After a long hiatus, Milwaukee Metal Fest returned last year. It's back again this year. https://www.milwaukeemetalfestival.com/lineup

No time to waste as bands I wanted to see started right away.

BEWITCHER - Kind of running KISS/Venom schtick in the sense that they look way scarier than they sound. 3-piece fronted by a quarter black dude with dreads. They play a throwback classic speed metal style. I've seen them a couple times already. Nothing special per se, but they do it well. People who like Motorhead, Diamond Head, Judas Priest, etc. would dig them.

NIGHT DEMON - same kind of situation as Bewitcher, but with less spooky. Very cool classic heavy metal band. The were on the main ballroom stage and there were issues getting the sound check complete which sucked for there to be problems so early in the day. Also a 3-piece. Their album Curse of the Damned is awesome. They said they were going to be releasing new shit soon (I think).

VISIGOTH - Straight forward heavy metal with more of a power metal leaning bent. Fronted by a hilarious looking bald shortmo wearing spiked forearm sleeves. Metal can be too funny some times. This year featured a lot more bands in the classic/power metal vein.

NUNSLAUGHTER - crusty, blackened, hardcore thrash that would be perfect for fans of early Sodom and Sepultura. They had a stripper in a nun halloween costume dancing on stage. I would like to learn her glute/hamstring routine in the gym. These guys are pretty kickass and have scoured the underground for a long ass time. They're coming back around in the fall with Sodom and Dismember, which is going to be a fucking killer show.

INCANTATION - doomy/gloomy death metal legands. Pioneers of the genre and they brought exactly what you'd expect.

OVERKILL - Later addition to the bill, and they absolutely did not disappoint. DD Verni's 1st show back after rehabbing shoulder surgery. New Jersey thrash from the gutter. Great set. Ran into their singer Bobby Blitz out on the street after the show. Great guy. Voice hasn't waned a bit after all these years.

HEATHEN - very underappreciated technical thrash band from the 80s. Played the small stage and only had time to play one song from each album. Their main brain Lee Altus is a guitar wizard who shreds with the best of them.

HAVOK - Holy fucking shit. Possibly the best set of the festival thus far. Also played the small stage and they honestly should've called the fire department it was so fucking crowded. It was a Great White death trap waiting to happen. I'll just let this video do the talking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1VdwFXlWVQ&t=124s

MACABRE - Murder Metal legends and metal fest mainstays. You love them or hate them if you even get them. They made an entire concept album about Milwaukee's Beast, Jeffrey Dahmer. Closed out the small stage and brought their signature brand of sickness. I had a chance to talk with their drummer and bassist later on at the bar. Very unassuming guys, but total pros on their instruments.

AUTOPSY - 35th anniversay set for Severed Survival. Drummer formed the band after he made Scream Bloody Gore with DEATH. Fairly unique setup for a band in that he's also the singer. No clue how you do that. Must take a killer set of lungs. Sounded great and was awesome to check them off the list.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5530170&forum_id=2Reputation#47674117)

Day 2 also starts off right away with the main stage.

DEVOURMENT - very happy to see these guys on the bill. I was super shocked at how many people were there at like 3pm to pack the ballroom for these dudes. They were loud and heavy, but sadly kinda muddy, which is a risk of being early on the main stage. People still lost their minds for them.

SKINLESS - INSANELY LOUD. Even louder than Devourment. I know you're too old if it's too loud, but this shit was too loud. Also had a massive crowd. Sound got worked out and cleaned up. Great set.

SOILENT GREEN - So amazing to see these dudes. Fronted by the same guy who sings for GOATWHORE. Awesome sludgey swamp metal from Louisiana. Crazy history for this band. Had a member murder-suicided and another died in Hurricane Katrina. So good. For fans of Down, Crowbar, Corrosion of Conformity.

TERRORIZER - World Downfall 35th anniversary set. David Vincent and Pete Sandoval of Morbid Angel also in this band. Grindcore legends. Didn't really have an exciting feel to the set, but I was really happy to be able to catch them, as I think everyone there was too. It's unique "gets" like the reunions and anniversary sets that make Metal Fest a great festival.

DEATH TO ALL - Death "tribute" band made up of former members of Death. They play twice this weekend and did Sound of Perseverance in its entirety. It sounded so fucking amazing and clean. Gene Hoglan on drums, Steve DiGiorgio on bass. Not much more needs to be said. They even played the cover of Painkiller by Judas Priest.

POSSESSED - Some argue that Possessed actually started death metal. Either way, they were tight, fast, and metal as fuck. Their singer got jacked in LA many years ago and was shot twice, leaving him paralyzed. He's in a wheelchair and still barks out his vocals like a maniac. More recently he had major problems with his right eye and had an eyepatch on. I guess some people can't catch a break. Super glad to catch these guys. They also have a very interesting place in metal history as far as being the catalyst for an unexpected career in band management for Debbie Abono, who went on to manage the careers of Possessed, Forbidden, Broken Hope, Exodus, Vio-Lence, Obituary, Cynic, the list goes on. She had no connection to metal at all, but her daughter was dating original Possessed guitarist Larry Lalonde (who went on to play in Primus) and they asked her to book them shows. She probably kept a bunch of them from starving to death while broke ass musicians. That story really needs to be turned into a book or documentary.

DEICIDE - Holy shit. So fucking brutal. Glen Benton's vocals are so insane and terrifying. First time seeing these dudes and they sounded perfect. I can see why they were the biggest death metal band ever for a time. Also mainstays of metal fest.

TESTAMENT - Maybe one of the best sets I've ever seen from these dudes. The energy was amazing. They played their debut album The Legacy in its entirety. Chuck Billy said that they played metal fest for the first time in 1988 and only had one album out at the time, so they were going to play the whole thing for us this time. They've got a new drummer who really nailed it. Perfect band to close out my night.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5530170&forum_id=2Reputation#47674119)

Started the day by walking down by Marquette to get something to eat and stretch out the muscles. All those hours standing and thrashing around and having everyone ask for your help to crowd surf gets you feeling beat up.

Met a girl at Starbucks named "Winter" which I thought was a very metal name.

Then sat around with some of the goons at the hotel and couple (WGWAG) who happened to be in the area doing some brewery tours. Lil bro wasn't impressed with the Spotted Cow from New Glarus.

EXHUMED - Self-styled "Gore Metal" legends kicked off my day with their trademark blend of humor, guts, and death metal. They appeared to be getting off to a bad start when they all looked ready to kill the kids working the soundboard off stage during sound check, but they finally figured it out. They sounded great and didn't seem to be affected by any of the issues they complained of. Folks down in front were treated to severed heads and limbs and a healthy dose of blood splatter throughout the set (my hands are still tinged with the remnants of one of their victims). Very fun.

ATHEIST - A late addition to the lineup after some bands had to drop out. I can't remember who they replaced, perhaps Marduk? Hate to admit it, but these dudes just didn't come off right. They were ahead of their time when they put out their classic albums, but it really doesn't translate live. The crowd really wasn't into it, and I suspect many were just waiting for them to leave the stages so Death could come on. Very proficient musicians, and their albums are super cool, but this was one of the few duds of the weekend. Band seemed to be having a great time at least.

DEATH TO ALL - 2nd set of the weekend and it killed. I had a spot right down on the rail and it was incredible. Although the price I had to pay was probably 10,000lbs worth of crowd surfers crashing down on top of me. Security did an A- job of handling them, but a couple crashed me pretty good. Before the set started, this dude asked me to move from my spot so his friends could come be with him. I was pretty puzzled by the request for a number of reasons. He confirmed that he was being serious and I politely declined. He was actually surprised and persisted until a couple of other guys literally laughed in his face at how ridiculous he sounded. I've never had anything like that happened. Death were in the ballroom this time and played all of Scream Bloody Gore plus Living Monstrosity off Spiritual Healing and Pull the Plug off Leprosy. The were a big draw for me and didn't disappoint. A highlight of the weekend.

GATECREEPER - sadly, I didn't get to see these guys again this year because soundcheck issues were getting so fucking bad that I missed their entire set as a result of Death going on so late. This was the one major letdown for me of the weekend. Most of the delays were minor and didn't screw me too hard, but this one fucking sucked. They need to figure out a solution because 3 stages can't operate with huge fluctuations in start/stop times.

I AM MORBID - This is the version of MORBID ANGEL currently out there with David Vincent and Pete Sandoval. Another version is playing as Morbid Angel, but I consider this one to be the one to see. Originally this was billed as an Alters of Madness anniversary set, but instead we got a setlist full of classic shit from the early albums, including 3 from Altars of Madness. They played the middle room, and it was surprisingly not jam packed. I thought it sounded great and was happy to hear songs from other albums. They all look like they're on TRT and I wouldn't be surprised if they pump up in the nude backstage before a gig.

IN FLAMES - Another crazy delay, but these Swedes sounded amazing. Chris Broderick recently joined as another lead guitarist, and he's a total pro. The crowd loved them. I just wish singers, especially those from other countries would quit trying to be funny. Nobody can understand you, and you're probably not funny either way. Downside to this timeslot was that they overlapped with Skeletal Remains, which was another band I really wanted to catch live.

Lacuna Coil, AVATAR, and Slaughter to Prevail rounded out the ballroom stage, but I didn't watch any of them. Don't even know who the fuck Slaughter to Prevail are, but they closed it out for some reason. Maybe it was a sacrificial time slot given that it was the very end of a 4-day weekend.

I'll go through my pics and see if anything is worth poasting.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5530170&forum_id=2Reputation#47678119)

Scott Ian played guitar and Dave Lombardo was on drums.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/mr-bungle/2024/eagles-ballroom-milwaukee-wi-7babbab8.html

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5530170&forum_id=2Reputation#47678413)

Immortal Rites

Fall From Grace

Visions From the Dark Side

Blessed Are the Sick

Rapture

Pain Divine

Eyes to See, Ears to Hear

Maze of Torment

[shirtless guitar wanking]

Dominate

Where the Slime Live

God of Emptiness

World of Shit

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5530170&forum_id=2Reputation#47678401)