Both Lamb of God and Mastodon helped usher in a new era of heavy metal dubbed ‘The New Wave of American Heavy Metal.' Lamb of God, with their combination of death metal and thrash, created a new ruthless force in the music world. With Mastodon, they took progressive, sludge, stoner, and alternative metal to new strange heights that gave a voice to the essential elements of the world. When the heavy metal world needed new heroes, these two groups stepped up to carry the banner. On August 31, 2004, Lamb of God and Mastodon released their quintessential albums that turned them into household names, Ashes of the Wake and Leviathan, respectively. 20 years later since they were released, they are still admired as one of the two greatest metal records of the 21st Century. To celebrate this achievement, they embarked on an epic American tour fashioned as the Ashes of Leviathan tour, which included a stop at the world-famous Kia Forum in Inglewood. Coming along for the fun was thrash metal legend Kerry King & his new solo group, and English hardcore bashers Malevolence. Time for all four groups to rise from the ashes to bring L.A. a new awakening.

First up was Malevolence. The bashers of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England looked to give their American counterparts a taste of what British headbanging is all about. Frontman Alex Taylor was a roaring machine whose screams had the potential to blast through brick walls. While Taylor handled the belting, Konan Hall provided the more harmonious singing at the same time as he riffed the hellish licks. I tell you what, I was impressed with the lead guitar work of Josh Baines, who used combined elements of groove, metalcore, and hardcore metal to give the solos knockout punches that would rattle the ancestors of the L.A. crowd. Malevolence’s crowd was not very big as fans were still coming and there were some issues with the sound, but they soldiered on through. Giving it all they got, the five-piece outfit entertained with songs like “Malicious Intent,” “Life Sentence,” “Still Waters Run Deep,” “Self Supremacy,” “Higher Place,” “Keep Your Distance,” and “On Broken Glass.” The few loyal metalheads in attendance provided Malevolence with a respectful mosh pit.  One band down, three to go.

Ascending to the stage next is a man who puts the “thrash” in thrash metal shredding, Kerry King of Slayer. It has been years since we saw King and Slayer when they went on their farewell tour, but now he emerges once more with his solo band. Ever since From Hell I Rise hit the streets earlier this year, the gates of Hell opened inside the Forum. Performing with Kerry were the same musicians that performed on his album: frontman Mark Osegueda of Death Angel, lead guitarist Phil Demmel of Machine Head, bassist Kyle Sanders of Hellyeah, and King’s Slayer brother, Paul Bostaph on drums. All five of these all-star metal musicians created a band that was the stuff of nightmares. As Osegueda belted his ferocious voice, the tornado of terror got even bigger. Both King and Demmel are the hellacious duo of guitarists, slaying the entire L.A. crowd with wick solos and forked-tongue licks. From “Diablo” to “Where I Reign,” “Trophies of the Tyrant,” “Residue,” “Toxic,” “Idle Hands,” and “Shrapnel,” it was a sight to see. The crowd went even more crazy when they went into Slayer’s “Raining Blood” and “Black Magic.” Finishing off their night with the self-titled track, King demonstrated he was still a king in the thrash world.

Changing gears to something more progressive and sludger, black curtains with the Mastodon dropped down and the group from the ATL took over the driver’s seat with “Blood and Thunder.” Bassist and co-lead vocalist Troy Sanders, geared with his signature Jaguar Fender bass, delivered the harsh growls and melodic singing that really sets him apart from other metal artists. Lead guitarist Brent Hinds not only shared lead vocal duties with Troy, but he also shredded the absolute shit out his weapon, emulating the banjo fingering technique that has made him swift. Rhythm player Bill Kelliher destroyed the main riffs on his Les Pauls, while drummer Brann Dailor went into his technical prowess to achieve that perfect progressive/stoner/sludge beat. With each song from Leviathan being played, the jumbo screen behind them projected cool images that transported us to the ocean, braving the crashing seas as the metal faithful was in battle mode in the pits. From “I Am Ahab” to “Seabeast,” “Island,” “Iron Tusk,” “Megalodon,” “Naked Burn,” “Aqua Dementia,” “Hearts Alive,” and the instrumental “Joseph Merrick,” hearing the entire Leviathan album live was so special. Following that, Mastodon treated the crowd to three more songs that included “More Than I Could Chew” from Hushed and Grim, “Circle of Cysquatch” from Blood Mountain, and “Streambreather” from Emperor of Sand. During those songs, Dailor jumped into the lead vocal seats and nailed it. He is like the Phil Collins of heavy metal. It was a great set, and Mastodon promised to return soon with their next album. I cannot wait for that.

Following Leviathan, the L.A. metalheads were in for a crash course that was Lamb of God’s Ashes of the Wake.  As soon as their black curtain dropped, they kicked things into high gear with the supreme “Laid to Rest.” Randy Blythe is the ever-menacing frontman whose dynamic stage presence and blistering screams make him one of the premier leaders in modern metal. Lead guitarist Mark Morton laid down his groove metal/death metal chops, intimidating yet melodic. He is still one of the top dogs in the lead guitarist department. Rhythm man Willie Adler outputted his unique odd rhythms that goes along nicely with Morton’s solos. Also, it is Willie’s shredding capabilities with his pinky that make him that more special on stage. Bassist John Campbell is looking like Old Man River with his bushy beard, but he is still a fast player whose exactitude on his signature Jacksons make him more lethal. Rounding out Lamb of God is my boy, drummer Art Cruz whose speed and solid blast-beats brought new life to the group after the sudden departure of Chris Adler. Just like Mastodon, Lamb of God used the screens behind them and showed intense shots/images. Rabit and I were air guitaring the entire Ashes of the Wake with intensity. From “Hourglass” to “Now You’ve Got Something to Die For,” “The Faded Line,” “Omerta,” “Blood of the Scribe,” “One Gun,” “Break You,” “What I’ve Become,” the self-titled track, and “Remorse Is for the Dead,” Lamb of God conveyed brutality to a new level. Once the album ran its course, the band was not done as they went into two songs from Sacrament, which included “Walk With Me in Hell” (which was dedicated to Cruz for being the L.A. native) and “Redneck,” where I saw the cyclone of chaos reach the level of F5 status. No words, just a beautiful sight.

The Ashes of Leviathan tour was a huge success at the Kia Forum (ugh! I hate calling it that). To watch these titans of heavy metal play their iconic albums in their entirety is something to always cherish. Mastodon teleported us to the gnarly realm of water, while Lamb of God gave the crowd a severe case of whiplash the next day. Kerry King has entered the newest chapter of his storybook thrash metal career, and Malevolence spread hardcore malice to Inglewood. Rabit and I went home feeling euphoric, wondering how can this tour top this year? That is one of the best things about heavy metal, you never know. To Lamb of God, Mastodon, Kerry King, and Malevolence, I salute you. Horns up!!!

Photos by Matt 'Rabit' Martinez