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By RYAN MAVITY and JEFF MAKI
Having seen Exodus in concert (opening for Arch Enemy)
just about a month ago, Shovel Headed Tour Machine
(Live at Wacken and Other Atrocities) was a return
to familiar territory.
30 years into their career, the Bay Area thrash metal
pioneers finally have a DVD to document their history.
The collection consists of a DVD of their performance
at Germany’s 2008 Wacken Open Air Festival and
an accompanying CD of the set. Asides from the massive
crowd on hand, the more-often-than-not, non-exciting
daylight performance is intense as possible given their
time slot. It’s what you’d expect from Exodus—they
nail it, with outstanding crowd participation, numerous
mosh pits and even their own version of Lamb of God’s
moshpit tactic, the “Wall of Death.”
The best songs are the speedier thrash jams like “Bonded
by Blood,” “Strike of the Beast,”
“Piranha” and “A Lesson in Violence.”
They have a real kick to them, thanks particularly to
drummer Tom Hunting (who along with guitarist Gary Holt
are the only remaining original members). Of the longer
songs, the eight-minute “Deathamphetamine”
stands out, as the crowd helps shout out the title line.
Singer Rob Dukes’ hockey goon attitude—he
is a New York Rangers fan, after all—and singing
style also fit the venue. Wacken is not a stage for
the meek, with nearly 70,000 crazed metal fans below
you sweating it out in the summer in northern Germany,
and Dukes is up for the challenge.
Dukes is now the third singer of Exodus and his snarling
vocals seem more in place in a hardcore punk band than
an old-school thrash act like Exodus. Dukes also uses
the word “fuck” like it’s going out
of style. If Dukes and Zakk Wylde ever hook up on an
album, they should just call the band, album and every
song “Fuck” or some variation on the word.
On “Deathamphetamine,” he even leads the
crowd in shouting “fuck” over and over again.
Dukes’ rant about Osama bin Laden and Muslims
before “Children of a Worthless God” is
also a lowlight: Toby Keith-style ugly Americanism at
its worst. (He explains on the DVD that he has a habit
of often opening his mouth when he probably shouldn’t.)
I also wish they had included the fan favorite, “The
Toxic Waltz.”
The best part of this release is the documentary DVD.
It features behind-the-scenes stuff—an inside
look at life on the road with the band as they tour
through different countries, interviews with band members
and a run-through of the many Exodus lineups. I actually
learned a few things from watching this. Of course,
most metal fans know that Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett
used to be in Exodus. But did you know that he co-founded
the band and came up with the name? Call me stupid,
but I didn’t.
Some of the most interesting things were the band talking
about the death of former vocalist Paul Baloff and the
early days of the band. However, there’s not much
on their other former vocalist, Steve “Zetro”
Souza. The funniest thing is that, judging from the
DVD, despite the numerous setbacks and lineup changes,
Exodus hasn’t really changed at all. Watching
these guys interact backstage and on the tour bus is
like taking a time warp back to 1985—or maybe
a trailer park. They still live, sound and act like
they're living in the ‘80s—a we-don’t-give-a-fuck,
nonstop thrash metal party in which Exodus extends a
brotherhood-vibe to any band they’re out on tour
with. (There are many cameos by members of other bands.)
Also, be sure not to miss the short 30-second segments,
“Exodus Non-Metal Moments,”—you’re
sure to get a chuckle or two.
So if you’re a fan of Exodus, then this release
should be a no-brainer—it’s got everything
you’d want in a CD/DVD set. I don’t know
if the documentary’s running time of 188 minutes
was completely necessary, but now we’re just splitting
hairs. I’ll be honest, had this DVD not been given
to me for free, I probably would not have dropped the
loot out for this, as I’m not a huge fan. However,
now that I’ve taken it all in, I can’t say
I regret it—hell, actually I really enjoyed most
everything about it. If you fall into the diehard fan
category, it’s a 9 or 10 rating.
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