Lamb of God with Fear Factory, Children of Bodom and Throwdown
10/28/04 @ Roseland Theatre in Portland, OR
By Marc Halverson
First off, I interviewed Randy Blythe, lead singer of Lamb of God, and I must say, he was very nice and down to earth. I was very excited for this tour because I had never seen Throwdown or Children of Bodom live and Fear Factory is one of my favorite groups, and Lamb of God are on top of the metal world. You could sense the intensity and anticipation in the crowd before any of the bands took the stage. First up to set the place off were the hardcore kings from Orange County, Throwdown.
Throwdown opened with the track ‘Hopeless’ from their new heavy hitting and powerful release, “Haymaker.” Next, they tore into the opening track off of “Haymaker,” ‘Intro (Never Back Down) and the crowd broke into a pit. Following that track, they played the strongest song on their new album, “Nothing Left.” It has one of the sickest breakdowns you will ever hear in metal or hardcore. Then, Randy Blythe from Lamb of God, joined Throwdown on-stage to sing with front man, Dave Peters, “Unite” (from “You Don’t Have To Be Blood To Be Family”). Next, they played one of the best covers of Sepultura’s “Roots Bloody Roots,” (From “Roots”) that you will ever hear. Finally, they brought their set to a close with their signature song “Forever.” They dedicated it to the straight edge crowed and people went nuts.
Next, Children of Bodom took the stage and entertained the crowd with their fast pacing riffs and solos. I am not too familiar with their music but the crowd responded well and they played a solid set that kept the people banging their heads and circling the pits. Then, it was time for one of the best live metal acts period, Fear Factory. Immediately, they opened with ‘Slave Labor’ and ‘Cbyerwaste’ (from latest release “Archetype) and the crowd erupted. Raymond Herrera pummeled the Roseland Theatre with his double-kicks that are second to none. They moved right into ‘Shock’ and ‘Edgecrusher’ (from “Obsolete”). They went on to play ‘Demanufacture’, ‘Zero Signal’, (from “Demanufacture”); ‘Martyr’, ‘Scapegoat’, ‘Arise Above Oppression’, and ended their set with ‘Archetype’ and ‘Replica’ (from “Demanufacture”).
Finally, it was time for Lamb of God to take over the Roseland Theatre. They stormed onto the stage and tore right into ‘Laid to Rest’, followed by ‘Hour Glass’ which are both from their latest release, “Ashes of the Wake.” From there, went on to play material from their previous two albums “As the Palaces Burn,” and “New American Gospel.” Randy Blythe was able to control the crowd, while guitarists, Mark Morton and Will Alder shredded people with their brutal riffs and piercing solos. Their sounded was compounded by the solid bass playing of John Campbell and precise drumming of Chris Alder. Lamb of God played a solid set combined with chaotic circle pits, followed with the frantic crowd singing the words and banging their heads like it was going out of style.
Lamb of God Set List:
Laid to Rest
Hour Glass
As the Palaces Burn
Something to Die For
11th Hour
Terror + Hubris in the House of Frank Polard
Ruin
Omerta
Pariah
The Faded Line
BTP
Subtle Arts
Vigil
What I’ve Become
Black Label
In short, it was a great show with a solid hardcore/metal line-up. Every band punished the crowd with ferocious metal and earth shattering breakdowns. However, the night belonged to Lamb of God and they delivered to their loyal following.
