Exodus/Municipal Waste
w/ special guest Death of Kings
March 10, 2018
Atlanta, GA
The Masquerade (Hell)
Adult Swim’s Mr. Pickles Thrashtacular closed out a hugely successful tour in Atlanta on a cold Saturday night. Boasting a lineup featuring Exodus and Municipal Waste, the show was easily one of the hottest tickets in town. The show was originally planned to be in the larger hall Heaven but because of renovations not being complete, the show was move to the medium hall, Hell. This means that the show was not only sold out but it was completely oversold. This was all the makings of a fucking insane metal extravaganza.
People were getting turned away left and right but luckily I have friends in low places who managed to make sure yours truly got in with press credentials. The idea that such a fucking incredible show would not have any press just killed me so I was feeling so happy to be able to make this happen both for me and for my dedicated readers.
By the time I got there, the room was nearing capacity so I made my way to the balcony to stake out a spot for local openers Death of Kings. Now I have seen this band a handful of times and I haven’t been shy about admitting that I don’t like this band. Well, my mood was actually changed by this set. Something was really different about the band and how they composed themselves on stage. Lead vocalist/guitarist Matt Matson really worked the crowd and I loved how they set the pace for what would be a great evening of metal. As opposed to the somewhat chaotic mess that I had seen in the past, what I saw in Death of Kings this night was a band who was tight, professional, and who captured the attention of the crowd. I was very pleasantly surprised and even must say that I enjoyed their set.
When it was time for Municipal Waste to hit the stage, Hell was literally packed to the rafters and right away I knew this was not going to be a chill set by any means. The room was filled with this electricity among the people and I was whisked back in time to the old school thrash shows I loved so much as a kid. If there was ever a display of the level of camaraderie in the metal community, it was right here in this room as chants of “Muni Waste! Muni Waste!” filled the room.
Municipal Waste hit the stage with “Breathe Grease” and the place went absolutely apeshit. It never ceases to amaze me just now powerful of a band they are. Tony Foresta is hands down one of the best front men on the scene today and he commanded that crowd like he was the skate thrash David Lee Roth or Bruce Dickinson. The band continued to crush domes and melt faces with songs such as “Here Come the Bastards”, “Sadistic Magician”, “The Thrashin’ of the Christ”, and “Thrashin is my Business and Business is Good” and I could tell that at this point, Municipal Waste owned this crowd. When Municipal waste is on stage, whether they are an opening, co-headlining, or headlining act, when they are on stage, that crowd belongs to them.
Tony egged on the crowd and just when I thought that shit couldn’t get any more insane, he says, “The first person to jump from the balcony gets a free Municipal Waste skate deck. All of the sudden the guy next to me hopped the rail and dove into the crowd below him who very lucky for him caught him and lowered him to the floor. After that maybe another 4 or 5 people followed suit which was just absolute fucking chaos. Tony took a moment to announce how much he hated our president. “We hate homophobia, we hate racists, we hate sexists, and we hate Trump. This one is called “Kill the President.” This brought a huge roar from the room and honestly, it was quite nice to feel like I was a part of a majority on my side of the fence. By the time Municipal Waste closed out with “Born to Party”, I was absolutely exhausted and I wondered if the crowd even had anything left in them for Exodus.
Exodus is a band that I always had a soft spot in my heart for ever since seeing them in 1988 on the Headbangers Ball tour with Helloween and Anthrax (yes, I’m old as fuck). I immediately loved them but as time passed and lineups changed I found myself losing interest. When Exodus recruited new vocalist Rob Dukes, it seemed like all the heart and soul of Exodus had been ripped out and was replaced with this bully, meathead mentality but when Steve “Zetro” Souza returned to the fold for their Blood In Blood Out album a couple of years ago, the magic was back. The shows were fun again and they had returned with their best album since Fabulous Disaster.
Exodus hit the stage to a thunderous roar from the packed room and kicking things off with “Bonded by Blood” which whipped the entire room into a frenzy. They went right into “Blood In, Blood Out’ and shit got even crazier. Where the hell was all of this energy coming from? The audience must have been tapping into the reserves because they were moshing and trashing like Exodus was the first band on the bill. As the band played, I felt something wet from above hit me in the face. I looked up and the room was so fucking hot (literally) that there was condensation dripping from the ceiling. The room was so packed that sweat was dripping from the fucking ceiling. That, my friends, is metal as fuck.
Watching the crowd from the balcony above I was reminded that this is exactly what it was all about in the beginning. Everyone feeling the music, moshing, and looking out for each other any time a fallen comrade hit the floor. It wasn’t violent by any means. It was an intense show of respect and release of energy. Zetro even commented at one point, “If you ever wondered what it was like in the Bay area back in the day, it was just like this you crazy mother fuckers.”
The audience for Exodus was the biggest I have seen for them in a long fucking time. My guess is that this was brought on by the fact that Gary Holt was in Slayer but honestly, whatever it was, it brought in a whole new wave of fans that were Exodus freaks. Zetro, without a doubt, stole the show. He is such a classy, old school metal front man who knows how to connect and unify an audience. He makes us feel and makes us remember that he is just one of us and that is what makes this band so fucking special. He has been the missing ingredient for so long and now that he’s back, the recipe is perfect again.
Exodus continued with a set of classics such as “Fabulous Disaster”, “A Lesson in Violence”, and “War is my Shepherd.” Zetro then announced, “I’ve seen Atlanta do this 100 times so I want you to show me and the rest of Exodus that you know how to do the Toxic Waltz!” No matter how many times I hear this song, it’s every bit as fun and exciting as it was back in the 80’s. The crowd obviously agreed as they did the waltz in a huge way earning shit eating, ear to ear smiles from both Holt and Zetro.
Exodus closed things out with “Strike of the Beast” and towards the end of the song, this kid who was maybe all of 10 years old crowd surfed to the stage. Zetro pulled the kid on stage and Lee Altus put his guitar on the kid and let him strum the final closing chords as Zetrol and Holt rallied around him. Zetro took the kids hand and held it high: “This is the future of metal!” That was a moment that I hope that kid will never forget. It was also a moment that defined the unwavering and long lasting power of this very kind of music people think is dead or dying.
Municipal Waste and Exodus confirmed what I have been saying for years and that is that these are two of the greatest fucking bands on the planet. Municipal Waste is just really getting cooking and Exodus’ best years still seem to be ahead of them. Any fear that I may have had about the music I love slowing down or dying off was very strongly put to rest after this show. For being the last night of a lengthy tour, I somewhat expected the bands to be a bit depleted but both Municipal Waste and Exodus played as it was the last show they would ever play. Both bands showcased professionalism, camaraderie, and an even somewhat, dare I say, spiritual bond. Bonded by music, bonded by the love of metal, and bonded by blood.
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