of sound within black metal was hit upon.

























Obituary were fucking incredible from start to finish. They were on fire for this performance. Metal guys and gals made the Observatory their bitch to their music, getting on stage to dive and high-five the band, and the boys from Florida were totally feeling it. Whether they be new songs like, songs of their 2018 self-titled masterpiece, or classics like "Slowly We Rot", I don't think I've ever heard death metal that connected more to my nerve ending and made me want to have a good time.







Words by: Rob Shepyer

Photos by: Dillon Vaughn

 

 

 
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Thrash is the father of every form of extreme metal on the heavy metal family tree. If it wasn't for Slayer there would be no death metal or black metal. There have always been bands that have teetered on the border of death and thrash metal, german thrash bands like Kreator and Sodom brought death metal vocals and heaviness into thrash, while bands like Obituary brought thrash metal accessibility and groove into death metal.

Perhaps that was always the secret to Obituary's longevity, of all the original Florida death metal bands, beginning with Chuck Shuldiner's Death then continued with Morbid Angel and Deicide, Obituary is the only band of the bunch still reigning. What separated Obituary's music from these other bands is that they took a more accessible, groove and rhythm approach to death metal, it wasn't a total noise fest of blast beats and guttural vocals. The band was always more seeped in their southern rock roots than the rest. Almost like how Weedeater is to stoner metal.
related content: Weedeater And The Obsessed At The Regent: Blaze It Up, Fool
The Florida death metal sound was born out of Tampa Bay in the Morrisound Recording studio but then across the country, on California's west coast, another bay area was having it's own extreme metal renaissance. San Francisco's thrash metal scene has always been a thing of legend, the most important band of which was of course Metallica but before Kirk Hammett was shredding in the biggest band in the world, he was playing in Exodus. And he hasn't been the only alumni guitarist of the band to move onto bigger things, Gary Holt first played in Exodus before replacing Hanneman in Slayer. The cross-pollination of Exodus into Big 4 bands, plus the undisputed power of their seminal album Bonded By Blood made Exodus legends of the scene. There's always been this weird trading of influences between the bays though, bands like Possessed and Autopsy were a big part of the first wave of death metal and once bands started integrated those influences with Florida's sound, that's when the aesthetics of this new genre were set in stone.


related content: Metallica At The Fonda: Best Thrash Band Of All Time Or CIA Asset?
So these were the stakes of war that led up to the battle of the bays. Whichever promoter conceived of this tour deserves a beer from each and everyone of us. Then to draft Power Trip and Germany's Dust Bolt into the mix just sends the bill into another stratosphere. As anyone would expect, the show sold out the Teragram Ballroom and even before any bands had gone on stage, the line was around the block and the parking lots were packed.

The first band was a thorough beating of thrash into our brains, right from the get-go. Dust Bolt is comprised of four young old-school thrashers, all with hair down to their asses. It was like seeing Sepultura during their Bestial Devastation days. Their solos were glorious and their pace was franticly fast. Seeing a young band demolish their set without any kind of millennial compromise, was deeply satisfying and filled me with hope for thrash decades into the future.
Power Trip went on second but felt like a straight up headliner with how many people were packed into the Teragram already and stoked for the band. And they were just as punishing in their short supporting set as they were when they headlined and sold out the Teragram earlier in the year. Songs like "Suffer No Sacrifice", "Nightmare Logic", and of course "Executioner's Tax" completely ripped through the audience as the pit overflowed with escaped mental patient fans. Just hearing the audience singing "Swinging the Axe!" with Riley Cayle brings me back to a place where my head bangs involuntarily.

related content: Power Trip & Destruction Unit Leave The Teragram In Ash And Rubble
The first headliner, Exodus, was next and immediately, I could feel the difference in performance and crowd reaction between a great new thrash band and a great veteran thrash band. Exodus had us eating out of the palm of their hands as they played flurries of solos and classic thrash bangers. The first few songs were mostly newer jams but soon, Steve Souza informed us the set would take a classic turn and for the rest of its duration, all the songs came off of Bonded By Blood, Tempo of the Damned, and Fabulous Disaster. The triple guitar attack of the band was truly something awesome to behold, I was paying more attention to the finger-work than the gestalt of the performance. It was a down and dirty, classic thrash show and the people responded as such, healthy amounts of violence and apathy abound. The band closed the set with another anthem "Strike of the Beast". Like the white pieces in a chess game, Exodus had to cast the first stone in this battle of the bays and with thrash as their weapon, dealt sizable damage to their opponents from the south-eastern coast... could Obituary retaliate and close the casket on this dual to the death?



Death metal might be more extreme than thrash but it certainly doesn't have to be as fast. It's not the child of punk rock quite like thrash is, so Obituary, who came on with slower grooves and rhythm than Dust Bolt, Power Trip, and Exodus, had the lofty challenge of slow playing their set into more brutal depths than Exodus and though the pit wasn't moving at quite the insane tempo as Exodus', it is in my humble opinion that after the dust was settled on the battle of the bays, Obituary came out victorious.



They were brutal. Touring their 2017 self-titled album and one of metal's best releases of the year, Obituary played a brooding and menacing set, with every veteran member of the band in total sync, playing off each other perfectly. Opening with their instrumental introduction to the band's hybrid sound, "Redneck Stomp", Donald Tardy's drumming became one of the most impressive showcases of the set. His brother, John Tardy's growling was just as blood curdling as ever, blazing through songs like "Chopped in Half" and "Slowly We Rot". Oh, how death metal song titles make my heart sing with joy.

Together, Obituary and Exodus played one hell of a show but like after any war, there are no winners, we all came out of that concert worse human beings than when we came in. I'm not even being facetious, think about it... our hearing was shattered, our flesh and bones were broken, and our innocence was lost forever. And yet, I don't think there have ever been a group of happier casualties.


related content: Pallbearer & Gatecreeper Stop At Echoplex Reminds Us-Guitar Solos Matter
I'll finish this article with the words shouted by Steve Souza at the end of Exodus' set:
Heavy Metal Forever!
Words by: Rob Shepyer

Photos by: Danny Baraz
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            [post_content] => This past Saturday, April 26th, in the year of our Lord, 2025, Obituary, along with Nails brought their tour celebrating 35 years of Cause of Death to The Bellwether in Downtown Los Angeles.



Tampa Florida’s Obituary released their second album, Cause of Death in 1990—35 years ago. I was a freshman in high school. I had never heard anything like it and I found out pretty quickly that NO ONE else had heard anything like it, either. My teenage feelings of suffering and despair and confusion and anger finally had a soundtrack. I was just getting into thrash metal and hardcore punk and picking up a guitar for the first time. My preferences leaned toward frenetic chaos with a high bpm. Fast and hard. But Obituary and Cause of Death showed me a new way—grinding, low tempo, heavy riffs that slowly dragged bodies across the floor. Sludgy breakdowns building to blast beat eargasms that changed my life forever. Slayer and others showed them the way but it was Cause of Death that had that mix of thrash and sludge that really got me off.  That cassette lived in my Walkman for a good 3 months, uninterrupted. It formally introduced a designation called Death Metal that would seed the heavy metal subgenre explosion for the next 3 decades.


Death Metal’s Relentless March: Obituary’s Enduring Influence
In the pantheon of death metal, Obituary has always stood apart. Formed in 1984 and originally known as Executioner, the band quickly found its identity in a swampy, guttural, and uniquely Floridian brand of sonic devastation. By the time Cause of Death dropped in 1990, they had already laid serious groundwork with 1989’s Slowly We Rot, but it was their sophomore effort that elevated them from promising pioneers to genre-defining legends.

 
related: Memoirs Of My First Acid Bath Show...
The 35th Anniversary Tour for Cause of Death isn’t just a trip down memory lane—it’s a testament to how enduring, brutal, and relevant this band and this album remain. In 2025, death metal is still thriving globally, but it owes much of its blueprint to what Obituary committed to tape in the late ’80s and early ’90s.


The Bellwether: A Shrine for the Sick
The Bellwether in Downtown Los Angeles is quickly becoming one of LA’s premier venues for heavy music. Tucked into the industrial edges of Downtown L.A., the theater has clean lines and great acoustics, and is among the top sonic experiences for venues of it's capacity- but on Saturday night, it transformed into a blood ritual chamber for the faithful.
related: Slayer's Final So-Cal Show at Five-Points Amphitheater
Before Obituary took the stage, the energy inside was already on a razor’s edge. Longhairs and leather jackets, patched vests and fresh merch, old-school lifers and young fanatics crowded the floor. The unifying factor? A shared reverence for Cause of Death and/or any of the bands on the lineup.  By the time Terror, Spirit World and Pest Control had finished their sets, blacked out heshers and ese's became aggressively grabby with people's girlfriend's in passing.  The mood inside was rank with jubilation and a bit of danger.






			

				
			
				

			

				
			
				

			

				
			
				
		


 
Nails: The Perfect Precursor to the Apocalypse
California’s own Nails opened the show with their trademark blend of grindcore and hardcore fury. If Obituary is the sound of the undead dragging themselves through a swamp, Nails is the explosion that follows a nuclear detonation. Their short set was an aggression- tightly wound and expertly executed. Songs like “You Will Never Be One of Us” and “Wide Open Wound” tore through the venue with alarming ferocity.


related: Earth Crisis, Strife and Snapcase Teardown Teragram Ballroom
It was a smart booking choice. Nails may play in a different stylistic zone, but they bring the same commitment to heaviness and raw emotion. Their presence on this tour reinforces the impact that Cause of Death had across the broader spectrum of extreme music. Death metal, grindcore, doom, blackened crust—everyone takes notes from Obituary, whether they admit it or not.


Obituary Live in 2025: Still Morbid, Still Crushing




When the lights dimmed and the intro to “Infected” started, the crowd roared like the opening of a demonic portal. Obituary launched into their set with a ferocity that belied their decades of service. John Tardy’s vocals are still a guttural marvel—non-lyrical in the traditional sense, but evocative of pain, power, and possession. His performance proved once again that there’s no one else who sounds quite like him.

The band played Cause of Death in its entirety, in order, a gift for the longtime fans. Each track landed like a tombstone hurled from a great height:



“Infected” set the stage with its unmistakable groove and death-thrash overtones.

“Body Bag” followed, every note coated in grime and dread.

“Chopped in Half” got the loudest early cheer—still one of death metal’s most iconic riffs.

“Circle of the Tyrants” (the Celtic Frost cover that became theirs) felt especially powerful live, a reminder of the band’s roots and inspirations.

“Dying” slowed things down into a hypnotic dirge.  This was the moment I had been waiting for.  For me, this was the seminal track off Cause of Death and maybe, their careers.  The lengthy and brutally mid tempo intro sets the dynamics for the entire song into the first breakdown.

“Turned Inside Out” brought the crowd back to life, ending the album playthrough on a triumphant, stomping high note.

Watching them perform this material with such intensity 35 years later felt less like nostalgia and more like renewal. It’s a brutal reminder of the album’s vitality.
The Lineup: Old School Meets Ageless Energy
Obituary’s current lineup is a dream for longtime fans: the Tardy brothers (John on vocals, Donald on drums), Trevor Peres on guitar, Terry Butler (ex–Death, ex–Six Feet Under) on bass, and Ken Andrews as second guitarist. This configuration has gelled into something formidable. There’s no coasting on legacy here—every riff was tight, every beat precise, every solo delivered with conviction.

Trevor Peres’ tone remains one of the most identifiable in metal: mid-scooped, bone-dry, and filthy as hell. Donald Tardy’s drumming is still a masterclass in restraint and groove—he’s one of the rare metal drummers who knows when not to play. Andrews and Butler round out the machine with steady, punishing force.
Cause of Death: A Sonic Autopsy, 35 Years Later
Released in 1990 on Roadrunner Records and produced by Scott Burns at Morrisound Studios, Cause of Death is a landmark album in the death metal genre. It bridged the gap between the raw fury of Slowly We Rot and the increasingly technical path the genre would take in the early ’90s.

The album is marked by its deliberate pacing, crushing riffs, and cavernous production. The artwork by Michael Whelan (originally intended for a Death album) became instantly iconic. I wore that t-shirt into a dust rag.  But more than anything, Cause of Death showcased Obituary’s refusal to conform to expectations. While their peers were speeding up and getting more technical, Obituary chose to slow down and dig deeper.

Songs like “Dying” and “Turned Inside Out” are perfect examples of death metal as a slow-motion demolition. Rather than machine-gunning everything into oblivion, they made you feel every ounce of weight behind each note. It was—and remains—a masterclass in heavy music.
A Live Experience Rooted in Community
At The Bellwether, it was impossible to miss how many generations were in the crowd. Obituary shows draw lifers, punks, and younger fans who are discovering death metal through streaming algorithms or social media rabbit holes. Everyone in that room felt connected by something primal and powerful.

Although some fights broke out toward the end of the show, the pit was active but respectful, more like a communion of fury than chaos. When the band broke into “Don’t Care” and a few newer cuts after the Cause of Death set, the energy never dipped. It was a perfect synthesis of past and present, proof that Obituary isn’t just surviving—they’re thriving.
The Legacy of Cause of Death and Obituary’s Role in Metal’s DNA
You can’t talk about death metal without Obituary. Cause of Death helped shape the genre’s identity and set the tone for countless bands that followed—many of whom couldn’t replicate the band’s chemistry, groove, or sheer sense of doom.

While other Florida death metal legends like Death, Morbid Angel, and Deicide pushed boundaries in different directions—technicality, speed, Satanism—Obituary stayed focused on what they do best: crushing grooves, sepulchral atmosphere, and an almost bluesy sense of rhythm buried beneath the filth. That choice made them timeless.

The 35th Anniversary Tour is more than a celebration; it’s a statement. It tells younger bands and audiences: this is where the sound was born. This is still how it’s done.

For those looking for Obituary 2025 tour review, Obituary live at The Bellwether, or Cause of Death anniversary tour setlist, this night delivered:
Full performance of “Cause of Death” in album order
John Tardy’s vocals remain unmatched
Obituary proves why they are death metal legends
Nails’ blistering opening set laid the groundwork for annihilation
The Bellwether confirmed as a premier LA venue for heavy music
Obituary 2025 tour merch is a collector’s dream—grab it while you can
Final Thoughts: Death Metal Never Dies
Obituary’s 35th Anniversary celebration of Cause of Death is more than just a victory lap. It’s a brutal reminder of where death metal came from and a clear indication that the genre, and this band, are not going anywhere. The Bellwether show was transcendent, nostalgic, and vital all at once.

For those of us who grew up with this music, this tour is a gift—a reminder of why we fell in love with heavy music in the first place. For the new generation, it’s a brutal education. Either way, it’s knowledge is essential.

If you’ve got the chance to catch this tour—do not miss it. Obituary is still writing the book on death metal, and Cause of Death is its sacred text.

Words: Danny Baraz

Photos: Taylor Wong
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Obituary At The Bellwether: 35 Years of Cause Of Death

Danny Baraz April 30, 2025

This past Saturday, April 26th, in the year of our Lord, 2025, Obituary, along with Nails brought their tour celebrating 35 years of Cause of Death to The Bellwether in Downtown Los Angeles. Tampa Florida’s Obituary released their second album, Cause of Death in 1990—35 years ago. I was a freshman in high school. I had never heard anything like it and I found out pretty quickly that NO ONE else had heard anything like it, either. My teenage feelings of suffering and despair and confusion and anger finally had a soundtrack. I was just getting into thrash metal and hardcore punk and picking up a guitar for the first time. My preferences leaned toward frenetic chaos with a high bpm. Fast and hard. But Obituary and Cause of Death showed me a new way—grinding, low tempo, heavy riffs that slowly dragged bodies across the floor. Sludgy breakdowns building to blast beat eargasms that changed my life forever. Slayer and others showed them the way but it was Cause of Death that had that mix of thrash and sludge that really got me off.  That cassette lived in my Walkman for a good 3 months, uninterrupted. It formally introduced a

Read More

Hell or High Roller: Psycho Las Vegas 2021

Rob Shepyer August 26, 2021

There was a time when for me, going to Psycho Las Vegas meant budgeting only enough money to eat McDonalds for three days while I slept on a friend’s couch in some lawless Vegas neighborhood so far off the strip, Ubers wouldn’t dare travel to such unsavory corners. Now, in the post-pandemic world, I report on Psycho with new purpose. This year, I was staying in a Delano scenic suite high above the city and budgeted enough money to properly chase the American dream. Raoul Duke’s American dream in Hunter Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was a metaphor for the limits of human consciousness. With freedom as the central American covenant, what greater expression of patriotism is there than breaking free of reality’s chains by dosing yourself past every threshold? Now though, as I take that same trip as Duke in 2021, my search for the American Dream is a futile attempt to connect with a time long gone. You might assume I mean the world before the pandemic but I also mean that beautiful era in music history where rock and metal bands could draw crowds as far as the eye can see. How do we recover

Read More

The Road to Psycho Las Vegas

Rob Shepyer June 12, 2021

Later this month, I’ll attend my first indoor concert since March 2020. People will not be wearing masks or social distancing. I’ll have dipped my toes into the cultural soup I’ve swam in the majority of my adult life, relearning all the in’s-and-out’s of concert going. Stage-dives and mosh pits have been relegated to my long term memory banks awaiting to be unearthed. Although most metalheads will be breaking their concert fasts soon (if they haven’t already), Psycho Las Vegas is the spiritual grand re-opening of the metal scene in the wild American west. As the first large festival to take place since the beginning of the pandemic, Psycho is a test much like the ones Hunter S. Thompson indulged in with Ken Kesey’s Merry Pranksters. Our senses may have been perverted, inverted, dulled and destroyed by lengthy quarantines but our imaginations are in better shape than ever and if I can imagine Psycho Las Vegas being the most insane heavy metal summit of my life, then I can will it into being. related content: A High And Beautiful Wave: Psycho Las Vegas 2019 Before the world shut down, Psycho’s 2020 lineup was one of the most anticipated slates of

Read More

OC Rots Slow: Obituary, Abbath, and Midnight at the Observatory

Rob Shepyer October 12, 2019

For the longest time, I was consumed with the debate on who should be considered the best death metal band of all time. The usual suspects always make the list of the death metal big four: Death, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, and then the last spot seems to fluctuate between a myriad of bands. Taking their current status in the scene in regard, I thought Possessed had surpassed Cannibal Corpse and Morbid Angel, earning them the top spot. They still sound incredible live and put on wild shows that nearly topple the venue. However, after their sold out show at Orange County’s Observatory, I’m sorry but the top of that list is a spot reserved only for Obituary. You can take the band’s history as a partial reason why, they’ve been “slowly rotting” for 3o years now but for me, it’s all about the sonic power and how they make me feel. Having seen all the competition, nothing compares to Obituary. related content: The Battle Of The Bays: Obituary & Exodus Clash At Teragram Ballroom This was one of most anticipated tours of the year for metalheads, with a stacked lineup that featured Devil Master on first. Having witnessed their

Read More

The Battle of The Bays: Obituary & Exodus Clash At Teragram Ballroom

Rob Shepyer October 12, 2017

Thrash is the father of every form of extreme metal on the heavy metal family tree. If it wasn’t for Slayer there would be no death metal or black metal. There have always been bands that have teetered on the border of death and thrash metal, german thrash bands like Kreator and Sodom brought death metal vocals and heaviness into thrash, while bands like Obituary brought thrash metal accessibility and groove into death metal. Perhaps that was always the secret to Obituary’s longevity, of all the original Florida death metal bands, beginning with Chuck Shuldiner’s Death then continued with Morbid Angel and Deicide, Obituary is the only band of the bunch still reigning. What separated Obituary’s music from these other bands is that they took a more accessible, groove and rhythm approach to death metal, it wasn’t a total noise fest of blast beats and guttural vocals. The band was always more seeped in their southern rock roots than the rest. Almost like how Weedeater is to stoner metal. related content: Weedeater And The Obsessed At The Regent: Blaze It Up, Fool The Florida death metal sound was born out of Tampa Bay in the Morrisound Recording studio but then

Read More