Review by Brian McLean
German legends Destruction thrashed Fort Worth with a long overdue appearance, their first since the 2006 summer tour with Vadar, Graveworm and others. The show was one of the only two Texas dates on the band’s current D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N. – 25 Years of Total Destruction which features Brazil’s Krisiun and new Pittsburgh thrash act Mantic Ritual as supports.
Despite threatening weather, monitor issues early in Destruction’s set as well as a blown fuse towards the latter part of the night the German trio carried on like troopers not letting anything stand in the band’s way. The downtime allowed vocalist and bassist Schmier an opportunity to address the moderate sized crowd that what mattered the most to the band was the energy and enjoyment level from the fans.
The lengthy and band history packed set list featured a vast array of Destruction material ranging from “Total Desaster,” the first Destruction song ever written, “Mad Butcher” “The Butcher Strikes Back,” up through the more recent releases of “Metal Discharge,” “Thrash Til Death,” “Nailed to the Cross,” “D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N” “Soul Collector” as well as “Curse of the Gods” which saw a spike in the aggression level of the pit for those involved. The action was immediate approval from the fans of early vintage Destruction.
As expected, Krisiun delivered a deathly brutal and pounding eight-song set supporting their latest Century Media release titled Southern Storm but it was newbie Pennsylvania thrashers Mantic Ritual, formerly known as Meltdown that caught the eye of the thrash starved crowd.
For their Fort Worth live performance debut, Mantic Ritual impressed with their old school thrash sound receiving an unanimous approval as they peppered the crowd with “One on One,” Thrashatonement,” “Panic, “Souls” and others from their Nuclear Blast debut Executioner.
Mantic Ritual’s debut is fresh off the presses which will allow the band plenty of time to tour and support the disc. The band already has summer dates lined up and will be swinging through in July. Their performance will satisfy any metal fan and with that, Mantic Ritual has upped the ante for each of the four members. Delivering on the expectations next time around should be no problem.
Unfortunately with Destruction’s touring history, it may be a few years before the German trio returns to the states but the wait will be worth it. The band’s appearances in North America are not as common as other touring bands but that is what made the evening much more extraordinary, even on a Monday night.
Additional Information:
Destruction will release a double-live album in July from the D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N. – 25 Years of Total Destruction tour with shows being recorded in Los Angeles and New York.