November 22, 2015
WOW! Once again, I am gracing the streets of Stafford Springs with my presence, out searching for another great night of metal. One I found at the Stafford Palace, where the venerable thrash band Exodus was paying a visit between dates opening for King Diamond.
Exodus had the privilege of supporting King Diamond on his North American tour and after a successful three night stand in New York City they had an off night on that tour before hitting Boston. Not ones to sit around and do nothing between shows, they stopped in the quiet corner of Connecticut.
It was time for the night’s festivities to begin, with Tom Hunting standing tall on his drum set arms stretched upward, to the crowd chanting “Exodus” with Kragen Lum and Lee Altus on guitars, Jack Gibson on bass following him onto the stage. Then the voice of Exodus, Steve “Zetro” Souza, strutted to the stage to the cheers of the crowd.
They started the night off with a couple of songs off their latest album, “Black 13” and the title track “Blood In, Blood Out”, showing us that they may have been around for over 30 years, but they still know how to kick our asses.
“Children of a Worthless God”, “Piranha”, “Ballad of Leonard and Charles”, “Impaler”, “Deranged”, “Exodus”, “Body Harvest”, “Lesson In Violence, “Blacklist”, “Bonded By Blood”, “Toxic Waltz”, and closing the night with “Strike of the Beast”.
It has been 30 years since the release of “Bonded by Blood” and their contribution to a thrash metal scene that they helped bring to life in the San Francisco Bay area in the mid 80s, and that still continues to this day with the current album, “Blood In Blood Out”.
Their performance at the Stafford Palace this evening, is a testament to the veracity and staying power of this band. Steve “Zetro” was all over the stage, working the crowd between songs and slapping and shaking hands with fans every time he was at the front of the stage. I am amazed at how much his voice hasn’t changed over the years.
The big disappointment for me this evening was the visibly missing Gary Holt, currently out fulfilling Slayer guitar duties. Filling in for him while he is away is Kragen Lum of the band Heathen. To be honest he is doing a great job and did not miss one note during the set.
Lee Altus spent most of the evening on the left side of the stage and delivered a blistering non stop attack while Jack Gibson was by his side pounding out a bass line that glued together Lee and Kragen’s guitars.
Driving it all from the back of the stage, was Tom Hunting on the drums.
Exodus, to put it bluntly put on a great show.
The Stafford Palace has stepped it up over the last year bringing us some fantastic Metal shows, and tonite was no exception. Ticket and drink prices that when compared to other Connecticut venues are very wallet friendly. The staff is friendly and fantastic. It may be a bit of a haul for some people, I know it is an hour drive for me, but it has always been worth it.
Keep your eyes on their schedule and pay them a visit!
Photos & Review by Frank Piercy
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Photos by Frank Piercy Photography.