Metal legends in for the kill
MICK BURGESS REVIEWS ANNIHILATOR AT THE RIVERSIDE IN NEWCASTLE ON OCTOBER 12
AFTER almost a year and a half off the road, holed up in his Durham-based Watersound Studios, it’s little wonder Durham’s newest Canadian resident, Jeff Waters, was off the starting blocks quicker than Eliud Kipchoge with a furious metallic assault of Betrayed, swiftly followed by the upper cut of King Of The Kill.
This was the first night of a mammoth three-month tour and there were few signs of rustiness anywhere. The savage, twin guitar assault of Waters and fellow Canadian Aaron Homma, were precision forged and razor sharp.
The rhythm section of Cambridgeborn bassist Rich Hinks and Italian Fabio Alessandrini, not born when Annihilator released their first album back in 1989, was Godzillian in its depth and power.
This was heavy-duty stuff and all wrapped up in an astonishingly clear, punchy, perfectly balanced sound. Full credit to the band’s sound lady.
As main man Jeff Waters now resides in Durham City this was effectively his hometown gig, and the fans turned out in their droves, including members of local metal royalty Venom and Raven, to witness the brutal riffing of One To Kill and Phantasmagoria.
The only hiccup was bassist Rich Hinks’ alarming slip off the stage when handing a fan a plectrum; fortunately a swift recovery was in order as Waters knocked out an impromptu rendition of the tongue-in-cheek Chicken and Corn.
Newcastle was honoured to be the very first crowd to witness songs from the forthcoming album Ballistic Sadistic, including the Thrash explosion of Armed To The Teeth and the more traditional Metal of Psycho Ward, showing that his time spent in the leafy, historic North East city hasn’t dulled Waters’ metallic edge.
Other treats included a rampaging Schizos (Are Never Alone) from their debut album, played for the first time in almost 30 years, before the full-on Thrash maelstrom of WTYD and the classic Alison Hell sealed the deal.