Immolation, Vader, The Berzerker and Origin
November 22th, 2002 at The Catwalk, Seattle WA

Another great weekend of metal here in Seattle! Unfortunately tonight’s show probably had only 150 in attendance at most. Too bad, as it was a pretty good evening! The night started out with Origin, back after a 4 month absence from Seattle. They appeared to have a new guitarist as the bald guy was no longer with the band. Their show was another technically brilliant set highlighted by the killer drums of John Longstreth. Unfortunately I can only be entertained by technical brilliance for so long before I get bored. These guys could be killer if they varied the tempos a bit more, as it stands now their set just ends up being one long blur of blast. To be completely fair a LOT of people in the crowd were getting into Origin’s set and they ended up getting a pretty good round of applause, they are just not my cup of tea.

Next up was Australia’s The Berzerker. I was wondering how the hell they would pull their stuff off live since the drums on their latest album are probably the fastest I had ever heard. My question was answered as a large sampler type box was set up next to the minimalist, fully triggered drum kit. Even though a lot of the percussion was played by machine, it didn’t matter one bit, these guys put on a hell of a show. With tracks like “Disregard”, “The Principles and Practices of Embalming” and a killer cover of Carcass’ “Corporal Jigsore Quandary” they kicked out a 40 minute battering ram that was akin to being run over by a really big truck. The bassist and vocalist were all over the place, flailing around the stage as if they were possessed. Based on audience reaction most of the crowd couldn’t appreciate the band and there were a number of hecklers in the audience with nothing better to do than giving the band shit. Too bad for them, I thought it was a great set with a lot of energy. Hopefully the fans with appreciate them more when they tour with Nile, Napalm Death, Dark Tranquillity, and Strapping Young Lad in January.

Vader was supposed to go on at 10 PM but due to issue with the sound system they ended up hitting the stage about 25 minutes late. They played for around 45 minutes, cramming in as much material they could in the short amount of time they had. They seemed to really enjoy playing once they got started, smiling and throwing doing some great rockstar-type poses as they played. From old favorites like “Sothis” to newer songs like “Litany” and “Torch of War”, Vader put on a truly professional performance and easily had the best crowd reaction of the evening. When they closed with a cover of “Reign in Blood” the audience went nuts, singing along in a headbanging fury that’s generally unseen in smaller venues. I’ve wanted to check out Vader in a live setting for some time and was not disappointed in the least bit.

By the time Immolation got on a lot of people had left the venue so the crowd looked pretty thin. Those who were left were, for the most part, tired after losing their lungs and legs from Vader’s short set. Despite having a much smaller crowd than the previous band Immolation went all out and played a very tight and heavy set. Something that isn’t seen often enough in death metal is that they brought a number of lights with them that added a lot to the dark and evil feel of the band. Like Vader, Immolation was a total pro act, very tight and precise but with a lot of feeling and intensity to their music. Some of the more brutal bands could take lessons from these guys on composing technically brilliant music that actually conveyed heaviness and is memorable on a song by song basis rather than just the overall skill of the band. I have to go and purchase some Immolation CDs now so I can become more familiar with their music!
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Rating: 8 /10