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02/08/2020 Machine Head (Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom)
By Eric | February 11, 2020 9:21 pm
Much like the last time I saw Machine Head, this was “An Evening With”, no openers, no BS, just metal! Unlike that show, however, this was a 2-set show – the first set was the “hits”, so to speak, and then the second set was a celebration of the 25th anniversary of Burn My Eyes with the whole album being played front to back by (most of) the original band!
Since Machine Head as we knew it doesn’t really exist anymore, Robb Flynn assembled a touring band with lone holdover Jared MacEachern on bass, Vogg from Decapitated on guitar, and drummer Matt Alston to play the big tunes from the catalog. I got to see a couple catalog songs that I didn’t see at the 2015 show (Take My Scars, I Am Hell, Hallowed Be Thy Name) plus two that weren’t out at that point (Catharsis, Is There Anybody Out There), so that made the main set interesting and not just a rehash. This band sounded just as good as any other incarnation, and the crowd being all die-hards made for a great set. There were some guys up the balcony that were wearing caution tape bandannas for some reason, after pointing them out, Robb even got in on the action and put some on!
Imperium
Take My Scars
Now We Die
Beautiful Mourning
Locust
I Am Hell (Sonata in C#)
Aesthetics of Hate
Darkness Within
Catharsis
From This Day
Ten Ton Hammer
Is There Anybody Out There?
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Halo
After a short intermission, a different iteration of the band came out: Robb and Jared, joined by original members Chris Kontos on drums and Logan Mader on guitar, to play through Burn My Eyes. They rolled tape on Real Eyes, and then launched into Davidian. On through the rest of the album, and while I wouldn’t claim BME to be my favorite MH album, it obviously was something to see, with the majority of the OG band playing it. Before closing it out with Block, they played a cool medley of covers from Metallica, Exodus, White Zombie, and Slayer. Good times all around, and I’m glad my last concert for the forseeable future was a good one!
Real Eyes, Realize, Real Lies [Tape]
Davidian
Old
A Thousand Lies
None but My Own
The Rage to Overcome
Death Church
A Nation on Fire
Blood for Blood
I’m Your God Now
Covers Medley: Welcome Home (Sanitarium) / One / Motorbreath / Strike of the Beast / Thunder Kiss ’65 / South of Heaven / Raining Blood
Block
Topics: Concerts | Tags: 2020, Buffalo, Machine Head, Town Ballroom | Comments Off on 02/08/2020 Machine Head (Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom)
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