Concert Review by Billy The Fist
Heavy Metal Parking Lot. Man I’ll tell ya, these metalheads really know how to make the best of their concert experience. Upon our arrival at the San Manuel Amphitheater, we were lead to the free parking area which we knew would have the best tailgate parties. Pop-up tents were everywhere, BBQs a-blazing, radios blasting and tons of alcohol.
As I was waiting for my wiener to be grilled to perfection, I couldn’t help but notice all the people in the parking lot doing their thing. One thing that stood out was, as we were listening to our CDs and banging our heads, there were people in the distance banging their heads to their own tunes. Everyone was banging their heads out of sync, then would occasionally look around, hold up a drink and salute their fellow head banger. At that moment, I realized that indeed, we were all doing our own thing, but in a matter of hours, we’d all be as one, banging our heads in unison. It was great time in the parking lot, not one incident and the cops on patrol were very low key and non-intrusive.
The line to get in the venue was pretty long but we made the best of it, just hanging out in anticipation of the ride that was about to happen. Once inside, we made our way to the concession stand, picked our beverages of choice, and headed for our seats in the pit.
Lights down.
Testament kicked off the show with a scorching set of tunes that caught my attention right away. I have to admit that I’m not too familiar with their music, but I can say that it was the right way to get the party started.
Motorhead was next. I’m familiar with “Ace of Spades” and that’s about it when it comes to these guys. For some reason, they’ve always been under my radar. I can’t quite figure it out either because I love the bass guitar, and I like bassists that are lead singers, so it’s strange that I have no connection with this band. As for their performance, I thought they were a fairly tight group who were on target with the audience.
Supporting The Rules Of Hell, the five-CD boxed set featuring remastered versions of all four Dio-era Black Sabbath albums, Heaven and Hell were mind blowing. Ronnie James Dio sounded better than I’ve ever heard him. His voice seems to have no limits and he was hitting all the notes without much effort. His skills as a frontman are dead-on and he worked the crowd with style. Tony Iommi is a metal master and pioneer, and he didn’t let us down.
Geezer Butler is an influential bassist with his own signature sound and legendary tone. His style is synonymous with the songs of Black Sabbath and instantly recognizable. It was good to see him rocking out as hard as he could, standing about mid- stage halfway between the front and the drums and in front of his cabinets — you could tell he was in bass player heaven…. and so was I.
Vinnie Appice did a nice job and seemed to be a little more comfortable this time around. When I saw H&H at the Forum in 2007, Appice seemed too stiff and I heard some mistakes. This time he was on the mark.
The set was paced perfectly, featuring songs mostly from the Heaven And Hell and Mob Rules albums, although “I” and “Time Machine” from 1992’s Dehumanizer were also included. The highlight for me was the encore: Neon Knights.
Overall, I’d say Heaven and Hell blew me away with a batch of songs that sound just as fresh as the day they were born and put out with such precision and power I could feel every note. And I knew them all.
Judas Priest closed the show and I was in Heavy Metal heaven. They opened up with “Dawn Of Creation” and “Prophecy” from their latest release Nostradamus, complete with the big opening keyboards and a backdrop of the album cover with eyes glaring out at the audience and changing color. It was epic and cinematic. And then…they kicked in with the classics — “Metal Gods,” “Breaking The Law,” “The Hellion / Electric Eye,” ”Hell Bent For Leather,” “Green Manalishi (With the Two-Pronged Crown)” and “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming.”
The sound system was pumping and I felt like I was being hit with a baseball bat in the chest with every hit of the kick drum. Rob Halford is doing something right when it comes to taking care of his voice, because he hit every note and had us all in his grasp. He’s a true metal vocalist, often copied but never equaled. He had me standing there with my fist in the air the entire set.
The band was tight and the tones were right on as well. I did notice at one point in the show a glitch with some of the backing tracks. Something didn’t quite sound right and at that moment, I saw both Glenn Tipton and Ian Hill look to stage left real fast as to see what was going on.
Everybody I talked to in the parking lot after the show said they were amazed and that this one would go down in history. The bands, the music, the people, it was all so perfect. The night felt right and the air was clean. I was happy to be there with my metal brothers and sisters banging our heads in unison.
