During Tool’s most recent tour in Australia, the band pulled out songs they haven’t played live in years. I don’t just mean like 5 years. We are talking 20 years plus. Songs that fans all over the world have been anticipating to make it in the set list for years. One of those that was played just so happened to be “Crawl Away.” “Crawl Away” is in my top 5 favorite Tool songs of all time. I absolutely love this song. And of course they bring it out and play it in Australia. Fun fact, “Crawl Away” up until this point had not been played live in 26 years. Yes that’s right TWENTYSIX YEARS! Up until November 22, 2025, the last time Tool played “Crawl Away” live was August 8, 1998. That’s just absurd and way to long to go without playing this song! So, here it is, “Crawl Away” LIVE for the first time in 26 years! Thankfully someone in the audience filmed it. Sorry Maynard but, this was a necessary filming!
Tool- Crawl Away (Live In Australia, 2025: First Time In 26 Years):
The year is 2006 and Alice In Chains have begun their triumphant return. Getting out there and bringing the songs we all know and love back to life was one of those things that the universe got right. When this all started going again, you could tell that the fans were really glad to have Alice back. Granted the late Layne Staley was not a part of this but, William DuVall has truly shown he is up for the job and does a stellar job. During Alice In Chains summer festival run in Europe back in 2006, the band welcomed a very special guest to join them on stage for “Would?” That guest was the one and only James Hetfield of Metallica. This version of “Would?” is fantastic and will give you chills for sure. I still hope for the day we can get a Metallica and Alice In Chains tour! Can you imagine the how awesome that would be? I sure can! Enjoy this really memorable performance!!
I’ve been on a bit of a Soulfly kick as of late. I’ve got something really cool coming up that is Soulfly related but, you’ll just have to wait a moment for that! Part of what put me on this kick was my podcast co-host Justin doing a full Soulfly rewind review (which will be out on Sinisterreviews.wordpress.com shortly) and I went back through a few a few of my favorites. Also, Soulfly’s thirteenth studio album, Chama, comes out 11.24.25!! One of the albums I went back to was their seventh album, Omen. This record is an interesting one for a myriad of reasons. Logan Mader who would tour with Soulfly during the first album was the producer/engineer/mixer. Prong’s Tommy Victor lends his superb and very underrated guitar work to the song “Lethal Injection.” And the reason for this article is Greg Puciato of Better Lovers/The Black Queen/Killer Be Killed/ex The Dillinger Escape Plan, guests on the song “Rise Of The Fallen.” This track is a banger for sure. It’s got a really cool groove to it along with some great worldly textures and then you add in Greg’s vocals both aggressive and melodic and the combination is gold. Listening to this song you can hear how and why Killer Be Killed was formed. Max and Greg work like peanut butter and jelly! The picture at the top is of Greg and Max from the studio! And to end it on a positive note, this collaboration has happened live as well and it’s straight up vicious.
Soulfly with Greg Puciato- Rise Of The Fallen (LIVE):
I’ve spent the past week trying to put into words about how truly amazing and stunning the two nights of Nine Inch Nails were at The Forum. Those two nights were beyond magical and therapeutic for me as well as being the 20th and 21st times I’ve seen my all time favorite band. It’s astounding to me that songs written over 30 years ago can sound so fresh and invigorating. Almost to the point of taking on a whole new meaning. What Trent Reznor has been able to do with constantly being able to captivate an audience and make a show an entire experience is otherworldly.
The stage set up for this whole tour was something else too. Staring out on a small stage in the middle of the floor, Trent appears alone, at a piano, and begins playing the most absolutely beautiful stripped down version of “Right Where It Belongs.” This is one of those songs in the Nine Inch Nails catalog that will make tears start flowing and choke you up. Just when you thought it was over though, Trent pulls out my another stripped down song in “Somewhat Damaged.” Now this is my all time favorite Nine Inch Nails song and when I say this was emotional, I truly mean it. So much so that in the first 5 minutes of the show both nights, the tears were definitely filling up my eyes. From there another stripped down song in “Ruiner,” followed by the “Nothing Can Stop Me Now” remix of “Piggy” which can be found don the Further Down The Spiral remix album. I always love when Trent pulls out these versions live. It adds so much more of an extra dimension to the songs and live show.
At this point, the crowd was in the palm of Trent’s hands and then a full on onslaught of heaviness in the form of “Wish,” “March Of The Pigs,” “Reptile,” Heresy,” “Copy Of A” and “Gave Up.” It doesn’t matter how many times in my life I’ve heard those songs be it on album or live, I always seem to go apeshit. And at these 2 shows, oh did I. The way this part started with “Wish” and ended with “Gave Up” put it this way, if you still had a voice after these songs, you weren’t loud enough. By the end of “Reptile” on night one and by the end of “Wish” on night two, my voice was gone!
Then after that part of the set, Trent and Atticus moved back to the middle stage where they were joined by Boyz Noize for a set of songs that were remixed in a very awesome way. The highlight of this part was when they played “Vessel” from the very underrated and unsung masterpiece that is Year Zero. This had the crowd in a dancing frenzy. The crowd of course went nuts for “Closer” but the audience pop during the new song “As Alive As I Need You To Be” was something else. Closing out that portion was a really great remix version of “Came Back Haunted.” If you haven’t ever really given Hesitation Marks a listen, you should.
As the band headed back to the main stage after that awesome remix set, Trent and company unleashed more awesomeness with even more intensity as the band blasted “Mr. Self Destruct,” “Less Than, and “The Perfect Drug” into the stratosphere. Having Josh Freese back on the drums in Nine Inch Nails is like having him back home. Josh’s ferocious performance of “The Perfect Drug” is one of those that should be studied and watched a zillion times. It’s that good. Rounding out the set was the always fun “I’m Afraid Of American’s” which is quite the relevant song in the days we live in. As well as the staples of “The Hand That Feeds,” “Head Like A Hole,” and “Hurt.”
I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about the production of the tour. The lights, visuals, performances, and energy of the whole thing was unlike anything I’ve been to all year. You could tell that this tour was meaningful in a myriad of different ways. Trent even said, he wasn’t going to do a tour unless it was something that was substantial. And oh boy was it. As I mentioned these were my 20th and 21st times seeing Nine Inch Nails and I can honestly say this tour is in my top five NIN shows of all time! Thank you Trent, Atticus, Robin, Josh and Alessandro for two nights of absolute gold! I can’t wait till the next time!
Overall Rating: A
Review and Photos By: Brian Lacy
Set List (Same For Both Nights): 01) Right Where It Belongs (with Somewhat Damaged) 02) Ruiner 03) Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now Remix) 04) Wish 05) March Of The Pigs 06) Reptile 07) Heresy 08) Copy Of A 09) Gave Up 10) Vessel (Remix) 11) Closer (Remix) 12) As Alive As You Need Me To Be 13) Came Back Haunted (Remix) 14) Mr. Self Destruct 15) Less Than 16) The Perfect Drug 17) I’m Afraid Of Americans (David Bowie Cover) 18) The Hand That Feeds 19) Head Like A Hole 20) Hurt
Wow! Seriously, Wow! I have to say this show was beyond awesome. There are some bands out there that just have the right recipe for putting on a show that leaves you feeling great, inspired and ready to take on anything and Linkin Park is definitely one of those bands. This show in Los Angeles as part of their From Zero World Tour, was outstanding. Last year around this time, I went to their return show at The Forum and that one too was something special. And just like that show, it was full of so many people smiling, singing along, sharing in the joy of getting to see Linkin Park do what they do best.
At 9:05pm, the screens around the venue turned dark and a 10 minute countdown appeared, when the clock hit zero, it was on! Colin, Joe, Dave, Alex, Emily and Mike all took the stage and blasted off with the heaviest version of “Somewhere I Belong,” I’ve ever heard. I didn’t realize how good of an opener that song really is. From there it was just an onslaught of banger after banger with “Crawling,” “Up From The Bottom,” Lying From You (which is one of my all time favorite LP songs),” and “The Emptiness Machine.” Talk about a way to open a set. Those 5 songs not only set the night on fire but, the crowd participation on each of those songs was astounding, especially on “Crawling” and “Lying From You.” After that, it went into so many other great gems LP has including 2 songs from the very underrated and very awesome A Thousand Suns, “Waiting For The End (another of my all time favorite LP songs)” and “The Catalyst.” The From Zero songs really were on fire like “Two Faced,” “Overflow,” “Stained,” “Over Each Other” but, even more so on the live debut of “Unshatter,” “Heavy Is The Crown” and “I Gave You Everything I Have.” The latter of which was a real highlight for me. The explosive nature of that song ferocious. Other fun songs like “Lost” from the Meteora 20 release sounded great. It started with just Mike and Emily then it hit the gas pedal for the second chorus and was simply divine. When they played “Numb” they started the song off in a very fantastic fashion by speeding it up to make it more of a “punk” sounding song. I so want to hear it in full like that! During “In The End” the crowd participation was almost deafening. I love a good concert sing along and this one might have taken the cake this year. Of course when they played “Faint” and “Papercut” I was through the roof. Those 2 songs are in my top 5 LP songs of all time. I absolutely love those songs. The video for “Faint” is one of my all time favorites too. During the set too there were a couple of solo moments where Joe Hahn showed off his scratching skills. I forgot how damn good he is at that. Reminded me a bit of seeing them back in the Hybrid Theory era and how they would do that. Also, Mike had his solo moment with “When They Come For Me/Remember The Name” during part of that Mike likes to throw in a different rap verse from other songs and this evening he pulled out part of “High Voltage” which was pretty awesome. Closing out the night was the always fun “Bleed It Out” which also during the bridge they threw in part of “A Place For My Head” and then it was over.
If you have ever been a doubter of Linkin Park, seeing them live will change that. I had a long history of writing the band off but, I’m really glad I went back to listen and rediscover them. Having Emily and Colin in the band now has not only breathed new life into the band but, given all of us fans a reason to look forward to the future. Emily is a force of nature all on her own and these songs go even harder than before. That’s not a knock on Chester at all. Chester was great too but, with Emily it feels like the older songs are taken to new heights and the new songs are so damn good. Honestly this show and night was genuinely everything you’d want it to be. The production of the stage show was superb. It felt very immersive and intimate even though there wasn’t an empty seat or place to stand in the whole arena.
I took my daughter with me to the show as well and she had such an amazing time. She’s a huge LP fan and to see her smile, be happy and singing along was the cherry on top. Getting to share music with my daughter, friends and all of you is what makes this all fun. Seriously, if you haven’t heard From Zero, give it a listen. And the next time Linkin Park comes through town, GO!!! I know I will!
Overall Rating: A
Review and Photos By: Brian Lacy
Linkin Park Set List:
01) Somewhere I Belong 02) Crawling 03) Up From The Bottom 04) Lying From You 05) The Emptiness Machine 06) The Catalyst 07) Burn It Down 08) Stained 09) Where’d You Go (Fort Minor Cover) 10) Waiting For The End 11) Castle Of Glass 12) Two Faced 13) Joe Hahn Solo 14) When They Come For Me/Remember The Name (High Voltage Verse) 15) I Gave You Everything I Have 16) One Step Closer 17) Lost 18) Unshatter (Live Debut) 19) What I’ve Done 20) Overflow 21) Numb 22) Over Each Other 23) In The End 24) Faint ENCORE: 25) Papercut 26) Heavy Is The Crown 27) Bleed It Out (with A Place For My Head verse)
I’ve been on a bit of an A Perfect Circle kick as of late. I’m pretty excited about the thought of new music from them. Especially since their last album, Eat The Elephant, was pretty disappointing. While going through my usual rabbit hole, I came across this fun video. If you are not aware, after A Perfect Circle went on “hiatus” in 2004, Billy Howerdel would go on to start a solo career. His first release was under the name Ashes Divide and the album, Keep Telling Myself It’s Alright. That year Ashes Divide was asked to be a part of Linkin Park’s Projekt Revolution tour. During one of the stops on the tour, the late Chester Bennington joined Ashes Divide on stage for a version of A Perfect Circle’s “The Outsider.” It’s a pretty solid offering and just shows that Chester could sing pretty much anything, and it sounded good. If you haven’t seen or heard this before you are in for a treat. And seriously check out the Ashes Divide album, it’s really quite good.
Ashes Divide w/Chester Bennington- The Outsider (Live):
Oasis is one of those bands that I’ve been hoping would get back together for years. The last time I saw them was in 2008 on what would be their very last tour. For almost 20 years this silly feud between Liam and Noel lasted. Thankfully, that’s behind them now (fingers crossed) and we can all get to experience one of the best pure rock bands from the last 30 years. There is no denying the great songs, albums and performances throughout the years. This time around though, it’s different. It feels like a renewed sense of purpose and the songs have taken on a whole new meaning. Seriously, the world needs Oasis right now and this show was definitely proof of that!
At 8:45pm, the lights went down and the video countdown on the screen appeared, then a short little montage of clips from their career started and then to a roaring applause, Liam and Noel walked out on stage hand in hand to even more of a roar, and then immediately kicked off with “Hello,” which I have to say, was the perfect way to start the set. “Acquiesce” would follow right after along with “Morning Glory.” “Morning Glory” was a highlight for me. I’ve always loved that song so much, and this version they played had a bit of an extra edge to it. Other highlights included “Some Might Say,” “Cigarettes and Alcohol,” “Fade Away,” “Little By Little,” “Stand By Me” this song had sooo many people singing along and swaying in unison. Quite the sight to see. When one of my all time favorite Oasis songs ever in “Slide Away” was played, it sent me into the stratosphere. Even my daughter who was with me was singing her heart out throughtout the night but, especially on this song. Proud dad moment right there. Also before they played the song, Liam dedicated the song to “all the lovebirds in the house but, not in the Coldplay way. Love who you want, we don’t care.” I love the dig at Coldplay because well, Coldplay sucks! Yeah I said it! Then not too long after, I heard my all time favorite in “Live Forever.” I don’t care how many times I’ve heard that song, I will never get sick of it. It’s such a beautiful song. And it was another one that my daughter was singing her heart out at. Closing the main set was “Rock n Roll Star” another fan favorite and this was quite the rock version of the song. For the encore we got four songs and they were all sung so loudly by the audience. 100,000 plus people singing along to “The Masterplan” but especially “Don’t Look Back In Anger,” “Wonderwall” and “Champagne Supernova.” It was like a whole city singing along. The glow of cell phone lights and cameras was a sight to see as well. Though I do miss the sea of lighters more! A stellar set list and performance all together.
Now comes the part of the review where it flips. I’m not sure who’s idea it was to have Cage The Elephant be direct support for Oasis but, that was a really bad choice. First of all in the UK and Europe, they got Richard Ashcroft of The Verve. That right there with Oasis is how this should have been as well. Instead we got one of the most boring, overhyped, third rate Nirvana wannabes I’ve ever seen live. Seriously, they had zero energy. Almost to the point of soul sucking. Their stand still nature on stage was drab and just full of “when is this going to end.” I’ve seen so many bands in my life that, I can tell when a band is trying to hard to be something they are not, and Cage The Elephant is a prime example. You are not a rock band. You are an indie band that needs to stay in your lane and leave the rock to those that actually do rock! Seriously, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of The Who, both of which are in their later 70’s, have more energy on stage than this band combined. Needless to say, I was not impressed. Also, there was another opener, Cast. They are an old school Brit-Pop band from the 90’s. Again nothing special and frankly a waste of time. Who the hell is picking these bands to open these shows? Come on! Do better!
The whole night was all about Oasis anyways. The set was nothing but hits, fan favorites and choice deep cuts. For two glorious hours the world stopped and everyone in attendance felt infinite. Oasis means a lot to so many people. People were traveling from all over the world to be there this evening. It was one of those truly special shows. Having Liam and Noel back together again just feels right. I did enjoy both of their respective solo careers and albums but, this is where they need to be. Both of them sounded better than ever along with the whole band. Plus it was great to have Bonehead and Andy Bell back on stage with the Gallaghers. Welcome back Oasis! Please stay around this time!!!
Show Rating: A- (lost points for the openers)
Review/Photos By: Brian Lacy
Oasis Set List:
01) Hello 02) Acquiesce 03) Morning Glory 04) Some Might Say 05) Bring It On Down 06) Cigarettes & Alcohol 07) Fade Away 08) Supersonic 09) Roll With It 10) Talk Tonight 11) Half The World Away 12) Little By Little 13) D’You Know What I Mean? 14) Stand By Me 15) Cast No Shadow 16) Slide Away 17) Whatever 18) Live Forever 19) Rock N Roll Star
Encore:
20) The Masterplan 21) Don’t Look Back In Anger 22) Wonderwall 23) Champagne Supernova (with a fireworks show at the end)
Back in 1995 at the legendary CBGB’s, a little known band from England, made their first trip over the pond to the United States and from that point on, the rest is history. That band was Bush, and their set at CBGB’s became one of those that has lived on in the bands lore and story. Bush’s very first US show took place on January 25, 1995. From everything I’ve ever read about this show, it was one of those that was beyond packed. People were standing on the bar, on shoulders of others and people sat outside to hear what was going on. The setlist for this night too was one of those that is a dream. Interestingly too, a couple songs played this evening like “Straight No Chaser” and “Broken TV” would go on to appear on Bush’s second album Razorblade Suitcase. “Broken TV” being a b-side. This performance is one that I’ve been going back to for years. I was and still am a big fan of this band. Gavin still sounds great and if anything the band has only gotten better. 30 years after their start and Bush is still kicking ass and taking names! Really look forward to the new album, I Beat Loneliness coming out in July! Enjoy this show!
Set List: 01) Alien 02) Machine Head 03) Straight No Chaser 04) Monkey 05) Body 06) Everything Zen 07) Bomb 08) Comedown 09) Broken TV 10) Little Things
For well over 30 years now, Meshuggah have long been one of the heaviest and most visceral auditory bands to see live and hear on a record. The gents in Meshuggah have long cemented themselves in the lore of heavy music and then some. Their influence on countless bands alone is astronomical. I can remember back to about 1998/1999 when I first heard Meshuggah. At first I was completely perplexed by them and how the hell they were pulling this off. Then fast forward to about 2001/2002 and Tool put out Lateralus and took Meshuggah out as their opener. That show was what really made me a believer. Also, I still to this day, don’t know how Tool was able to go on night after night as Meshuggah would rip those audiences apart!
This nice spring night in April at the Forum was a night for a grand celebration of not just heavy music but to show that Meshuggah is at the top of the musical food chain for good reason. I must say having soft jams play before the onslaught began was a nice touch especially walking out to “Careless Whisper.” From that point as the stage was dark and shadowy figures appeared and then… “Broken Cog” from Immutable kicks things off with one hell of a bang. Then a barrage of absolute beatdown songs “Violent Sleep Of Reason,” “Rational Gaze (one of my all time favorites),” and “Combustion.” Throughout the set the lights really brought the songs to life in a whole other way kind of like how a kaleidoscope looks on the inside. Other choice cuts for the evening included “Lethargica,” “Swarm,” and of course the classic “Future Breed Machine.” For the encore, “Bleed” was right out of the gate after a moment of pause. From the get go, the audience was completely sucked into the world of Meshuggah. The sheer volume that was permeating through The Forum was another thing all on it’s own. I kept looking up and around and saw the roof shaking a bit and then even outside, the rumble was making the security guards shake their head in disbelief. Put it this way, this was a LOUD show and it should be! The way that Jens Kidman, Tomas Haake, Fredrik Thordendal, Marten Hagstrom, and Dirk Lovgren are so precise is another show to watch all on their own .
Also playing this evening were Carcass (who we missed- thanks LA traffic on a Wednesday) and Cannibal Corpse. Cannibal I did get to see. It’s been since 2001/2002 since I last saw Cannibal and they are still badass and awesome. I was having quite the fun time watching them deliver a brutal set. I forgot how technical they are as a band and the tone those guys have is quite unique to them. You can hear others try to cop that one but, it’s not quite right. The head banging too, that was a sight to see. My neck was sore just from watching them head bang onstage especially Corpsegrinder. That guy really is the champ. Their set although short was another one that was chock full of classics and some other choice cuts. My buddy and podcast co-host Justin, is a big Cannibal fan so the enjoyment he was having was quite fun!
This was a great show. Meshuggah absolutely brought it and delivered a set and show that I hope is released as a live album. What a great show. It’s quite the heavy tour. I will say, it does feel like it’s missing that one direct support band to really put it over. Don’t get me wrong this lineup is great, it just felt like there should have been 1 more band to really up the energy and blow the roof literally off The Forum.
Overall Rating: A
Review and Photos By: Brian Lacy
Meshuggah Set List: 01) Broken Cog 02) Violent Sleep Of Reason 03) Rational Gaze 04) Combustion 05) Kaleidoscope 06) God He Sees In Mirrors 07) Lethargica 08) Born In Dissonance 09) Dancers To A Discordant System 10) Swarm 11) Future Breed Machine ENCORE 12) Bleed 13) Demiurge
Cannibal Corpse Set List: 01) Scourge Of Iron 02) Blood Bind 03) Inhumane Harvest 04) Evisceration Plague 05) Death Walking Terror 06) Unleashing The Bloodthirsty 07) Summoned For Sacrifice 08) I Cum Blood 09) Stripped, Raped and Strangled 10) Hammer Smashed Face
I’ve been on a bit of a Led Zeppelin kick as of late. I found myself the other night putting all their albums on and just letting it all take me on a quite the musical trip. When I got to Physical Graffiti, there was one song in particular that hit at the right moment, and that song was “Ten Years Gone.” This song is an absolute gem in the Zeppelin catalog. It’s dark and sultry and full of great melody. “Ten Years Gone” is one of Jimmy Page’s epics. Interestingly, originally the song was meant to be an instrumental song. This song live goes to a whole other level. The alternate version that I have always dug comes from their 1979 concert at Knebworth. This would be one of the bands final concerts before the passing of the one and only John Bonham. This version particularly is quite simply superb.
Led Zeppelin- Ten Years Gone (Live At Knebworth- 1979):
AUDIOECLECTICA 