Toronto, Canada - So far, the Toronto 2023/24 winter has been great! We've had very little snow, and temperatures have mostly hovered just around the freezing mark. It's not typical, although becoming more of a commonality over the years. But despite the fact that it hasn't been miserable, sometimes February just sucks! Call it the doldrums of winter, or the Monday blahs, but whatever it is, sometimes the mood just doesn't hit right. Other times, a metal tour rolls through your city, and kicks your ass awake. And sometimes, it even wakes the dead.
On January 19th, 2024, Oakland California's Machine Head played a show in San Francisco, and it kicked off their "Slaughter the Martour". With Fear Factory, Orbit Culture, and Gates to Hell tagging along, the North American tour will see the 4-pack hit 29 cities, closing out back in their home state as they play LA. On February 5, the show came north of the border for 3 shows, the first in Toronto.
Gates to Hell
In 2019, the Gates To Hell opened up in the blue grass state of Kentucky, and a new death metal band was formed. The band's first full length, self titled record was released in 2022, and now that the pandemic is over, they can unleash their madness on North America!
Kicking of the tour, Gates To Hell stormed onto the stage fast and heavy. With a no-holds barred attitude, and short, cut to the bone tracks, the band fired off a quick 30 minute set to get the crowd pumped. Lead singer Ryan Storey didn't stop moving the whole time and as the band headed into their final track, Storey urged the crowd to get a pit going. While the crowd was engaged through the opening half hour, with fists-a-pumpin' and heads-a-bangin', they certainly weren't quite ready to get crazy. Ahhh, there you have it... the Monday Blahs! Certainly nothing the band did wrong, as they fulfilled their duties as an opening act.
Orbit Culture
A fellow photog (shout-out to Miles Leblanc), was pumped ahead of this show. He had huge anticipation for the night's second act Orbit Culture. I have to admit, I was not familiar with the Swedish melodic death metal band, and not really sure what to expect.
Drummer Christopher Wallerstedt is the first one to come out onto the stage, and pounds the drums in a solo intro. The rest of the band appears one at a time, and BAM! Power and Energy!!! The band's presence on the stage is immediately noticeable. Constant head banging, jumping up on the risers flanking the front of the stage, and heavy music. Miles' excitement ahead of this one was as clear as the sounds emanating from the front of History Toronto.
Again, with the crowd being receptive, but not mad, lead singer Niklas Karlsson says to the crowd "Let's see some action Toronto! Are you guys fucking awake??". Bassist Fredrik Lennartsson says it's the biggest crowd the band has possibly ever played in front of, to which Karlsson replies "Yeah maybe. But also maybe the weakest." It's a moment of tongue in cheek, to try to get the crowd in a frenzy, and it works. Bodies start to pile over the security barricade, and by the end of the set, the pit is burning!!
RESPECT!! Orbit Culture put on a show!!!
Fear Factory
Another California band, Fear Factory are the veterans on this tour, having been gracing us with their brand of heavy metal since their inception in 1989. Although their is only 1 original member of the band, that being guitarist Dino Cazares, they have managed to keep putting out solid records since their 1992 debut Soul of a New Machine. And the current lineup features 2 brand new members, having only joined the band in 2023. Lead vocalist, direct from Rome, Italy (as Cazares tells us later in the band's set), Milo Silvestro, and drummer Pete Webber.
With mechanical "thud" of The Terminator filling the venue, the band appears before us, and the new vocalist introduces the crowd to "The new generation of Fear Factory", as the band unloads with "Shock" from their 1998 album Obsolete, showing us that the band is nowhere close to being that.
Always great to get some humor as Cazares introduces the band's 5th track of their set as the band's love song, and dedicates it to all the ladies in the pit, as they blast out "Fuel Injected Suicide Machine". While the crowd thus far hasn't been anywhere close to insane, things start to warm up a little more with Fear Factory's set, and I actually catch a couple of casualties of The Pit, as a couple guys walk off with the medics strategically on stand-by.
With the band being so new, Fear Factory amped it up 10-fold, and the crowd responded satisfactorily, although still not to the level of what was being given from the stage. Well worthy of their own headlining tour, Cazares promises the crowd that they will be back, headlining their own tour. It's something we'll definitely be looking out for.
Machine Head
Despite the header of this review, the crowd at History Toronto on February 5th was not specifically "dead". But they weren't ALIVE either. Yes, there had been mosh pits, and body surfing and injuries, but it was a much tamer event than some shows I've seen recently. Perhaps that's unfair on my part, because I had never seen some of the madness I witnessed in 2023. And then Machine Head hit the stage, and things were different.
Perhaps the crowd was saving themselves for tonight's headliners, because once the band started their set with 2003's "Imperium", the intensity got amped up immediately and the bodies were flying. The difference in the crowd was immediately noticeable. Fists were pumping, heads were banging, medics were heading into the madness, and Machine Head was feeding!
After the band's 3rd track, "Choke on the Ashes of Your Hate", from the band's most recent album Of Kingdom and Crown, frontman Robb Flynn reminisces about the band's first time in Toronto, supporting Napalm Death. They came back later that year with Slayer, and shares a story about Canada's music television station Muchmusic and having their music video played. It's a small detail that brings a genuine feel of appreciation for the city they're now playing.
The lights go down after the band's song "Old". In the darkness, the crowd chants... "Machine Fucking Head! Machine Fucking Head"... a slow guitar greets us. The tempo picks up and Flynn calls out "Toronto, let me see your hands!!". The drums kick in, and the band plays "Locust". Flynn was amazing all night, keeping the fans on their toes, constantly engaging, repeatedly calling for more, asking if they're ready, and telling them to make some noise. And the faithful were right there, giving everything that was asked of them. A constant barrage of bodies were piling over the proverbial wall. One dude at the exit point for all the surfers high fived every single person that came out from the photo pit area.
The bland played songs from their full repertoire, combining old and new, satisfying the "old school motherfuckers", and the newbies. As the band headed back onstage for their encore, Flynn asked how many people were seeing Machine Head for the first time, and to my surprise, a large number of fans raised their hands. It's so cool to witness the current love for heavy metal, and some of the bands that have been around for decades are still winning new listeners.
The band had a blast here in Toronto. Full of smiles and full of energy. It spilled over into a much quieter crowd earlier in the evening, and as they say, Machine Head woke the dead!
Setlist
Imperium
Ten Ton Hammer
CHØKE ØN THE ASHES ØF YØUR HATE
Aesthetics of Hate
Old
Locust
The Blood, the Sweat, the Tears
NØ GØDS, NØ MASTERS
SLAUGHTER THE MARTYR
Bulldozer
From This Day
Davidian
Halo
Concert Photo Gallery
show date: February 5, 2024
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