Abyss's Review (4/20/01 L'Amours, Brooklyn, NY):
Overkill in Brooklyn: An Essay on Loyalty in an Ever Treacherous World
I’ve always considered myself a fan of Overkill. Ever since I was in high school and an acquaintance of mine found out I liked metal, and asked what I thought of Overkill. At the time I hadn’t heard of them yet, and after telling him this he suggested I get an album, as I would not be disappointed. A few weeks later I had scraped together enough money to buy a CD, and it just so happened that Overkill’s newest album, Under the Influence, had just been released that week, so I picked it up. I wasn’t disappointed. And while many consider that particular effort the band’s weakest, I feel that that, in and of itself, proves what a solid band this is. Hell, if they could get me into them with their weakest album, that means it’ll just keep getting better (and besides “Drunken Wisdom” and “Overkill III” can compete with the rest of their catalogue any day).
Photos by CYNLet’s fast-forward a few years. Overkill, amongst the middle tier success wise during Thrash’s 80s heyday, comes out with a string of impressive, uncompromising releases. It is now the mid-90s, the explosion of grunge, combined with weak recent offerings from Metallica, and no recent offerings from Gun’s N’ Roses, has hurt the metal scene gravely. Being a cutting edge metal band is liability enough, but to be a name from the eighties is a death sentence. I was living in Atlanta (not exactly the metal capital of the world) when Overkill’s album, The Killing Kind was released. Unlike many of the thrash acts I used to love, this one didn’t sound dated. A vibrant album that didn’t alter the original formula, but didn’t sound stagnant either, I saw it as a possible rebirth for the band, at least on a commercial level. I was saddened, however, when I went to see the tour. In a venue that can hold well over 500 people, the band played to a crowd of about 20. I felt a wave of depression when Overkill took the stage, followed by a second wave of embarrassment for my adopted city, this band deserves better. My initial fears were quite selfish- I figured the band would be very disappointed and would significantly shorten their set, getting off the stage as quickly as possible to prepare for the next city, and a (hopefully) bigger crowd. It was at that moment that, for the first time in what seemed a very, very long time, a metal band surprised me for the better.
A few songs into the set Blitz acknowledged the sparseness of the crowd, saying something like, ‘Pretty small crowd tonight... I guess we just attracted the top one-percent!’ The band went on to play a full show, complete with a full encore, and single-handedly renewed my faith in the metal bands of old. With all the sell-outs and apathy, there was still integrity out there somewhere. And maybe, even more important than that, there was something else exhibited that one rarely applies to metal. Overkill, that night, and every time I’ve been in contact with them or their work, handled themselves with class. Pure, unadulterated class. I’ll never forget it, and I’ll be eternally thankful for it.
Now, that was a little long winded considering I haven’t said word one about this show (you know, the one I’m supposed to be talking about?). And the reason I bring it up is simple. This show brought me back there like a time warp. I’m not sure why, I’ve seen Overkill many times since then. Maybe it was seeing them in L’Amour, their own turf, maybe it was seeing the excited faces on nearly every fan in the place. Maybe it’s because the venue seemed so much more crowded than when In Flames (a new, hip band) played there, but I remembered and it was good.
Some of the faces have changed, some haven’t, but an Overkill show for me now transcends little things like set lists, execution, and sound. It gives me hope. So of course Overkill kicked ass. Of course the crowd loved it. As I normally pick apart set lists, I put down eighties bands for not playing enough of their older shit, but my favorite song this night was “Gasoline Dream” rather than “E.vil N.ever. D.ies” And although in between songs I started yelling my usual request for “Nice Day... for a Funeral”, I wasn’t the least bit upset when it wasn’t played. Because Overkill already gave me the best gift of all... hope. They may not care what I say, but Fu- I mean, Thank You.
Death's Review (4/20/01 L'Amours, Brooklyn, NY):
Overkill. Friday night. L'Amours. Packed house. The MJ team out in full force. All the makings of a big heavy metal night. I hadn't seen Overkill in a while, and I was psyched to see a big crowd out to pay metallic respects to DD, Blitz and Co. I was psyched to drink beers (they even opened the back bar), chat with friends and hear "Skullcrusher." Prospects for the night looked promising.
The result? Exactly what was expected. It was a wonderful night of heavy metal partying hosted by veteran Masters of Ceremonies, Overkill. They played a couple of songs which were a bit off the beaten path, I suppose, like "Overkill 2" and "Spiritual Void." Other "recent era" Overkill set staples like "Gasoline Dream" and "Long Time Dyin'" remained powerful live this time around, certifying their status as worthy of their places alongside the all-time Overkill greats. This was the first time I saw "Bleed Me" from Bloodletting live (I can not believe they didn't play the awesome "Death Comes Out to Play"!), and it did not disappoint. "Powersurge," "Skullcrusher," "Elimination," "Evil Never Dies," "Coma" and "Rotten to the Core" were also cool. Other songs in the long set included "Thunderhead," "It Lives," "Wrecking Crew," "Hello From the Gutter" ("The Big Apple's rotten, rotten in the heat!"), Every Overkill album was represented by at least one track, except for The Killing Kind. All in all, a great night and a cool Overkill set.
Why am I being stingy and holding back the fifth skull? Several reasons, I suppose. The least reasonable of these reasons is the fact that I saw Fates Warning and Savatage on Sunday night and it was so fucking transcendental that as I sit here today and think back on the live shows I saw last weekend, the Overkill show has a lot to compete with. The only somewhat reasonable, second reason I withhold the fifth skull is that I'm grading the event as much as the band's performance and not only did I have to schlep to Brooklyn to see this, Overkill didn't go on until 1:00 a.m. and then played for a long time, followed by my hour + return trip home on the train. The third and probably best overall reason I can give you for the four instead of the five is the standard-for-Overkill-but-still-regrettable policy of only using local openers rather than touring as a package with another interesting band.
But the real and final reason I hold back? Truthfully, because I'm jaded. I've seen Overkill at least a dozen times and at this point when I see them I'm really just hoping they play some of my own, personal, forgotten favorites like "Feel the Fire," "Fear His Name," "Mad Gone World," "Who Tends the Fire," "Nice Day... For a Funeral," "Dreaming in Columbian" (Abyss had me cracking up at the show 'cause he kept yelling that and half the people around us were looking at him like "what the fuck's that dude talking about?") or "The Wait - New High in Lows," like the last tour where they busted out "Deny the Cross". Oh well. "Overkill 2" is a hookup. And Overkill the band kicks ass. End of story.
Hel's Review (4/20/01 L'Amours, Brooklyn, NY):
Every venue has a particular crowd that seems drawn to it. Roseland attracts the trendsters, the Wetlands is traditionally a hippie bar, so there are often lost souls who wandered in on a metal show and wonder what is going on, at CBGBs you get the occasional tourist looking mostly to buy a club t-shirt, and staying for a few moments out of curiosity. At L'Amour, it's all about being in Brooklyn. Local residents explain it best, "It's a 'family business'…" they say, as they give a shrug and a wink. The evidence was there this evening, between the adjacent dance club that I think is still there, but can no longer be viewed from the back room, and the true "regulars" who clearly come to drink in the back bar on a frequent basis, regardless of the nature of the evening's live entertainment, there is never a moment when you doubt you're in Brooklyn.
Add to that the element of the old-school die-hard Overkill fans, many of whom seem firmly locked in the 80s and sporting the exact same clothes and hairstyles they wore then. While the vintage tour shirt is cool, the rest of the look is not, it's just that easy. Top it all off with the fact that the club staff clearly had no real interest in entertaining the metalheads between bands, blasting, apparently, whatever the DJ felt like, whenever a band was not literally playing. The back room had similar issues, playing AOR nonsense insistently throughout the evening, though it did serve as a refuge from mediocre opening acts, the dense crowd, and the stifling heat. None of the opening acts retained my interest, and I spent several hours sitting happily on a barstool, watching my friends drink and talking metal, thankful I didn't have to stand in the other room and shout while I waited for the mighty 'Kill to take the stage.
Finally, it was time. Overkill blasted onto the stage, knocking mike stands over right and left while they rampaged around the tiny stage. Bobby and D.D. were the focus of the storm, and quickly whipped the crowd into a frenzy. Blitz, with his legendary animation and propensity to connect with the crowd, attracts attention like moths to a flame. However, when Blitz disappears from the stage (which has taken to doing frequently of late), D.D. takes the helm like a master, interacting with the crowd and keeping them enthralled in his own way. He keeps control of things onstage at all times, giving signals, and organizing smooth transitions, when possible, on the couple of occasions that Blitz missed his cue and ran onstage late. Those glitches and the amazing, continuously toppling microphone stands were the only noticeable flaws in the evening, and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who noticed.
The remainder of the band was solid, and the newest hired-gun, I mean, guitarist, was unabashedly enthusiastic about being there, albeit still perfecting his parts. The Overkill machine (although I'm fond of calling it the D.D. & Bobby Show) played at least one song from nearly every album they've released, and all the old standards the fans love are still in place, alongside newer songs that always feels like they've been there from day one when performed live. I admit, I've never been to an Overkill show and walked out having heard them play every song I've wanted, it's just not possible, since, after all, they are my favorite band, and they have so many great songs. I always complain that they never play my favorite song, "I Hate" and Death always tells me they used to play it every set, way back when, and he's glad they don't play it anymore because he grew tired of it. Blasphemy! I've been going to see them live every chance I got since 1991, and they've never played it! Then I stamp my foot, remember how much fun I just had, and I'm done.
You can go to your rest this evening assured that Overkill shows no intention of going anywhere. After all these years they're still putting out their own crushing brand of metal with the energy, spirit, honesty and integrity we all enjoy, and their live show continues to transcend it all. After all these years, Bobby still dives off the stage into the crowd at the end of the night. The only difference: it gets harder and harder for the stage hands to extract him from the fans afterward. The moral is clear - don't go anywhere, guys - we love you.
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