As one of the younger generations in the Metal community, I unfortunately missed pretty much all of the phenomenon that was DEATH. So needless to say I jumped at the chance to see DEATH TO ALL, the project set up in honour of Chuck Schuldiner's legacy. In commemoration of the 20 year anniversary of the "Symbolic" album, DEATH TO ALL have launched on their Symbolic Tour of Europe, featuring original Symbolic-era members Gene Hoglan and Bobby Koelble, with Steve Di Giorgio (TESTAMENT) on bass, and Max Phelps (CYNIC) filling in the enormous gap left by Chuck.

Starting off the night was LOUDBLAST, long-standing veterans of the French Melodic Death Metal scene. Massive crowd funding went into making the Symbolic tour possible for this group, and that pure determination to be there was evident in their every move. The crowd was somewhat underwhelming at this point, with the venue only being at about half of its capacity. With their seemingly boundless energy, LOUDBLAST was arguably the most engaging band of the night, which is all the more pity that relatively few people were there to see them. With the release of their seventh full-length album "Burial Ground" last year, several of these novel songs were played, giving an inkling of the sound achieved by the band after such a long career. However, as the openers, their set was relatively short, last about half an hour, and all too soon it was already time for their final song of the evening.
 

Setlist:
1. A Bloody Oath
2. The Bitter Seed
3. The Abstract God
4. From Dried Bones
5. Presumption of Survival
6. Disquieting Beliefs
7. My Last Journey

Taking the penultimate spot was ABYSMAL DAWN, a United States based Death Metal band who are currently touring Europe for the first time. Starting off their set with a symphonic intro that wouldn't have been out of place in a Peter Jackson film, ABYSMAL DAWN proceeded to barrage the audience with a bombastic onslaught that was mind blowing. Fast, relentless, and technically brilliant, ABYSMAL DAWN gave no quarter. My favourite song of theirs was "By my Demons", a haunting melody that I've been unable to get out of my head ever since. This song and other tracks of the night stem from their fourth full-length album "Obsolescence", unleashed on the world at the end of last year. This is a really great band, and I'd highly recommend checking them out if you haven't heard them before.
 

Setlist:
1. Perfecting Slavery
2. Inanimate My Own Savior
3. Perpetual Dormancy
4. By My Demons
5. The Inevitable Return to Darkness
6. In Service of Time

And finally it was time for the band that everyone had been waiting for. By this time, the crowd had magically doubled in size, reaching that ideal level where the venue is full but not so crowded that everyone has to jostle for space. Appearing on stage, DEATH TO ALL launched straight into "The Philosopher" with a no-messing-about business-like attitude. Playing one song from each album in addition to a bevy of tracks off of "Symbolic", DEATH TO ALL had something for everyone, with fans singing along word for word. One thing that really stood out was that even after all these years, there is still nothing remotely as unique and captivating as the timeless masterpieces created by DEATH. Despite arguably being at the forefront of creating the then entirely new genre of Death Metal, DEATH's music is still ageless, relevant, and unmatched in today's Metal scene. This was clearly mirrored by the fan base out that night, with the crowd ranging greatly in terms of age all the way from older guys who had clearly been fans of DEATH for several decades all the way down to wide-eyed youths in denim jackets smothered in DEATH patches. Bringing on guest vocalist/guitarist Steffen Kummerer from the German Death Metal band OBSCURA for "Symbolic" and "Zero Tolerance" towards the end of the set was clearly also much to the vociferous pleasure of the local metal scene. DEATH TO ALL's set seemed to go on for hours, but at the same time was over all too soon, with cries for encores carrying on well after the band had already played their final three encore song.
 

Setlist:
1. The Philosopher
2. Leprosy/Left to Die
3. Suicide Machine
4. Overactive Imagination
5. Trapped in a Corner
6. 1000 Eyes
7. Without Judgement
8. Spiritual Healing/Within the Mind
9. Lack of Comprehension
10. Flattening of Emotions
11. Symbolic
12. Zero Tolerance
13. Bite the Pain
15. Zombie Ritual/Baptized in Blood
16. Crystal Mountain
17. Pull the Plug

Overall, all three bands put on stellar performances, with each band complementing the other perfectly, leading to a really powerful and memorable lineup. The level of musicianship was also first-class, as was the sound. All in all, it was definitely an amazing show, and if you still get the chance to catch this tour, I'd highly recommend it!