Nuoffer Media

Testament

10/04/2022
Testament
The Rave
Milwaukee, WI

The Bay Strikes Back tour stormed into Milwaukee, WI on a brisk, yet sunny Tuesday evening. The Rave is one of the gems of the Badger State. The streets around the historic venue were littered with black and band shirts. The line behind the building strung itself all the way down the road and into the back parking lot. Once the doors opened the line moved extremely quickly through the winding hallways. With plenty of time before the first band starts the courtyard in front of the massive wooden doors that give The Rave, its gothic appearance. The patio area was bumping and filled with patrons purchasing drinks.

Meanwhile inside the merchandise lines ran down the back hallway under the balcony of the main room. Fans were given plenty of options for items to purchase. From vinyl to tour shirts to skate decks, it was all there. When the lights dimmed inside the main room the air buzzed with anticipation, it isn’t every day that thrash metal legends come to town. There was quite a bit of wonder about what they would perform. Testament released “Titans of Creation” during the pandemic. Obviously, they couldn’t hit the road in support of it until now. The backdrop was a massive image of their latest album cover. The back of the stage had all of the gear lined up, but in the middle stood a massively tall drum riser. The front of the stage contained 2 stands in front of each guitarist’s microphone stands. Also across the front were 4 smoke machines blasting up and filling the stage. Match this visual appearance with the slow ritualistic introduction music and the entire room bathed in red light and you would swear you were standing at the foot of an altar.

From the first string being strung lead guitarist, Alex Skolnick, shredded through each song with precision and an unmatched emotional flood of joy across his face. Often he stood on his perch and leaned over often to show the crowd his ability to pick and slash through his parts. Opposite of him his counterpart and founding member of Testament, Eric Peterson, let his head banging and jumping around do all of the talking. His guitar prowess was on full display. The man let loose.  Slaying his storied guitar riffs. The pair are as good as gold together. It is obvious these two feed off of each other’s energy. On the low-end bassist, Steve DiGiorgio pounded his way through the incredible showing. He riled up the crowd. Leaning the headstock of his custom fretless Ibanez towards the crowd often. Despite the aggressiveness of the song content, the man was all smiling while delivering bone-rattling notes. Perhaps the greatest performances of all were of the legendary drummer, Dave Lombardo. He was precise and snapped on his snare with ease. He rolled through his kit and pounded the skins while overlooking the entire room. The God Father of modern metal drumming put on a show. Finally, though, Chuck Billy, the man’s raspy vocals were clean and projected with power over the mesmerized audience. He moved with determination across the stage. Pointing out the fan’s heads banging and screaming their lyrics along the way as well. He engaged and unleashed vocal hell. 

Testament came to The Rave armed with a killer set list that covered a multitude of albums and ripped through them easily. These thrash legends created an atmosphere that those in the metal community can appreciate. No frills, straight brutality, and visually stunning. This is the way metal shows should be, straightforward and just a performance. A tip of the cap to the Testament. To say this was can’t miss would be an understatement.

Setlist:
1. Rise Up
2. The New Order
3. The Pale King
4. Children of The Next Level
5. Practice What You Preach
6. WWII
7. D.N.R.
8. Native Blood
9. Night of The Witch
10. Electric Crown
11. The Formation of Damnation
12. First Strike is Deadly
13. Into The Pit
14. Alone In The Dark


Spiritbox

09/23/2022
Spiritbox
Resch Center
Green Bay, WI

Setlist:
1. Circle With Me
2. Hurt You
3. Yellow Jacket

4. Holy Roller

5. Rotoscope

6. Hysteria


Carcass

09/23/2022
Carcass
Resch Center
Green Bay, WI

Setlist:
1. Buried Dreams
2. Kellys Meat Emporium
3. Incarnated Solvent Abuse
4. Unfit For Human Consumption
5. Under the Scalpel Blade
6. Genital Grinder
7. This Mortal Coil
8. Dance of Ixtab
9. Black Star/Keep On Rotting in The Free World
10. The Sycthe’s Remorseless Swing
11. Corporal Jigsore Quandry
12. Heartwork
13. Carneous Cacoffiny

In Flames

09/16/2022
In Flames
The Rave
Milwaukee, WI

Swedish heavy metal giants, In Flames, brought their brand of chaos to the historic Rave room. With a line of metalheads wrapping into the parking lot behind the venue the mood was at an all-time high. The Rave is one of Milwaukee’s famed buildings. The interior is built to hold and withstand the sounds being blasted from within. On the main floor, the room is painted purple with gold details. The balcony is black iron rods held by wooden pillars with 3 rows of seats encircling the lower level. Almost fitting for those of Viking descent. 

Armed with their 14th studio album on the way the band dropped a new single for it a few days before this event. The single is titled the same as their forthcoming album “Forgone”. Forgone the album will be released in 2023. The setlist for the evening was filled with their classic melodic death metal hits. Every single album they have produced had at least one song performed. It was a fantastic evening for the long-time fans. Those who are newer to their work got a history lesson.

Anders Friden delivered brutal vocals that ripped through the surging crowd. From the edge of the stage, he often commented about how great it was to see all of the fans together in one place after a couple of years of no touring. Friden also made it a point to inform everyone about which songs and from what album was next in the queue then absolutely ripped into the song. Lead guitarist Bjorn Gelotte and fill-in guitarist Chris Broderick (of Megadeth fame) were men on a mission. They slashed through riff after riff. Broderick played with a foot up on the monitors, flipped his hair around, and headbanged his way through the night. Gelotte thrashed and picked his way over the strings of his Gibson Les Pauls. Often he glared up into the balcony with a look of astonishment at the overflowing capacity. The rhythm section consists of bassist Bryce Paul and drummer Tanner Wayne, who kept the band in time while delivering ground-shaking low-end vibrations. Wayne’s arms slung his sticks through the air and smashed down with efficiency. Meanwhile, Paul was in complete control. True to form he delivered solid backing vocals while moving back and forth in front of the drum stand. 

All in all, In Flames, were a cohesive unit. They moved through a catalog encompassing setlist with ease. Most impressively though was their level of appreciation for the crowd. Whether it was the aforementioned views, the sing-along moments, or crazy fans being pointed out the band obviously were enjoying themselves as much as the crowd appreciated them.

Setlist:
1. The Great Deceiver
2. Fear is The Weakness
3. Cloud Connected
4. Stand Ablaze
5. Behind Space
6. Graveland
7. Episode 666
8. Scorn
9. Only For The Weak
10. Foregone Pt.1
11. Wallflower
12. State of Slow Decay
13. Deliver Us
14. The End
15. The Mirror’s Truth
16. I Am Above
17. Take This Life
18. My Sweet Shadow

Fit For An Autopsy

09/16/2022
Fit For An Autopsy
The Rave
Milwaukee, WI

Setlist:
1. Oh What The Future Holds
2. The Sea of Tragic Beasts
3. Your Pain is Mine
4. Pandora
5. Far From Heaven
6. A Higher Level of Hate
7. Heads Will Hang
8. Black Mammoth
9. Two Towers



Vended

09/16/2022
Vended
The Rave
Milwaukee, WI

Performing as the opener for In Flames.

Setlist:
1. Ded To Me
2. Burn My Misery
3. Overall
4. Asylum
5. Antibody


Rob Zombie

08/05/2022
Rob Zombie
Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Chicago, IL

On a warm and humid evening just South of Chicago, the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater was the place to be. The lines waiting to get through the gates were long and all the way back toward the parking lot. The parking lot was filled with folks sitting at their vehicles enjoying their favorite beverages and generally enjoying each other’s company. The music was bumping and the mood was fairly playful. Everyone was in a fantastic mood on a beautiful day.

The venue itself is a three-level facility with two levels that wrap around in three sections. There is a pit around down front and up top is a massive grass hill. Around the venue, massive screens are set up for the live video feeds. No way you could miss a moment of what was in store. On the main ground behind the stage were courtyards that hosted multiple merchandise stands that were filled to the brim with items from all four bands on the bill. The alcohol huts were slinging suds at a feverish pace. Patrons were decked out in all sorts of Rob Zombie gear. Old tour shirts to Halloween movie shirts. It was pretty clear he was the highlight for nearly everyone in attendance. 

As the day turned to dusk, the bowl illuminated and the party began raging in the seats, the lights dimmed and the stage set up began to be rolled out. 4 large video-wrapped pillars stood with the band’s drum kit perched right in the middle of it. Behind them ran a massive video board. Up front along the front of the stage ran 3 metal walkways that also ran video synced to the others. The crowd went absolutely bonkers once “Zombie” was streamed letter by letter amongst every video board. The anxiousness elevated and once the lights kicked up the man himself, Rob Zombie stood above the stage on a platform that read Zombie. It was an impressive spectacle to have witnessed. The dirty grit in his voice resonated cleanly over the hyped-up audience. Off to his left, guitar guru John 5, the co-writer of many newer songs stood smiling and shaking his head from right to left. Across the stage stood a dressed to the nines Piggy D on bass.  Behind everyone, Ginger Fish was on drums. 

Armed with decadent costumes, the band itself was an extremely fine-tuned machine. The accomplished John 5 was on fire. The multitude of finger-picking and riffs being laid out were a sight to behold. His efforts displayed his skill set and he smiled through it all. Before the encore, John 5 delivered an incredible solo that even had a partial cover of Thunderstruck by AC/DC mixed in. Even Rob Zombie shared an approving look with him while sharing the front risers hyping up the already revved-up masses. Piggy D was perhaps the most dapperly dressed of the bunch. His Eddy Munster-styled outfit threw everyone off when he delivered and punished them with thundering bass riffs. Very often he carried a conversation with the crowd in front of him. He gave everything he had and provided the infectious grooves we all know and love. Ginger Fish was a killer on the skins. His kit was loud. His snare snaps were quick and clean. Throughout the duration of the show, his arms flailed everywhere. He smiled consistently and often engaged with Rob whenever he turned around. Perhaps no one on that stage had more fun than him.

As one knows, Rob Zombie is the man you go to watch. His presence on the stage is electric. His raspy vocals connect you to the overall feel of his music. Spooky, sexy, and heavy as can be. His legion of freaks came out in full force just for this. Zombie was in peak performance mode. Running and jumping along the front of the stage. Dancing in his signature bell-bottomed jeans and frayed jean jacket that is plastered with patches from the 80s. His interactions were the stuff of legends. Routinely pointing out fans up front losing their minds. The cast of characters that emerged from behind the stage play with the front man in an almost choreographed manner. Everything about this performance was an art school masterpiece. The classic robot and devil man characters from Zombies cartoons and videos made their appearances and moved across the stage freely. 

This performance had a little bit of everything you would expect from one of the horror genre’s most famous directors, the elaborate costumes, lighting, theatrics even a Munsters trailer for an encore break. The stage decor was nothing but horror movie themed. Red, orange, and purple lighting shoot across the stage at all times. The setlist covered Rob Zombie’s entire discography dating back to his time with White Zombie. Mostly they featured tracks from the last few albums he released. Nonetheless, the hits from his first two albums Hellbilly Deluxe and The Sinister Urge were extremely prominent and popular. This assembly of metalheads raged to the classic sounds and visuals of one of today’s modern gods of metal. The conversations around were talking about how extraordinary this performance was. It was hard to argue with. Every little detail was planned and performed to perfection. If there is anything one could take away from the night it would be to never miss a Rob Zombie or Freak on Parade tour stop if it comes near.

Setlist:
INTRO - Expanding The Head of Zed
1. Triumph of King Freak
2. Super Beast
3. Meet The Creeper
4. Shake Your Ass, Smoke Your Grass
5. Living Dead Girl
6. More Human Than Human
7. Scum of The Earth
8. Dead City Radio & The New Gods of Supertown
9. Never Gonna Stop
10. Well, Everyones Fucking in a UFO
11. House of a 1000 Corpses
12. Guitar solo (Partially covering Thunderstruck by AC/DC)
13. Thunderkiss 65
14. Blitzkrieg Bop (Ramones Cover)
15. Shadow of The Cemetery Man
ENCORE - The Munster Movie Trailer
16. Dragula


Powerman 5000

08/05/2022
Powerman 5000
Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Chicago, IL

Setlist:
1. Footsteps and Voices
2. Nobody’s Real
3. Invade, Destroy, Repeat
4. Horror Show/7 Nation Army
5. Bombshell
6. An Eye Is Upon You
7. Supernova Goes Pop
8. When Worlds Collide

Stray From The Path

08/04/2022
Stray From The Path
The Rave
Milwaukee, WI

Stray From The Path performed as direct support to The Devil Wears Prada. The images are not my best work, but I can assure you that this band is extremely fun to watch play.

Setlist:
1. Guillotine
2. Outbreak
3. Goodnight Alt-Right
4. III (Live Debut)
5. Second Death
6. Fortune Teller
7. Neighbourhood Watch (Live Debut)
8. Damien
9. Badge & A Bullet
10. First World Problem Child

New Found Glory

07/23/2022
New Found Glory
The Rave
Milwaukee, WI

Setlist:
1. Understatement
2. My Friends Over You
3. Sonny
4. Something I Call Personality
5. Head On Collision
6. It’s Been A Summer
7. Forget My Name
8. Never Give Up
9. The Great Houdini
10. Singled Out
11. Belated
12. The Story So Far
13. Hit Or Miss
14. Hold My Hand
15. King of Wishful Thinking (Go West cover)
16. Trophy
17. Truth of My Youth
18. Let It Go (Cover)
19. Intro
20. All Down Hill From Here


 

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