Infidels will be slaughtered this summer when Lamb of God perform at the first free Ozzfest. With a full stage to storm and around 10,000 or more fans to play for every day, the band will take their pummeling, precise form of thrash to a new level, and, perhaps, reach a new audience in the process. Regardless of who else gets added to the bill, Lamb of God live is reason enough to jump through hoops for a ticket. However, Ozzfest would have to pull off quite a coup to come up with a final lineup that's as dynamic and bludgeoning as the acts on Lamb of God's current tour -- Trivium, Machine Head and Gojira -- each of whom bashed out an impressive set that kept the crowd at New York's Roseland theater captivated until the headliners plugged in and started to roar.
While Lamb of God had a lot to live up to, they still stole the show. Since the band is fronted by ranting, howling singer Randy Blythe, who handles all of the vocals, the stage is unencumbered with microphones and the members are free to roam without worrying about having to sing backup. This gives Lamb of God the freedom to rage unrestrained and unconfined, and graces them with a visual element that bands fronted by a singer/guitarist lack.
Still, it's Lamb of God's sound that make them so powerful. Although the songs are technically complex -- filled with unconventional rhythmic shifts and demanding musicianship -- the band translate them without effort, never flubbing a staggered riff or pregnant pause. At the same time, their brutality is never belied by their challenging arrangements.
Lamb of God are a like a brick to the skull on a rainy day, and during their set, which featured "As the Palaces Burn," "Now You've Got Something to Die For" and tracks from the band's 2006 disc Sacrament, including "Walk with Me in Hell" and "Pathetic," the band demonstrated just how relentless and vicious metal can be without being a sonic blur.
During the set closer, "Redneck," the band brought out Gojira singer Joe Duplantier and ex-Death drummer and current Howard Stern sidekick Richard Christy to sing back-up. The gesture was nice, but it actually detracted from the intensity of the song. Lamb of God are mavericks and iconoclasts who are at their best when left alone. The only trails they follow are the ones they've already carved, and while they've clearly been influenced by classic thrash bands including Slayer and Pantera, they've molded these inspirations into a sound that's as original as it is punishing.
Trivium aren't nearly as original as Lamb of God. They strive to be Master of Puppets-era Metallica, with pinches of Megadeth and Pantera, and they come pretty damn close. Fortunately, their musicianship and songwriting are strong enough to make up for any lack of originality.
Guitarists Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu and both accomplished players and fill songs like "To the Rats," "Becoming the Dragon" and "Pull Harder on the Strings of Your Martyr" with crafty, surging riffs and piercing, shreddy solos. And, Heafy commands the stage like a young -- well, James Hetfield -- urging the crowd to jump, shout and sing along.
Considering the band members are all in their early 20s and are already on their third album, Trivium should have a long life ahead, and as they continue to write and tour, they'll likely develop their own voice, which is what they'll need to attain real longevity.
For those who lost faith in Machine Head in the late '90s after the band started recording with Ross Robinson and playing slower, more mainstream music, take heart. San Francisco's second biggest thrash band are back at full steam. Their upcoming album, The Blackening, is the best thing they've recorded since their scorching 1994 debut, Burn My Eyes, and onstage they're again focusing on their heaviest, fastest material.
Led by the charismatic Robert Flynn, Machine Head stormed through their set with ferocity and poise, making it perfectly clear that they're determined to forget the uninspired elements of their past and just move on. Highlights included the blowtorch career-starter "Old" and the new, caustic "Aesthetics of Hate," which featured excellent twin-guitar interplay between Flynn and Phil Demmel, who originally played together in the late '80s in the thrash band VIO-LENCE. Demmel joined Machine Head before the release of 2002's Through the Ashes of Empires, and has clearly played a major role in Machine Head's stellar resurrection.
Show opener Gojira are a French space-thrash band that released the critically praised From Mars to Sirius last year. Brainy and pummeling, the band's music see-saws between sludgy Black Sabbath-inspired doom rock, Voivod-style galactic drug odyssey and full-on death metal grind.
There was already a healthy crowd assembled when the group took the stage at the un-metal hour of 6:45, and by the end of the dizzying set, it was clear that Gojira are a refreshing change of pace from the new wave of thrash. If they continue their innovative ways, they could soon be unstoppable.
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