MARK OSEGUEDA of Death Angel
THRASH is heavy metal pushed to the limits in sonic velocity and aggression. Alternatively called speed metal or metal punk, the genre first reared its gnarled head in the mid-1980s and attained commercial success via bands like Metallica and Megadeth.
This year’s edition of “Summer Slam,” dubbed “Resurrection,” held recently at the Amoranto Stadium in Quezon City presented two of thrash metal’s finest forerunners, Anthrax and Death Angel, and two of its more recent practitioners, Hell Yeah and Nervecell. True to the billing, the promised rebirth came in waves of eardrum-mutilating din and clatter.
The audience responded with instant mosh pits and a hundred devil horns intermittently raised in the air to salute old idols and new heroes.
Death Angel—five Fil-Americans from San Francisco, California—was first onstage. The original members were in their late teens when they released “The Ultra-Violence” in 1987, critically regarded as one of the most impressive debuts in the US thrash metal scene.
In a press briefing the day before the concert, founding guitarist Rob Cavestany said he and original vocalist Mark Osegueda have performed with three new members since 2008. Asked how aspiring musicians might reach the level of success attained by Death Angel, Rob replied, “Work hard. Be as original as you can be. Keep playing and don’t ever give up.
A standout
VINNIE Paul of Hell Yeah
At the concert, Death Angel stuck to the heavy sound that blew away a generation of metal heads two decades ago. The obligatory guitar crunch meshed well with the speed-obsessed backbeat in older materials like “Mistress of Pain,” to newer tracks from the band’s recently released album, “Relentless Retribution.”
What made Death Angel stand out was Osegueda’s penchant for high-strung operatic vocals favored by British metal new wavers like Judas Priest. His unique singing added melodic flair to the unrelenting sonic storm around him.
An hour before headliner Anthrax hit the stage, the already good-sized crowd of about 10,000 swelled some more, with the Amoranto open field filling up to its sidelines. Many fans obviously came only for this group, noted for mixing up thrash metal with other genres like hip-hop and a little old-fashioned rock ’n’ roll.
Like Death Angel, Anthrax has had personnel changes since the first lineup belched out New York thrash metal in 1981. Four members from the band’s classic period rejoined a revitalized Anthrax in the past five years.
Vocalist Joey Belladonna got a lot of help from original drummer Charlie Benante, rhythm guitarist Scott Ian, and bassist Frank Bello, plus recent addition Rob Caggiano on second guitar. After the preliminaries, the band reached its comfort zone with the exquisitely thrashing “Dearthrider,” then went for broke with three more-punk-than-your-grandmother numbers. The group then settled for the rock ’n’ roll groove of “I Am the Law” and “Got The Time,” before coasting to a fistful of bullet-biting speed metal monsters, starting with the epic chaos of “Metal Thrashing Mad.”
Sandwiched between the two major acts was Hell Yeah, composed of former members of ’90s rap-metal acts. The four-man crew offered a similar blitzkrieg sound with one difference: the vocals were partial to the Cookie Monster growl of prime death metal.
Dubai-based Nervecell’s hour-long set covered a spectrum of harsh sounds including hard-core punk to death metal growlers.
Local artillery support came from the likes of Kamikazee. Some respite from the noise was provided by an impromptu jam between Colt 45 guitar-shredding contest champ Patrick Cruz and Reklamo’s LC de Leon.
The whole shebang was a memorable experience, including a bummer: Thieves stole one of my car’s side mirrors.