Priest Feast Tour - Manchester Apollo 17th Feb

Testament: Unfortunately, due to the wonders of the M62 traffic jam, we only caught the tail end of Testament’s set but what we did see was simply awesome. The band are as good as they’ve ever been, perhaps better, and the strength of the new ‘Formation of Damnation’ material compared to the classics of yore is simply stunning. This is probably the best line-up Testament have ever had – Chuck Billy is a commanding, mountain of a frontman, Alex Skolnick is playing as good as ever and with the addition of ex-Slayer man Paul Bostaph behind the drum kit, Testament now have an extra edge to their performance. If only their upcoming special “evening with…” show was up north…
Setlist: For The Glory Of…, Over The Wall, New Order, More Than Meets The Eye, Persecuted Won't Forget, DNR, 3 Days in Darkness, Practice What You Preach, The Formation of Damnation

Megadeth:Undoubtedly the band of the night for me (and judging by the crowd’s reactions, most people). Yes, people can make all the ‘MegaDave’ jokes they like but the fact remains that Megadeth has always been Mustaine’s creation and they’ve always had an ever-changing line-up. And what the detractors certainly cannot deny is that Mustaine has more often than not surrounded himself with some brilliant musicians and the current line-up is no exception. Shawn Drover, James Lomenzo and ex-Nevermore guitarist Chris Broderick play the set flawlessly and from the opening notes of ‘Sleepwalker’ to the finale of ‘Holy Wars…’ what we get is an unrelenting and constant assault of some of the best metal songs ever written. Mustaine keeps his in-between song chatter to a minimum, preferring instead to let the music do the talking and its hard to argue with the quality of classics such as ‘In My Darkest Hour’, ‘Hangar 18’, ‘Symphony of Destruction’ and the rarely heard but criminally underrated ‘A Tout Le Monde’ which was a welcome surprise in the set.

Megadeth always put in great performances as the whole band, particularly Dave, play each show like it’s their last and that they really have something to prove. This is ironically one of the best things about a Megadeth performance but is also one of the most saddening things about Mustaine himself. Never one to miss a swipe at his former bandmates, Mustaine introduces ‘Mechanix’ by announcing that ‘it is NOT the Four Horsemen’. Seriously Dave, it’s been over 25 years. And with performances like tonight, Mustaine has nothing to feel second best about.
Setlist: Sleepwalker, Take No Prisoners, Wake Up Dead, A Tout Le Monde, Washington Is Next, In My Darkest Hour, Hangar 18, Symphony of Destruction, Peace Sells, Mechanix, Holy Wars

Judas Priest:Priest are among metal’s elite and rightly so. The band don’t put on a bad show but anyone who saw them in 2005 upon Halford’s return will probably walk away feeling a little disappointed tonight as the metal god himself is beginning to show his limitations. Don’t get me wrong, even a slightly deflated performance from Halford is better than most screaming nerks that pass themselves off as ‘metal’ frontmen could muster these days but it’s a shame when you know it could’ve and should’ve been better. His voice is beginning to fail him ever so slightly (but only compared to his previous high standards, not to anyone else’s) and you get the feeling that his slow movement on stage and the fact that he sings one song entirely seated is not just for effect…

And those who saw Priest last year at numerous festivals will no doubt have left tonight feeling a touch of déjà vu given that both the setlist and the stage show were exactly the same which is somewhat disappointing when you consider the wealth of material they have to choose from. Still, the setlist is far from predictable and we do get to hear some rarely aired Priest songs such as ‘Rock Hard, Ride Free’, ‘Eat Me Alive’ and an awesome rendition of ‘Sinner’. And of course no Priest show is complete without classics such as the mighty ‘Painkiller’ (which seems to get heavier each time the band play it and remains a lesson to all young bands in how to really be ‘heavy’), ‘Hell Bent For Leather’, complete with Halford riding the Harley, and ‘Breaking The Law’ which is still probably the most fun you can have singing along at a concert. All in all, it’s a very good performance from Priest without being great and if Megadeth had not been on such fine form, they may have nicked it. But tonight, it’s Mustaine, not Halford, who walks away with the spoils.

Setlist:Dawn Of Creation (Intro), Prophecy, Metal Gods, Eat Me Alive, Between The Hammer And The Anvil, Devil’s Child, Breaking The Law, Hell Patrol, Death, Dissident Aggressor, Angel, The Hellion/Electric Eye, Rock Hard, Ride Free, Sinner, Painkiller Encore:Hell Bent For Leather, The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown), You’ve Got Another Thing Coming