Pantera Live 02/01

PANTERA / SOULFLY /
MORBID ANGEL / NOTHINGFACE

San Jose Event Center; San Jose, CA; 02/06/01

Reviewed by Kate Smith

If the Pantera show is any indication of what 2001 is going to bring as far as concerts go, it's going to be a great year.

The crowd's energy was amped even before the doors were opened. Everyone was ready for Nothingface, Morbid Angel, Soulfly and the mighty Pantera to bring out some kick-ass metal.

Nothingface came out onto the stage with great energy and tight sound that got the crowd on their feet and forming mosh pits within seconds. They played some great songs off their new album "Violence," including "The Bleeding" and "Villains" which pretty much had the message that overzealous Christians (especially the ones standing outside with their little protest signs) could go fuck themselves.

I wasn't sure how the crowd would react to Morbid Angel, but as soon as they opened with "Kawazu" everyone went insane. They also played " Summoning Redemption" and "Opening of the Gates" and "Blasphemy" off of the "All Stars of Madness" album. I'm a long-time Morbid Angel fan so it was awesome to see them playing on stage again delivering the music in the brutal death metal style that makes them Morbid Angel.

Next up was Soulfly and I have to admit I wasn't a huge Soulfly until I saw them play live. Their sound is hard-hitting metal that crosses over into deep tribal-like rhythms with songs like "Umbabarauma." I was also impressed with "Soulfly" and "Eye For An Eye." But what blew me away even more was the drum solo from hell that involved all members of the band and showed that Max is a true god of the percussion instrument.

Finally, up came the almighty Pantera and by that time I couldn't even see the floor anymore, it was just a mass of swarming bodies everywhere. This is the sixth or seventh time that I've seen Pantera live and they've impressed me more and more each time.

Pantera brought out the old classics like "Primal Concrete Sledge," "Walk" (which included special guest Jerry Cantrell), "This Love" and "Fucking Hostile." They also played some new stuff like "Yesterday Don't Mean Shit" off their new album "Reinventing the Steel."

With the bands playing this concert, I went in with my expectations high and not one of them was let down. Nothingface, Morbid Angel, Soulfly and Pantera know the true meaning of the word METAL and deliver it with full force to their fans.

Back to Live Reviews Page

Back to roughedge.com Home Page