Overkill and The London Wreckin' Crew!

Last night was my first time with the New Jersey wrecking crew and what a great night it was in the end. Having never seen Overkill and never really been a fan at all, I approached last night's show with caution but I was completely won over by the end. One of the main draws for attending the show were two of the three support acts on offer. Namely UK thrashers Savage Messiah and new Greek sensations Suicidal Angels. There was another support band as well but they were not a big draw for me at all, the band in question being heavy German thrash/death mob Cripper.

Cripper took to the stage at 6.30 prompt and played for what seemed like a very long 30 minutes to me! I have heard them on record before and they are ok. They are most notable for having a girl on the mic, growling her tits off(what she had of them that is.. I know I'm a sexist pig!). The sound was way too loud for me even with protection! Their songs are a bit boring. They have some modern sounding jump up jump up type riffs here and there and regular thrash the other times. The girly on the mic had a fearsome death metal growl it must be said. about 20 punters down the front enjoyed them and that's it really.

Savage Messiah came on at 7.20pm and played for 30 minutes also. They were better than Cripper and got much more of a response from the crowd. Their brand of thrash is a mix between Megadeth, Testament and Metallica. Unfortunately they just don't have the songs to match the legends. They are quite good though. The vocals are not so great though but I suppose ok for a thrash band. Quite good effort from these guys but there is better in the UK thrash scene.

Suicidal Angels were perhaps even the main draw for me above the 'wrecking crew' if that's possible. These guys album from last year is absolutely incendiary old school thrash somewhere between old Slayer and Seps but with a way more up to date and killer sound. The Greeks strode on confidently and got the first pits of the night going. They didn't win everybody over but damn their riffs are jaw droppingly awesome for me. I love the way the vocals are spat out really fast in pace with the riffing. The sound was also much better than the previous bands. Tighter and meaner and actually funnily enough quite similar to how the album sounds. The band plays so damn tight it's untrue. These guys really nailed it for me and thrashing like a maniac was mandatory whilst these guys were playing and many kids did just that.

Finally at 9.15pm the Wrecking Crew took to the stage. Now of course I know almost zilch about these guys. I've had albums of theirs in teh past but no longer do due to not being able to get into them. However I must admit Ironbound is just an awesome thrash record. The band started off with You and Me from said album and what a stormer of a song it is. The band were all pretty much animated. Blitz looks very emaciated as usual but I guess being thin like that is good for him and he can whirl round like a dervish all he likes. The sound was very very loud but pretty clear overall. The sound of the band is anchored by DD Verni's rumbling bass which was actually very cool indeed. The band whilst looking quite old these days is still very energetic especially the guy to the left whose name I believe is Derek. He's always pulling faces and making eye contact with people in the crowd.

Bobby Blitz's yelp was in full effect too. The band had the crowd eating out of it's for more or less the whole show and there was barely a song that didn't have a relentless moshpit. Some songs brought along or more insane pit than others of course. Feel the Fire from the debut was absolutely killer and got a huge pit going. Elimination was also mental too as was the new song Bring the Night. In Union We Stand was the metal anthem that got mass participation. Old School was a funny song which had a hardcore flavour to it. Necroshine was the first encore and followed by Fuck You as the final song to send the punters delirious. It must be said Overkill provide an intense and exhilarating live show and all necks were fully wrecked by these old timers who still know how to thrash hard even when pushing 50!