Due to the fact that for a lineup like this, Baroeg might be a little to small, they decided to book this tour in cooperation with WATT, another venue in Rotterdam, just like the Cradle of Filth gig a few months back. Different venue or not, we had a good afternoon of metalcore ahead of us, including Daath, Throwdown, Unearth and Chimaira!

Of today’s line-up I was mostly looking forward to Daath, the American extreme metal band that incorporate elements of industrial, melodic and progressive death metal. Their gig was unfortunately a big letdown, with an awful sound and show that had a way too high rockstar-focus. The volume of the guitar was almost not audible except for the solos, when the volume was suddenly twice as loud. Very annoying. Also the drums weren’t really pounding, but Goatwhore drummer Zack Simmons (filling in for Kevin Talley) couldn’t be blamed ‘cause he made no mistakes. The most irritating were the show aspects though. The band, that has topics about ‘The Tree of Life’, part of a mystical belief spanning many cultures, including Egyptian, Sumerian and Hebrew traditions, seemed to be happy with the reaction of the young crowd and did everything for their attention. Clapping along, putting lighters in the air, circlepits and even two walls of death were all encouraged by the band. A setlist that covered more new than old stuff made me think that the band heads to a new (popular) direction instead of representing their ideologies in a more serious way. (Mindsaver)

 

After a bit of a letdown for me as well (talking about Daath there), it was time for a band that couldn’t do anything wrong. Throwdown has been around for ages and in my opinion, their recent change of style to a more Pantera/Sepultura sound definitely didn’t do the band any harm. They smashed Waterfront in Rotterdam already two years ago and they destroyed the WATT as well this time. The unacceptable sound at Daath’s gig was completely washed away and Throwdown absolutely tore down the place. Besides the fact they played two brand new smashing songs of their new album Deathless that is due out later this year, they filled their short set with tracks like ‘Holy Roller’, ‘Weight of the World’ and ‘S.C.U.M’ along with a few older tracks such as ‘Speak the Truth’ and of course their hit ‘Forever’. It’s clear Throwdown wants to attract a different crowd, touring with metal bands, and I think they fitted very well on this tour. Their drummer Ben Dussault recently left the band to play in Madball, and their new live drummer Lance Garvin (from Living Sacrifice) filled in on this tour. Ben absolutely mashed it on the last European Throwdown tour (with Job for a Cowboy and Bleeding Through), but it must be said; Lance Garvin definitely didn’t lower the level. As a drummer for Throwdown you have to play minimal, as the band is focussed on breakdowns and slow parts (especially on the new tracks), but above all, you have to hit HARD. Lance proved to score an A+ on both categories and made this Throwdown set something to remember. I’m full-on excited for their new album! (Brent_)

 

Throwdown setlist:
Holy Roller

 

Unearth is a solid band in the metalcore scene. It’s a given fact that they don’t disappoint quickly live and also today was no exception. The band brought their melodic metalcore with an overkill of breakdowns with a lot energy and enthusiasm. The moshpit became bigger and bigger during songs like ‘Giles’, ‘Sanctity Of Brothers’ and ‘Black Hearts Now Reign’ and although the duration of the set was a bit long (almost an hour) the audience didn’t lose their attention in the band. Unearth remains ahead of the scene! (Mindsaver)

 

Chimaira was actually one of the first metal bands I started listening to. Along with Lamb of God, this band is the one to blame that I actually ended up at Metalrage a few years later. But enough sentimental bullshit, the band also released a smashing fifth full-length album The Infection, which made me curious to see this band live for the first time. Apparently the band almost didn’t make it to the show due to the fact that they had a day off the day before and some band members got lost in Amsterdam. Luckily they got to the venue in time and kicked off with ‘The Venom Inside’, the first track of their new album. A strange way to open the set as it’s not a “straight-in-your-face” track, but as soon as they played the first notes of the second track ‘Resurrection’ the crowd went nuts. A proper hour of metalcore as result, and I must say; this band is an absolute oiled machine. I kind of lost concentration during the middle of the set because even though the band plays extremely tight, their music is kind of monotone and they use the same tricks on all five full-length albums. But ‘Nothing Remains’ woke me up and Chimaira rounded off the evening with two bangers; ‘The Flame’ and ‘Pure Hatred’ and left the crowd without an encore (bonus points!) but a satisfied feeling. (Brent_)
 

Chimaira setlist: