Lamb of God came to the Riverside Municipal Auditorium as part of their headlining tour on August 27th. This 8-city run is in support of their 2022 fall album release, Omens. They’ve had several bands supporting them on different dates of this tour but tonight we got treated to The Acacia Strain and Suicide Silence!
The Acacia Strain kicked off the night by opening their set with “Flourishing.” They will be releasing not one but two new records on May 12th of next year! Step Into The Light will be more of the driving and fast material The Acacia Strain is known for. The other, Failure Will Follow, will feature three tracks, and it’s 40 minutes of nothing, but pure Sludge.
This was a hometown show for Suicide Silence!
Coming right from Riverside, lead singer Hernan “Eddie” Hermida said they had not played a hometown show since they were still a local band! About midway through their set, Eddie called for a Wall of Death. He explained how back in the day, he remembered seeing Lamb of God doing this. He said that even though Lamb of God doesn’t really do it anymore, they were going to keep it going. The crowd split wide and in the middle of the pit, there was a man in a unicorn onesie that was dedicated “Pit Master” by Eddie. Suicide Silence just released their seventh album, Remember... You Must Die, back in March via Century Media and they closed out their set with the title track “You Must Die” and hit “No Pity for a Coward.” When Sucide Silence walked off, the curtain closed.
The Riverside Municipal Auditorium is such a cool venue to see a concert at because they have a traditional red curtain! It adds a whole new aspect to a show even though it’s just something so simple. It was interesting not seeing the giant Lamb of God’s curtain this time though. Usually when he intro to “Momento Mori” comes on, the curtain falls when lead singer Randy Blythe screams “Wake Up!” This time though, the curtains were drawn right when the song began, revealing a dark stage. The band members walked out and one thing significantly different this time around is Randy doesn’t have dreads anymore and now has a shaved head! It’s such a dramatic look change that is going to take some getting used to! This was my fifth time seeing Lamb of God but my first time seeing them without any fire pyro! The Auditorium is an old historic building so makes sense why they don’t allow fire. It was definitely weird seeing “Walk with Me In Hell” without Pyro! We still got Randy’s signature jump off the drum kit though!
The crowd this night was so much fun! There were so many costumes, like the unicorn guy from earlier, and there was even a guy with a bubble machine crowd suffering! First time I’ve ever seen bubbles at a metal show and usually bubbles piss me off but it was kind of a vibe in this setting. Later in the set, Lamb of God played “11th Hour” which was dedicated to those who have dealt with alcoholism and addictions. They closed out their set with “Laid to Rest” and “Redneck”.
There are still two more dates left on Lamb of God’s headlining tour! They’re playing in Flagstaff, AZ with support from Ice Nine Kills and the Acacia Strain on August 30th, and the final show takes place in Pikeville, KY with support from The Black Dahlia Murder, After The Burial, and Alphawolf on September 11th! Along with this tour, Lamb of God is currently supporting Pantera on their “For Legacy'' Tour that runs through the end of September! Lamb of God will also be playing Blue Ridge Rock Festival in Alton Virginia in just 1 week! There are still plenty of times to see Lamb of God before the year ends so be sure to get out there and buy tickets!
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