On Friday, August 9, renowned classic Metallica act The Four Horsemen came and pummeled The King of Clubs. It wasn’t even the multiple pits started in their honor, the insane headbanging or the young headbangers in training they brought up near the end. The Horsemen are described as damn near close to note/record perfect as the real thing playing and creating an adrenaline, lung screaming, sweat filled show. They also play nothing but the old-shit, playing setlists from Kill’em All to Justice with the selective smattering of the Black Album.
A loud, heavy celebration of all things early and classic Metallica, with all the accompanied and expected speed, precession and aggression. There’s no double-loaded decisions of questionable, alternative nature, eyeliner or anything good or bad after. They play Metallica when they were young, hungry, angry and very ‘spirited’ with the same fury when they were stocked on different fuel. The King of Clubs could’ve been a club they would’ve played during the first two records. It’s also added incentive that the Black Album tour was the first live Metallica experience for guitarist/vocalist Sean Perry.
The fab four played a long, blistering set, inspiring several pits thorough the show giving security a busy night bringing Perry to politely ask the rowdy bastards to be respectful to non-participants.
The set circled the classic material with classics, deep cuts and stuff fans came to hear. The Snake Pit was definitely slithering in the crowd. Though several in the crowd didn’t look to have lived the early eras, though there’s nothing wrong with discovering the Mighty Met on any record, even St. Anger, though condolences should be given for Lulu.
Along for the ride was area support from Crysis and Credible Threat. The Crysis began turning back the metal clock several decades to the late ‘80s/’90s with bullet belts (possibly one per riff), camo and a vibe akin to early Exodus and Sepultura. The threesome helmed by vocalist/guitarist Ave, Aiden on bass and drummer Izzy Setser buried behind camo and the kit. The sibling band started in 2021 with a fateful walk across the hall from one room to another. Supporting 2023’s Metal Possession EP. with a handful of head cranking, break neck growlers. You could almost hear Max Cavalera’s influence hearing, we are Crysis from Columbus.
“Back 4 Blood” started the onslaught. The young-blooded brutality flowed with vintage vibes and an Into The Pit, Headbangers Ball feel. Though MTV was long gone before they started headbanging, the classic thrash flare was definitely present. “Empress” bore the crown of the next generation preparing to reign. “Born From The Grave” conjured up a vile tale of midnight walking necromancy with riffs and beats pulling the resting/rotting dead from their grave. Ave commanded the strings and frets like a trail blazer in the making with growled vocals from the depths of the netherworld.
Credible Threat was next, taking over with a different visual, lyrical storytelling and heavy vibe. The Wages of War was in full effect, from funk to ghost stories to the deadly, deathly hollows. The heavens and planets aligned for some interstellar “Cosmic Funk.” It wasn’t King’s X but the “Black Fag” waved high. “I Got Bombed” put everyone of age on notice and under the table with one or more, too many Black Tooth Grins and hails to Jäger and meister. These are “Trying Times” in many ways indeed with forewarning notes warning of the beasts incoming tracks but eventually righteous truth and the light will win. “Ghost Town” brought dirty deals to listeners ears, going down memory lane like a old haunted country twanger bringing back old stories from the showdown’s dead underground. Melodic coiling notes and chords carried “The Hollows” out of the darkened realms with dark, swampy vibes corroded with mental cracks and uneven thoughts.
The “Black Heart” beat pumped out melodious notes. The threat are Columbus veterans, conjuring music like a strong, strange brew of Accept, Dream Theater, a little Queensryche, classic rock and catchy riffs. Though, visually, they looked the most ‘normal’ of the night, their songs told some of the coolest stories going from the wild west to the spooky supernatural.
The Horsemen arrived adorned in black as the beginning of justice blasted out, with bass thudding, “Blackened” in the end, whipping the dance of the dead. Lightning struck loud with headbanging galore, tolling the Bells as time marched on. Arguably, their greatest/heaviest record was about to get the thrashing cross spotlight as no Metallica show or tribute show could end without it.
“Battery” opened the pit on the right side of stage pummeling bodies into each other. The song driven into history as their signature opus started, taste me you will see, “Master of Puppets” is all you need, pummeling everything. “Harvester of Sorrow” pummeled more heads and necks for six minutes until Black Album deep track and spine cruncher, “Holier Than Thou” took over the speakers. The sanity draining, note drilling, haunting began with three of the darkest and creepiest notes to ever open a song, with a doomed “Welcome Home (Sanitarium).” An old-school all ages pit opened. One of the most anticipated and familiar four notes in metal started with cries of war, signaling Metallica’s introduction to MTV with a creepy/depressing video that helped put them and Johnny Got His Gun on the metal map.
Mr. Sandman brought us a dream alright, filled with war, liars and dragon fire and the things that bite, yeah. Sleep baby sleep with one eye open as snakes slithered and the “Sandman” came. It was a scary nightmare “Sad But True.” Showing they had a good, twisted sense of historical humor they ripped into Vic Rattlehead’s playbook and the “Symphony of Destruction.” The blistering riff blitzkrieg of “Fight Fire With Fire” hit ears like a battering ram.
Black Album tour crowd sing-a-long “Seek and Destroy” killed more eardrums. “Dyers Eve” danced around the pit, inspired more blistering and burned out screaming and yelling. The deadly curse of the pharaohs crept across the Nile signaling “Creeping Death.” They went classic one more time for all the hot, sweaty, old-school bastards spewing “Motorbreath,” ending with a perfect dark “Fade to Black.”
Images and words – Mike Ritchie
The Four Horsemen – www.facebook.com/fourhorsemenmetallica
Credible Threat – www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063570009159
