Savage Master
April 18, 2018
Atlanta, GA – The 529
There are very few bands that I will sacrifice my lungs in a shitty smoke filled venue for and one of those bands is without a doubt Louisville’s Savage Master. I approached the club and even though it had been a while, not much had changed on the outside: rude door guy, rude bartender, and so much cigarette smoke that I ended up with a fucking sinus infection.
Once inside, I was actually pleasantly surprised. The big change in the venue was the orientation of the room. The stage has been moved to what was once the side wall so now it really feels more like a venue. The stage is actually a stage and there are great view points from all over the room. Actually, if they got rid of the smoking and the shitty service, I just might go to shows there.
After trying my hardest to avoid one of the newest worst bands in Atlanta I’ve heard and some other shitty band, Savage Master finally took the stage. “Black Hooves” kicked things off and I just lost my goddamn mind. The room was probably ½ full and Savage Master was without a doubt ruling the fucking room. Lead vocalist Stacey Savage led her hooded minions right into “Vengeance is Steel” which had everyone thrusting fists and banging heads like it was Ruskin Arms in 1980.
“Burning Leather” from the band’s latest Creatures of the Flame EP was a stand out track but, as always, “Ready to Sin” just seems always whip the room into a frenzy. That song right there is one of the greatest metal songs of the last decade and hearing them do it live is always akin to having your face ripped clean off your skull and then handed back to you along with a shirt and a patch. Closing things out with “Death Rides the Highway” just took it completely over the top and left me with a sore neck and a bunked up right fist from banging on the vocal monitor.
When a band can physically move you like that you know that they must be doing something right. Savage Masters’ hour + set was absolutely mind blowing and hands down the best I have seen them to date. I feel like Savage Master is a band that I have literally watched grow up from this fledgling opening act to an unstoppable juggernaut that has traveled the world and back picking up more fans and more momentum with every mile they burn.
More and more I look at Savage Master and I firmly believe that they are picking up where bands like 3 Inches of Blood left off and where Holy Grail failed to maintain. Savage Master is here to stay and they are showing no signs of slowing down at all. This is without a band that has moved very quickly up the ranks to become a force to be reckoned with. If they keep this up I’m going to have to have my face insured by Lloyds of London.
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