It's a damn shame that guitarist Scott Ian wasn't able to play, but there was a silver lining to that — fill-in players (like Eric from Testament) were more familiar with older numbers, like a powerful "Caught in a Mosh" or a surprising "Medusa." The set was shorter than those from previous nights on this tour; the material from Worship Music was mostly scrapped, although three tunes made it through, including "The Devil You Know."
As the set went on, singer Joey Belladonna's vocals dropped in the mix, and the bass and drums got louder. It may have been due to the abuse my ears received, and they simply gave up the fight to hear the high end, but things seemed to get a little more rattle-y and rumble-y as the set progressed. Alternately, Frank Bello and Charlie Benante might've had their bass and drums, respectively, kicked up in the mix to make up for having some fill-in guitarists.
Set List
Earth on Hell
Fight 'Em Till You Can't
Caught in a Mosh
Antisocial
I'm Alive
The Devil You Know
Indians
In the End
Got the Time
Medusa
Encore:
Madhouse
Metal Thrashing Mad
I Am the Law
Really, it seemed like as many folks were at the Midland for Testament as were there for Anthrax. Both Faster Than Hell's Kriss Ward and Stevie Cruz of Hammerlord said as much, and if you know your local heaviness, those two guys have opinions worth hearing.
Death Angel frontman Mark Osegueda wailed as much as he howled, putting some melody into his vocals. The band's half-hour set was perfect for setting the tone, and it seems that despite the fact that this was their third or fourth pass through Kansas City in a year, their audience doesn't seem to have yet tired of their coming through.
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