Gig review: MEGADETH – Braehead Arena, Glasgow, 11 November 2015

Value for money is something we look for in all walks of life and gig going is no exception. So when this four band bill rolled into town it looked like a bargain, Sylosis, Children Of Bodom, Lamb Of God and Megadeth all for one price, what could go wrong. The problem with a package like this is that to fit all the sets in the gig has to start at a very early hour. For the normal working person it is almost impossible to make the opening acts unless you can sweet talk your boss into an early finish.

As I failed miserably in this quest I missed both Sylosis and Children Of Bodom and only made it into the hall as Lamb Of God were on their first couple of numbers, not good! To get into the Braehead Arena you have to go through a shopping centre which was filled with shoppers going about their business with the sound of Lamb Of God in full flight echoing through the halls, quite a surreal experience.

LOG were in no mood to listen to my whining though as they ripped apart the arena with a relentless onslaught. Randy Blythe was in fighting form, barking out the lyrics with venom and encouraging the crowd to create larger and larger pits and they duly obliged.

This was the first time I had seen LOG live and they certainly lived up to the hype. The sound in the arena didn’t really do the guys any favours with the drums dominating and reverberating around the hall. As I was unfamiliar with the band’s back catalogue this meant that one song seemed to meld into the next with very little variation, however the crew in the pit didn’t appear to mind!

The soundtrack combined with the streaming videos playing on the onstage screens, showing scenes of war and destruction, combined to make for an arresting performance. With the sound issues it was hard for me to form a definitive opinion on Lamb Of God but there is no denying that they put on an intense show which went down a storm with the majority of the crowd.

If Lamb Of God are the future of metal then Megadeth are the old guard but they are still a force to be reckoned with. After a quick intro video, the band hit the stage with ‘Hangar 18’, a good way to kick things off. Dave Mustaine was centre stage with his red locks flying in all directions as he banged his head in time with the music.

I have seen Megadeth on many occasions over the past 30 or so years and they have always put on a solid show. Dave Mustaine has never been the most enigmatic of frontmen but his, at times, complicated character is all part and parcel of the Megadeth story and his songwriting skills have never been in question.

The set contained tracks from all points of the band’s career including a song from their latest album ‘Dystopia’ which will be released early next year. It was the older numbers though which really got the crowd going. ‘Sweating Bullets’, ‘Wake Up Dead’ and ‘Tornado Of Souls’ were greeted with huge cheers and pumping fists.

As with LOG, Megadeth utilised onstage video screens to enhance the show which were used to good effect. Hats off as well to the sound engineer who resolved the early reverb issues within the first few numbers to give a clarity that was not achieved during the LOG set.

The set ended with the big three of ‘Symphony Of Destruction’, ‘Peace Sells…’ and the final encore of ‘Holy Wars’ which is more relevant now than ever.

So, still a value for money package even with just seeing the two bands. I now need that lottery win so I can give up the day job and make the early kick off in the future…

Review and photos by Dave Wilson

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