It’s 2024 and many bands that have forged the rock and roll/heavy metal foundation are now 30, 40, 50 years into their careers and some have decided to call it quits so fans will only remember these bands at the top of their game. Sepultura is celebrating 40 years as a band and has also decided to pack it in and are currently commemorating their explosive history on their final tour - Celebrating Life Through Death. Joining Sepultura on this 21 date North American trek are a couple of legends in their own genre, Death Metal masters Obituary, NYC Hardcore giants Agnostic Front and Brazil’s best extreme metal export (next to Sepultura) – Claustrofobia.
Los Angeles welcomed this tour on Thursday September 26 as The Novo at L.A. Live hosted this monumental event giving fans their last chance to witness the brutality of Sepultura live. Claustrofobia kicked off the night to an already packed venue at 7:20pm and delivered the perfect set of extreme music to ignite the fans and set the tone for the rest of the night. Claustrofobia was more than honored to be out supporting their fellow Brazilian metal brothers on their last run.
In the hardcore world it does not get more legendary than Vinnie Stigma and Roger Miret from Agnostic Front – these gentlemen played a key role in defining the genre and they brought their “A” game on this night as they plowed through a long list of “must be played” songs – opening with the instrumental “AF Stomp” and of course playing “Dead to Me”, “Gotta Go” and many more that had the LA crowd in and endless circle pit. Stigma is having a blast on stage throwing fists and always a huge smile, the band is as tight as ever and elevated the energy level in the building several notches as they ended the night with the up-tempo anthem “Addiction”.
One of the original Death Metal innovators, Obituary, have been a touring machine the last few years and they are still out supporting 2023’s critically acclaimed album Dying of Everything which is no doubt one of the best in their catalog. The band hit the stage with the guitar driven instrumental “Redneck Stomp” then vocalist John Tardy appears out of nowhere and into the banger “Threating Skies”. This band is all business onstage – no banter as they let the music do the talking.
Guitarists Trevor Peres and Ken Andrews provide the down-tuned blistering riffs as Donald Tardy just smashes his kit along side the heavy bass of Terry Butler – all this combined with John Tardy’s unique death metal vocals just pummels your eardrums song after song. The band played a well-mixed set of old and new that included a cover of Celtic Frost’s “Circle of the Tyrants” that had Los Angeles body surfing and circle pitting throughout the set. Obituary’s time onstage ended with their classic “Slowly We Rot” elevating the energy in the building as Obituary set the bar extremely high for Sepultura.
Any time a discussion happens in regards to Sepultura, things get interesting as the conversation usually goes into what Sepultura was and what they are. The current version of the band goes back to 1997 when Derrick Green took over vocals and honestly the band has never looked back. They have generated nine killer studio albums that quickly defined their sound blending the classic Sepultura vibe with what Green brings to the band equaling a genre defining thrash metal monster.
With a huge Sepultura banner as the backdrop to the stage, the band appeared, and the night got started quickly and brutally with “Refuse/Resist” into “Territory” as Derrick Green along with Andreas Kisser on guitar, Paulo Jr. on bass and newcomer 22-year-old Greyson Nekrutman on drums took LA through a journey of all things Sepultura to celebrate the beginning of the end for the band.
Green provides his powerful vocals as he stomps around the stage, doing justice to all the old-school Sepultura songs while blasting through such recent songs as “Kairos” and “Phantom Self”. Kisser is such an underrated guitar player as he just wails all the big, fat guitar riffs and gives that whammy bar a workout on his solos. The thunder of Sepultura has Paulo Jr. at its foundation and the youth of Nekrutman on drums is mind-blowing to watch and hear.
Sepultura did a fine job mixing a setlist that included some old-school thrashers such as “Escape to the Void” and “Dead Embryonic Cells” and you knew the night would end with the mega-boom of “Roots Bloody Roots” as The Novo erupted with pits and bodies flying everywhere. The band blasted through this last song and the night was over – was this REALLY the last time Los Angeles will ever see Sepultura live – according to the band the answer is yes but we all know all to well many farewell tours turn into “farewell for now tours” . . . only time will tell. If this was indeed the last Sepultura show in LA then Sepultura certainly proved they are leaving on a high note – LONG LIVE SEPULTURA!!!
Seputura Setlist:
Refuse/Resist | Territory | Kairos | Phantom Self | Attitude | Means to an End | Guardians of Earth | Escape to the Void | Kaiowas | Dead Embryonic Cells | Agony of Defeat | Arise | Ratamahatta | Roots Bloody Roots
Photo Journalist - Orange County
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