One thing I learned from my trip to see these guys is that once I can afford one, I must get a GPS because one wrong turn and it takes me forever to get back on track. I left so I could be two hours early but ended up one hour early but it turned out all right. However, on my trip back I ended up going the wrong way and when I saw a sign that said Oklahoma City (I live near Dallas TX) I had to make up for almost half an hour of going the wrong way (I left the venue at about 11:20 and got back around 1:30). I'll get to the review but first I had a strange encounter. Next to me at the front was an older man (about Lemmy's age) who was very talkative and a cool guy but had less brain cells than Ozzy. Definatly a long time stoner, I could only understand about half of what he said, but he was definatly a hoot and a half. Now on to the concert.
First up was Lazarus A.D. and they were quite the thrash band, not in the classic sense but much better than most modern thrash bands. The lead guitarist was particulary impressive with some great solo work. Most people there didn't know them but after they were done it was obvious that they made some new fans.
Next up was Unearth. Up until now, I never heard these guys. I knew about them due to their hype but never listened because of all that type of hype being overdone. While they aren't anything new, their stage presence could not be ignored. The music was a mix of thrash, metalcore, and Fear Factory and they put on quite a show and the star had to be guitarist Ken Susi who was quite the character least of all due to his haircut which was a faux hawk with long side burns. His antics involved sticking his tongue down the thraot of an 18 year old chick (who was standing next to me), hocking a loogy into the crowd (I'm glad I was not in the path way of that-I don't enjoy being spit on), letting a string of snot hang from his nose while soloing, jumping up on speakers, and going out into the crowd. Not sure if I'd listen to these guys on a regular basis but they put on one hell of a show.
Finally it was the band I was here for. I had lost my position during Unearth from those teenage girls but they left (I figured they would, only real metal fans would be sticking around for Testament and I'm sure many were here just for Unearth) and I was back were I started. Testament was as awesome as I thought they would be. Chuck's voice was superb, Greg Christian's bass playing was great, Paul Bostaph was a monster behind the kit, and Alex and Eric shred the hell out of their guitars. Everybody seems to pay more attention to Alex, but Eric is quite the guitarist himself. Apart from being a great rhythm guitarist, he knows his was around a solo. The entire band put on a great performance and we got many great songs (not in order): Diciples Of The Watch, Practice What You Preach, The Preacher, More Than Meets The Eye, Into The Pit, Over The Wall, The Haunting, Burnt Offerings, The New Order, The Persecuted Won't Forget, Formation Of Damnation, and one other song that I could not remember (probably a song from Souls Of Black) nor do I know what it was called. Eric and Alex were throwing out pics but since I never seem to get any my way and I suck at catching I didn't attempt to get one however Eric had thrown one to me and it landed on my arm so I got a souvenir without even trying
. Great concert and the only thing that would have made it better would have been if they did
Return To Serenity, but I kind of figured that wouldn't happen (since most Testament fans didn't like The Ritual).
Eric and Alex
Alex
Chuck and Eric Giving A Thumbs Up (to who, I don't know)
Chuck & Eric again
Chuck
Eric
Greg (I tried to get a picture during a small bass solo but I accidently turned my camera off and by the time I turned it back on and got it to work, he had finished (maybe I need a better quality camera)
Chuck with some evil glowing eyes
Chuck playing air guitar with his mic stick (something I understand he always does)
The Whole Band (minus Paul Bostaph who was hidden behind his kit)
The pic I got from Eric
Subject: Dallas Black's Review Of Lazarus A.D./Unearth/Testament 
Fri Jun 05, 2009 5:39 am
