Burning Down The City
SLAYER LIVE AT THE BILL GRAHAM CIVIC AUDITORIUM IN SAN FRANCISCO, CA ON 8/9/17
Anytime any of the “Big 4” hit San Francisco, it’s a big deal for any thrash or metalhead. So When Slayer hits town it’s a must see show no matter how many times you’ve seen them before. It’s also a bonus when bay area’s Exodus guitarist Gary Holt is pulling double duty as one of the brutal guitarists now also playing in Slayer.
As the crowd waits for the band to hit the stage, it was great to see Steve “Zetro” Souza and other members of Exodus in the crowd supporting their axeman. The lights dim as ‘Delusions of Saviour’ plays through the PA and upside down crosses, pentagrams, and Slayer logos are projected onto a giant curtain that hides the stage. The curtain drops to reveal metal demigods who are ready to destroy the city with the brand of metal. As Slayer plays to a packed house, they kick into ‘Repentless’ to start the show followed by ‘The Antichrist’. The stage show is filled with flames, lights, and visual backdrops that add to the ambiance of a Hell filled night. The band pummels through several tracks including ‘Postmortem’, ‘War Ensemble’, ‘When The Stillness Comes’, and ‘Born of Fire’ to name a few.
Bassist/vocalist Tom Araya massacres the mic with his deep bellowing as guitarist Kerry King holds down the rhythm along with drummer Paul Bostaph. There are a lot of fans who miss the late Jeff Hanneman and that’s a given but guitarist Gary Holt holds his own in the band and he is bringing it tonight as he shreds for his hometown crowd.
Has the band changed up their set much over the past few tours? Not much, but there are songs that if they didn’t play like ‘Raining Blood’ and many others that the fans would be pissed. So with as many popular songs as they have in their three decades of playing as a band, their setlist is going to stay pretty close during each tour. All I can add is It was a great night of loud fucking metal and still a pleasure seeing Slayer kill it live.
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To view more photos from the show visit the SLAYER Photo Gallery HERE
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