Havok, Krisiun, Death Angel and Sepultura at The Opera House, April 23rd

It was a dark and stormy night, when Tuco ventured out from the comforts of his doghouse to catch some Metal. Metal shows continue to be the best value in Toronto - not just in Decibels per dollar but in Bands per show. I expected two acts maybe three but four quality bands is a fantastic deal.

Got to the Opera House with some time to spare and settled in with a Moosehead and a look at the merchandise table. The artwork for Death Angel was pretty good but the Sepultura football (soccer) jersey hit the right subversive spots in my psyche. I made a mental note to find an ATM.

By this time, some chanting was coming through the stage speakers. Kind of a monk-like abbey sound but more ominous tone. This built for about a minute and then Havok appeared on stage launching into their first track. Great great opening!

Havok featured a tenor-ranged screaming singer/lead guitarist, bassist, rhythm guitarist and drummer. Fun songs without alot of menace. One of their songs was about No Karate in the Pit - singling out those clowns that like to channel their inner Steven Seagal when they should be moshing. Their best song was probably Covering fire. Here's the setlist

Next up was a trio called Krisiun. The bassist doubled as the vocallist with a more growling baritone range. A technical problem emerged through the first song where the guitar wasn't getting through. The tech guys, including one dude rocking a Megadeth "Killing Is My Business" patch on his jacket, went to work resolving the problem. In the mean time the drummer went on an impressive solo filling the few minutes in between. Nice job dude! Krisiun seemed a bit lower energy than Havok - less thrashy more doom. Apparently they are from Brazil as well.

Another thing that became apparent is that it's not easy getting a sound across that is both muddy and dissonant. Metal has alot of dissonance that requires a cleaner sound. Not sure whether it was the venue, the levels or the trio - the sound didn't really seem to work for the set. Here's the setlist

Grabbed another drink and set out looking for that ATM. Got the jersey and settled in for Death Angel. Death Angel has a longish history and is probably the most well known Filipino metal band out there. I've heard some of their studio stuff (decent) and was stoked they were on the bill.

Death Angel hit the stage and eased into their set. Here's the setlist. I listened to a few tracks on their Relentless Revolution album - pretty good.

Another break, another drink and finally, Sepultura took the stage. Green was rocking a Crowbar t-shirt (not the Canadian band, the American one). Was really impressed with Green - he's taken Sepultura in a different direction from Cavelera and while this Mark II version has yet to eclipse the original lineup, there's a different vibe that has it's pull. Green had a tom drum set up next to him that he would join in with on some tracks which was a neat effect. This leaves the guitar work to Andreas Kisser who seems very comfortable taking on the role of lone guitar. The drummer, while not Igor Cavelera, looked very intense and frankly a little juiced.

Good coverage of their catalog including my favourite Sepultura track Dead embryonic cells. Here's the setlist.