Overkill announced the first leg of their 2019 touring cycle, and as I scrolled the dates my initial reaction I was a relieved to see the Atlanta was not on the list. The more I pondered this I wondered why. Don’t get me wrong, I respect the hell out of them. They are about to release their 19th album and are still waving the flag of metal after all of these years while having a very respectable career. But you know what? I think that we are just supposed to like them for those very reasons. They have a cool logo, the little skull bat thing is cool, they have great titles like “Ironbound,” and “Hello From the Gutter,” but they just don’t deliver for me.
I remember back in high school, some of my metalhead friends listened to them, wore shirts and really dug them. I would always look the albums and think that maybe I should buy one but something else at the record store would always catch my eye. I’ll admit that I was happy to finally see them live when they opened for Testament a few years ago. I even bought a shirt because I think I was caught up in the moment of seeing them.
Overkill is a legendary band that has always been on my radar but never one of my favorites. I’ve never bought any of Overkill albums, but I have listened to them. I’ve never found myself saying, “Oh man, I want to listen to Overkill today.” Are there other bands out there that people feel like they “must” like just like because they have been around forever? Of course, but are people willing to openly admit it to an overly judgmental crowd? This is just one of the many things that make metal and music in general so great. No two people hear the same thing and different things strike a chord with different people.
Don (The Brainfart) and I were discussing one of his favorite bands, Queensryche. I think that Operation: Mindcrime is one of top 5 albums, at least top 10, but I really don’t care for the rest of their discography. So while Don felt that their next two albums, Empire and Promised Land were masterpieces while I thought they were both garbage. I decided to revisit them since I’ve grown significantly in my musical taste. Empire sounds like tracks that were not good enough to be on Mindcrime, and Promised Land is like going to a nursing home during lunchtime, and watching folks gum their jello, compared to the glory of the Mindcrime album. That was just my opinion and we still laughed, had a great time, and then he railed on Ghost for a bit.
There is nothing better about music than to discover new bands or have great conversations that make you want to learn more about an old band you never took the time to get to know. It’s about having an open mind to new experiences and giving things a try, but also being able to articulate why you don’t like something instead of just saying it sucks. Which brings us back full circle. I still don’t know why I don’t care for Overkill. I can’t say they suck but I just have never really connected with their music. I’m going to give them another try at some point to try and see if things may change.
Check out Overkill with support from Death Angel on these dates:
April 25 — Baltimore, Md. @ Sound Stage/ Rams Head
April 26 — Philadelphia, Pa. @ Theater of the Living Arts
April 27 — Pittsburgh, Pa. @ Rex Theater
April 28 — Cleveland, Ohio @ House of Blues
April 29 — Louisville, Ky. @ Mercury Ballroom
April 30 — Detroit, Mich. @ St Andrews Hall
May 01 — Grand Rapids, Mich. @ Intersection
May 02 — Chicago, Ill. @ House of Blues
May 03 — Minneapolis, Minn. @ Varsity Theater
May 04 — Milwaukee, Wis. @ The Rave
May 05 — St Louis, Mo. @ Delmar Hall
May 06 — Nashville, Tenn. @ The Cannery Ballroom
May 08 — Cincinnati, Ohio @ Bogarts
May 09 — Rochester, N.Y. @ Montage Music Hall
May 10 — New York, N.Y. @ PlayStation Theater *w/ Life Of Agony
May 11 — Boston, Mass. @ Paradise
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