These are concert reviews from RUSH OR POWER WEBZINE which I wrote from the time the site started (summer-2002) until when it ended (summer-2004).

For even more concert reviews I wrote a long long time ago on a webpage far far away,check out UNSTOPPABLE FORCE WEBZINE for concert reviews dating back to the year 2000.

Enjoy-Chris!

COMBAT and ATTACKER-March 20th,2004-Connections in Clifton/Passaic NJ

After the abomination that was the Metalfest,I needed a good show to go to and damn did I choose a winner. I planned on going anyway...NOTHING was gonna keep me from hanging with COMBAT again. These guys are fucking excellent people and they level the place when they get on-stage.

Me and my friend Mike went into the back and immediatley saw Jeff from COMBAT,so we were all bullshitting about stuff. Bob and Rex came a minute later and we hung out until they went on stage.

There were more people watching this time (last time was Me,Anthony from U.F. and some other guy) and they put on an incredible set of music. COMBAT are one of the best and they deserve to be headlining clubs,but that's another argument for another time. They played a new song "Ruination" which sounded absolutley killer and some of the ATTACKER guys were having a great time watching as well.

After COMBAT,I thought ATTACKER might not even bother playing,but sure enough,Mike and I talked with Bob Mitchell for awhile...just bullshitting as usual. ATTACKER went on stage and put on a show that was even better than the one they played in Hoboken last December. They covered songs from all of the albums and truly kicked ass. Bob from COMABT and myself were even heckling Bob at one point (which is always fun...Bob Mitchell knows I mean nothing by it thank god),but ATTACKER kicked ass as well. I said good-bye to the dudes in COMBAT (I owe you for the beer,Bob) and left a great show. Too bad Anthony from U.F. went home and slept...he missed a great one.

NEW JERSEY METAL MELTDOWN 6-March 12th,2004-Cricket Club in Irvington,NJ

Man...why the fuck do I try and attend these things year after year? Why do I bust my ass to get tickets for these thinking "this years gonna be good"? I don't know,either. I know I'm a masochist,putting myself through all sorts of tortures just for a quick laugh,but damnit,man...these concerts actually DO get worse and worse every year. The first two were great,the third was enjoyable,the fourth was to see DIAMOND HEAD,D.R.I.,and a few other bands,and last year I didn't bother with due to work.

So this year,I decided to go...but I was gonna drag some fuckers with me. The other tortured souls were Anthony and Shannon of UNSTOPPABLE FORCE WEBZINE and our friend Rob. I knew I was in trouble when we drove around for about forty five fucking minutes looking for this shithole venue. Things didn't get any better when we arrived!

ATTACKER AND RAVEN played,but due to the fact that Anthony can't give directions to save his ass (and the fact that he left work at about the same time ATTACKER took the stage),we missed them both...arriving in time for MACABRE. A least Rob was happy as MACABRE played their set. I like this band live much better than on record and they didn't disappoint (after all,I REALLY wanted to see RAVEN! How could I not be a bit disappointed the whole night?)

WWE Wrestler Chris Jericho and his band FOZZY took the stage next,and I knew that sitting through their set was gonna be a mistake,but again,I LIKE TO INFLICT PAIN UNTO MYSELF!!!

Anyway,they sucked and a better band,GOTHIC KNIGHTS were playing downstairs. Due to a REALLY lousy sound,it took alot of their music,but at least theye didn't take their name from a fucking muppet,so that's points in my book...their music is fucking good as well.

I went back upstairs after cathing GK's last three or four songs and watched SEVEN WITCHES. James Rivera kicks all ass,without a doubt one of the best vocallists in metal and SEVEN WITCHES were pretty damn good as well. I was kinda creeped out by Jack Frost,.though (I swear,that's the guys name. You've read this site,I'm not smart enough to make that up.). He looked like a shaved ape...huge ape head and all...but fuck it,Rivera is the man so I was pleased.

Next was the "NWOBHM All-Stars" which was a cruel joke played upon me bby that fucking joke Rob Grohl. Seriously...AL ATKINS ate ass...pissing all over JUDAS PRIESTS classic "Victim Of Changes" and a few of his own rather horrible compositions. Then Dennis Straton got up on stage and belted out HIS rendition of IRON MAIDEN's "Running Free" which a complete disgrace as well. I can't sing for shit...but neither can he. I left right before Jess Cox came on stage to bastardize some cuts from TYGERS OF PAN TANG and headed downstairs with Rob to see TWILIGHT ODDYSEE.

WOW...DID THIS EVER SUCK! The music sucked,the singing sucked,and after their shit set,Rob asked me if the singer was a guy or a girl. I didn't know...kinda looked like David Spade to me,but it was horrifying to say the least.

Right before NASTY SAVAGE were ready to bust shit up,we left due to a few problems one of us was having and headed back to the car. Some little kid trying to sell Anthony a jacket on the street was the most entertaining part of the night. All I can hear behind me is "No,I don't want it". I almost stopped and laughed...but this was Irvington,so I hasitly raced back to my car to see if the damn thing was still there.

The review is only of one night because I couldn't get the Saturday off which I heard was MUCH BETTER than Friday night's suckfest...but the damage had been done...and unless I'm knocked out and dragged I won't be back next year!

D.R.I. at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park,N.J. Sun May 12th 2003.

This show was good,but it wasn't as good as I was hoping for. The opening bands ALL FUCKING SUCKED! Actually...I take that back,this band named Two Lane Blacktop were pretty fucking good...but every other band was a complete craptacular.

The band before D.R.I.,New Society Of Anarchist were a fucking joke...a complete rip off of M.O.D. without the un-PC brilliance of M.O.D.

D.R.I. hit stage about 11:30 (I think...wasn't looking at my watch) and kicked ass. They were fucking good...but like I said before,it wasn't all I was hoping for. I was hoping they would play some of the more recent stuff (although they DID play a new song which sounded really good). Their set concentrated alomost entirley on the first three records with the songs you would expect them to play from the later albums like "Thrashard","Beneath The Wheel","The Application", and a bunch of songs (3 or 4) from "Full Speed Ahead". Other than that...it was old-school D.R.I.

With all the songs they played from "Dealing With It",they didn't even hit my favs like "Slit My Wists","Busted Again",or even "On My Way Home"...although they DID do one of my all-time D.R.I. favs "Dead In A Ditch"...which fucking ruled.

Soundwise,it was great...and the small crowd there were at least enthusiastic (I went into the pit for a few songs,then ten motherfuckers slammed my drunk-ass in the ribs...needless to say,I was out of there after that.). Overall,it was a good show...but it could have been so much more.

VIRGIN STEELE at LaMours in Brooklyn,New York Sat September 21st 2002.

We got to the show early this night. Anthony from UNSTOPPABLE FORCE WEBZINE wanted to get up front at the stage for VIRGIN STEELE to play so that he could take photos for the website. While we waited outside,me and his girlfriend Shannon (Queen of the Bloomfield Metal Scene) went to her car and pounded down some beers (Coors Light...I don't normaly drink Coors Light,but thats what was there,so I pounded down two,she had three,and Ant had one). When we entered the club,Anthony was right up-front...waiting for David DeFeis and company to hit the stage and rock all night long.

But something happened this night...it was the "Attack of the shitty,non-metal band onslaught". Nu-Metal,Pseudo-Black Metal,lousy hardcore,Judge Drain,it was all there (and I KNOW i forgot some...just refusing to pick those mental scars..and Judge Drain are alright. NOT METAL...but a good band anyway). This shit-fest kept going until almost 11:00 at night (doors opened at seven/seven-thirty) when the first REAL metal band came on.

MAGUS BEAST were alright...I was getting into them alot. Their vocallist is a pure screamer/shrieker...and the best part was that NO-ONE IN THE BAND HAD LONG HAIR. Just kidding,they didn't have long hair,but they were incredibly entertaining,closing out their set with a cover of Baracuuda by HEART (?!?) which was actually pretty good and they did a cover of ManOwaR's magnum opus Kill With Power. Good band,and the crowd enjoyed them alot.

ZANDELLE were next,and they played their Kai Hansen-era HELLOWEEN metal superbly. They put a record out in Europe on Monday (after they were supposed to release it on Sentinel Steel) and it comes into the States on November 26th (at least that's what their vocallist said). They OWNED the crowd...playing a few new songs (Lord of Thunder,Blood Red Shores I think was the other one) as well as playing their standards like Soul of Darkness. I'm glad to hear these guys got signed...look for their record soon (don't know the name of it,they never mentioned it).

GOTHIC KNIGHTS were the next band,and they aren't a bad band by any means,but their songs are kinda boring. They have an ep and a full length record out on Sentinel Steel in case you want to hear what they sound like. Near the end of their set,they started playing some songs I was enjoying...but they didn't do "At Dawn You Die",so it was a bit of a wash (lol). These guys are a good band as well...check them out if you get a chance.

VIRGIN STEELE FINALLY hit stage at 1:00A.M. in the morning and DAMN,did they fucking level the place. Everything was great,they played ALOT of the songs I knew from their "House of Aterus" albums (which are excelent by the way.) During the intorduction to the song "Great Sword of Flame",David DeFeis came out with a sword on fire,the flames almost hitting the roof of the club.

Their presence ALONE was better than most of the other bands material this night (ya know,the shitty bands I briefly,and painfully,mentioned earlier)...David DeFeis singing with a foot on the monitor most of the night,right next to guitarist Eddie Pursino,ripping solos and keeping everything in order. The rythym section was fucking amazing,and their drummer was incredible. When he was doing the drum solo,I was instantly reminded of ANVIL's Robb Reiner (one of my favorite drummers of all time). Just the power that came out of the abused P.A. system when he was pounding...fucking awesome. They also played a long,long set. I didn't get outside of the club (after their encores) until 2:45/3:00 in the morning.

I was glad that Virgin Steele played alot of the songs I knew,or was at least familiar with as far as the music went,and Brooklyn experienced true metal once more.

KREATOR and DESTRUCTION at Krome in South Amboy,New Jersey Thur Sept 12th 2002

This was something I had waited for for a long,long time. Two of the greatest bands in heavy metal history...under one roof...in my backyard.

I have been listening to KREATOR for a LONG FUCKING TIME,and to finally SEE THEM IN CONCERT? I nearly orgasmed when I was told about this show by Anthony of UNSTOPPABLE FORCE WEBZINE (we usually go to shows together...he lives down the block from me),and I had anticipated it for a little more than a month. I went crazy...listening to the KREATOR albums I hadn't heard in a while (Renewal,Cause For Conflict,Outcast...not because I don't like tha albums...I don't have the time to listen to them and alot of other albums I own).

We got down there VERY EARLY...we BOTH wanted to be up-front for what I figured was going to be one of the best shows in my life...along side with seeing shows like RAVEN,BLOOD FEAST,DIAMOND HEAD,IRON MAIDEN,etc...I couldn't wait. When we entered the club,we got right up front and hung out for awhile before the first band came on.

RIPPED FROM THE CROSS were incredibly boring,SCAR CULTURE kicked ass,DECEMBER were pseudo-hardcore/death metal fusion bullshit which I think is TOTALLY stupid,and CEPHALIC CARNAGE are proof WHY I refuse to buy anything from RELAPSE anymore unless I deem it as neccesary (i.e.-any good re-releases and DECEASED.) Cephalic Carnage were especially bad...god...I could fart into a microphone while jerking myself off and make better music. Waste of time.

DESTRUCTION hit stage and didn't show any mercy to those in attendance for the time of their set. They hit on the old classics like "Eternal Ban","Invincible Force",and "Release From Agaony" to newer songs like "Bullets from Hell" and "Thrash Till Death" (Hey,they ripped off what I ripped off from WHIPLASH...lol). They commanded the stage like they were going to order the audience to kill someone...Scheimer,dividing his time between both sides of the stage,had the crowd mesmerized while Mike ripped everyone's ears open with his guitar solos. Truly excellent...and even better than when they played NJ last summer.

finally,the time was upon me. Anthony and Shannon pumping me up for what was going to be a highlight in my shitty life so far...MOTHER-FUCKING KREATOR LIVE. They started off with the title track from "Violent Revolution",and for the rest of their set,they contined to hit on old classics like "Riot of Violence" and "Terrible Certainty" and newer songs like "Whatever It May Take" (from their under-rated OUTCAST album) and "Servant in Heaven,King in Hell". They took NO FUCKING PRISONERS...they laid the thrash on thick and I was so goddamn happy that it was one of the few rare moments my friends (Anthony and Shannon) saw me smile and know that it was genuine. They left the stage,and everyone started chanting for KREATOR to come back on stage...and when they did,they played EARLY stuff..."Flag of Hate" and "Tormentor". I had been screaming for "Tormentor" the entire show along with "Total Death" and "Ripping Corpse".

They were flawless...they were tight...they had their shit together...and when I left that show with Anthony and Shannon,I KNEW that I had just seen one of the greatest heavy metal bands ever show me in person why they are one of my favorite bands of all time.

Copyright © 2005-Metal Beer Horror Webzine/Chris O'Brien.