Photos/Review: The walls of the KIA Forum trembled as Meshuggah, Cannibal Corpse and Carcass crushed Los Angeles
Another bludgeoning extreme metal tour is making its way across North America as Meshuggah, Cannibal Corpse, and Carcass destroy venues at every stop along the way. On Wednesday, April 9, this trio of death metal gargantuan shook the walls of Los Angeles’s Kia Forum to a crowd of 8,000 metal maniacs. As the only Southern California date on the tour, it made for the perfect hump day evening out and a dose of chaos.
Carcass has been a touring machine since the release of their 2021 masterpiece, Torn Arteries, both with their own headline tours and opening on these larger tours. The band took the stage and hit Los Angeles with “Unfit For Human Consumption” and crammed six songs into their 35 minute set. These death metal veterans are still flying the death metal flag with piss and vinegar led by original members Jeff Walker and Bill Steer on bass/vocals and guitar, respectively, with youngsters Daniel Wilding on drums and James Blackford on second guitar.
Most fans will notice Walker has cut his long hair and now sports a spikey fade, but that has not diminished his aggressive stage presence and he is constantly flicking bass picks into the crowd. Steer remains one of the all-time greats as he shreds the complex Carcass trademark licks on his Les Paul. The early crowd certainly gave Carcass a violent greeting and the band ended the set with the classic “Heartwork”.
Carcass
Photo Credit: Chris Loomis
Cannibal Corpse is another road warrior as they are still out supporting 2023’s brutal album Chaos Horrific. This band is the AC/DC of death metal – you know exactly what you are going to get at each live show – a raw, barebones feeding of heavy as fuck music. Opening the set with “Scourge of Iron,” Corpsegrinder immediately had the hair whip windmills going like no one else can. Nothing really new during this live set, which isn’t a bad thing at all. Guitarists Rob Barrett and Erik Rutan are relentless with their riffing and solos, while Alex Webster and Paul Mazurkiewicz bring the boom on bass and drums. The middle of the set has “Death Walking Terror,” Unleashing the Bloodthirsty,” and “Summoned for Sacrifice,” which led to the usual closing songs of “Stripped, Raped and Stangled,” ending with “Hammer Smashed Face.” Cannibal Corpse remains the Kings of Death Metal – nobody can touch these guys live.
Cannibal Corpse
Photo Credit: Chris Loomis
Now, there is nothing cooler than seeing extreme metal played in an arena and after an almost 40-minute set change, Meshuggah took the stage and immediately went into “Broken Cog” off 2022’s Immutable as the band began their charge to obliterate. The band does not move much onstage, and aside from the sonic polyrhythmic thunder; Meshuggah is well known for their strobe-heavy light show with lots of backlighting and lasers. Vocalist Jens Kidman, now sporting a long white beard, sounds spot on and continues the delivery of his trademark facial expressions in between verses while drummer Tomas Haake gives a cyborg-like attack on his drumkit. Original guitarist Fredrik Thordendal serves up some seriously heavy solos on his eight-string weaponry and Mårten Hagström keeps things chugging with his rhythm playing. Now 20 years in the band, Dick Lövgren on bass holds down the heavy with his thumping bass lines.
The crowd, a mixture of longtime devotees, metal aficionados, and intrigued newcomers was locked in from start to finish. There’s something uniquely communal about a Meshuggah show (actually any metal show); despite the brutality of the music, it unites people in pure, cathartic release.
Ninety minutes onstage allowed Meshuggah to deliver thirteen songs and ended the main set with “Future Breed Machine,” and then a two-song encore of “Bleed” and “Demiurge” that had the KIA Forum thrashing in unison. Meshuggah reminded Los Angeles that they do not just play extreme metal, they redefine it. This tour continues east and ends on April 24 in New York City at The Theater at Madison Square Garden.
Meshuggah
Photo Credit: Chris Loomis
Metal Insider hosted a special countdown in celebration of Meshuggah’s massive tour, featuring artists sharing their favorite Meshuggah songs. Explore the full countdown here.
