Watain’s latest release, Trident Wolf Eclipse (Century Media), is perhaps the most monstrous black metal release of 2018. The album nicely captures all the elements that have made the band one of the most commercially successful black metal outfits in the last decade: it’s fast, furious, and demonic with crisp production and raging vocals. So when time came to catch them live, I could barely hold my excitement. The band played to a packed Masquerade crowd in Atlanta supported by Deströyer 666 and Nexul.
Nexul entertained the early crowd with a powerful set comprised of their signature blackened death metal filled with pure chaos and rage. The blood cleansing ritual before the set was especially powerful and eye-catching and I was glad to see the visual drama was matched with solid musicianship and a top-notch performance. The band’s debut full-length, Paradigm of Chaos, is well worth a listen especially for those who enjoy a more death-infused form of extreme metal that is a flashback to the early 90s.
Next up, Aussie black-thrashers Deströyer 666 mesmerized us with monster riffs that span the entire metal spectrum. One thing that impresses me most about these guys is their sub-genre defying compositions (Motörhead anyone?) and the imposing vocals of K.K. Warslut, which were perfect on the night. The band kicked things off with Wildfire from their latest full-length and drowned the crowd in a sea of blasphemous war anthems, including my favorite I Am the Wargod.
By this time, the crowd had filled the newly renovated (and expanded) Heaven stage at The Masquerade in anticipation of Watain. Despite a longer-than-usual setup due to the meticulous stage design and visual aides on display, the band took the stage right after a hauntingly beautiful hymn intro, and launched into Devil’s Blood, Black Flames March, and Nuclear Alchemy. Erik Danielsson, who was on point as was the rest of the band, drenched the front row crowd in blood at the end of the first song–as is customary. The dramatic and dark lighting, phenomenal sound engineering, and the band’s masterful performance on Sacred Damnation and Total Funeral made this night an absolutely wicked one for me.
Watain are a divisive band for a variety of different reasons (e.g. sound, direction, commercial success, etc.) but even their haters cannot deny the spectacle that is their live show. The band has managed to pull crowds double the size of most of their peers for a long time now, and that is something to be respected. For me as a fan of the band, the night was a special one.
8.5/10
