There are a lot of metal maniacs who aren’t wasting time to attend the top-tier gigs. With the awakening of spring, mild days, and some rainy days, so many bands are on tour as life begins to blossom. There is lots of great new music and always plenty of cool bands trekking across America. After witnessing Sony Hall upping the irons with the Iron Maidens, I prepared myself for another night of full-on heavy metal mania at TV Eye for a brilliant performance featuring the legendary Satan from the era of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal with iron-clad support from New York’s Tower. TV Eye is one of the most incredible venues I have ever been to in New York. It’s as if the spaciousness of L’amour did a fusion dance with the dimly lit essence of the Saint Vitus Bar. My observation would prove me right as the night went on with more people showing up and gussied down in their patched denim vests adorned with Battle Beast, Ghost, Iron Maiden, Savatage, and others.
I prepared for a bewitching evening by dining at the well-reviewed Ltauha on Myrtle Ave, a walk from the venue. If you love burgers and different salads like me and are willing to deduce from your bar tab, go for the house burger and the fried crispy artichoke salad if your palate can handle arugula. The house burger is worth every cent, and Ltauha’s fries live up to the restaurant’s esteemed reputation. With a stomach full of tasty goodness, I roamed to Weirfield Street, and as the brisk winds of the nippy Smarch air quality blew across my back, I still had more time to spare inside of TV Eye as others pre-gamed with some drinks before Tower got the night rolling for me and others.
At around 9:00 PM, the NYC-based rock five-piece Tower started the show with an energetic but short set of Warlock-inspired heavy metal. The musicianship in Tower was full-on controlled chaos, especially with James Danzo on guitar and Sarabeth Linden on the vocals, making their style of metal flow without too much delay. Tower was the additional reason for many to attend this show as I was well aware of how well-known they are in New York – I saw how revered they are live, being that I’m sure Satan played a role in picking local support throughout this tour. If you haven’t seen them, I highly recommend you see Tower the next time if they’re touring the States or in Europe. I was not surprised at how full the room was and how tight the band performed. Tower played well and sounded good, with stage presence and all to warm up the crowd for the primordial metal might of Satan.
At around 10:00 PM, the five keepers of the crimson covenant known as Satan blessed the TV Eye stage to an ample but still passionate Thursday night crowd firing on all cylinders into an infernal set of brilliant Satan-style heavy metal. Sounding as deadly as ever – the set started with the catchy opener of Trial by Fire, and the quintet blazed through an excellent headlining set of well-proportioned Ave Satani classic metal that only Satan knows how to deliver.
Satan performed tighter than ever with well-done drumming by Sean Taylor and the badass bass work by Graeme English, keeping the songs locked in place, but no doubt the other two stars of the evening were Russ Tippins and Steve Ramsey, who took no time to kick ass. They made their guitars scream throughout the entire set and performed with the same energy they’ve had since the days of the impactful Court in the Act album. Satan has a particular style that you know it’s theirs. You know that Dave Mustaine and James Hetfield got their sound from Diamond Head’s Brian Tatler, Tony Bourge from Budgie, or even the guitar tag team of Mercyful Fate’s Hank Shermann and Michael Denner, and I am sure they will cite Tippins and Remsey as an influence. The same goes for André Olbrich and Marcus Siepen from Blind Guardian.
Speaking of performances, the moments that I noticed standing out were any time Brian Ross could still nail it with high-pitched screams. He’s seventy years old, and his vocals are in fine shape. Brian has not lost a step to bring the hellfire. Amazing. You can tell he takes good care of his voice, in addition to his satirical stage banter in between songs (he should consider pursuing stand-up comedy). It was felt in the room that night that the charged fans among the unresponsive attendees have a lot of love for one another, further amping up Satan’s performance. Following the theatrics, Satan provided a great setlist highlighting cuts from most of their discography by the same lineup since 1983. Satan offered an enchanting cross-section of songs like Burning Portrait, Break Free, Turn the Tide, and Twenty Twenty Five. The five-piece brought a fantastic energy as the audience watched from the floor. They may not have had a crowd that Iron Maiden seems to draw in the states, but there was no denying all five members were having fun. Was there a bad song in the setlist? Nope. Overall, it was a great show as Satan closed with the old-school metallic deep track classic of Alone in the Dock.
With Satan touring the U.S. circuit at least once every two years thanks to the cosmic work of Night Demon’s Javis Leatherby overseeing operations of Iron Grip Management, do yourselves a favor and see this sacred band before visa costability halts some of our favorite and underrated over the pond metal acts from touring the states that doesn’t involve a one-off appearance at a festival like Hell’s Heroes in Texas. While the sacramental nature of a live Satan concert remains in strapping young health, Satan is an example of what live heavy metal should sound like. There are no pointless gimmicks, nobody playing or singing to a track as if you’re watching live karaoke, and no long-winded speeches between songs. Satan is as Satan does – kick ass New Wave of British Heavy Metal. They are a great band from that era. Check them out if you’re a metal enthusiast who yearns to know about traditional metal history aside from Diamond Head and Saxon. You’re going to like them.
