Exodus+ Lost Society +Striker

@ The Underworld, London

March 5th, 2016

Review by Ann Sulaiman

Photos by Inty Malcolm

31 years since the release of debut album “Bonded by Blood” and Bay Area legends Exodus hit the road with a European and UK tour to mark the occasion.

Carrying Lost Society and Striker in tow, they paid a visit to The Underworld in London (admittedly one of their favourite spots to play, according to frontman Steve “Zetro”) for what was to be a consistently crazy night of crowdsurfing and moshing for all to enjoy.

First up were heavy metalheads Striker, who stood firm in leather jackets and jeans on the stage of The Underworld.

Channeling the old school spirit with classic high wails and a full on, take no shit attitude, the five from Canada charged through each song at full speed throughout their short but sweet set.

After witnessing this true metal band live, one could only get more excited for what else Exodus were planning to bring out tonight.

Setlist:
Crossroads
Locked In
Lethal Force
Second Attack
Phoenix Nights
Full Speed or No Speed
Out For Blood

Then came young thrashers Lost Society, who strode out to gangsta rap riffs before putting on a set best summed up as fierce and fast. And you could tell they meant every word when they fucking missed London.

Jumping up in the air, the foursome tore into songs ‘Braindead’, ‘I Am The Antidote’ and ’Hollow Eyes’ with reckless abandon; running around from here to there, you got the sense they couldn’t hold their excitement at playing the music they love, especially as everyone whistled and cheered for them.

Even frontman Samy couldn’t help but comment that he had “shivers down [his] spine” just three songs into the set, and used the passion in the room to encourage the audience to scream, jump in the air and later split into two groups for the wall of death.

At the same time, while high energy and acting wild are much appreciated, there was the sense that Lost Society didn’t entirely have a “style” to what they did. Chalk this up to youth (Samy for example being only 20 years old), but compared with the old school Striker, one hopes that this band will eventually mature a bit to add more musical and personal substance to their performances to match their enthusiasm.

Setlist:
Braindead
KILL (Those Who Oppose Me)
I Am The Antidote
Overdosed Brain
Hollow Eyes
Riot
Terror Hungry
Only (My) Death Is Certain

Fun fact about the wait for headliners Exodus, or at least the pit that was ready for them: so high on adrenaline and excitement were the crowd, that they eagerly sang the chorus of ‘Balls to the Wall’ as it played during the interval.

Now that that’s out of the way, onto the eagerness for the band themselves on the London night of their 31 years anniversary tour for “Bonded By Blood”.

Walking up to a blast of cheers and chants, leadman Steve “Zetro” Souza welcomed everyone with open arms before speeding into ‘Black 13’ and ‘Blood In Blood Out’.

While it might be a cop-out to some that Exodus chose to open with the first tracks off their latest album on an anniversary tour, no one minded this at all in The Underworld – namely the youngsters and some of their older peers upfront.

If the interest is in the crazy fun that bands like Exodus can bring into a room, then that’s all that matters!

This is not to undermine the fact that the band truly care about what they do. Amidst the crazy crowdsurfing and moshing, Zetro managed to get semi-serious for a moment and talk about his gratitude to the recently departed Lemmy Kilmeister with an anecdote about discovering ’No Sleep ’Til Hammersmith’. Pointing out that no one would have been there tonight if not for Motörhead’s legacy (undeniable), he dedicated classic track ‘A Lesson in Violence’ to the iconic frontman.

‘War Is My Shepherd’ and ‘Impaler’ followed, along with an encore with key songs ‘Bonded by Blood’ and ‘The Toxic Waltz’. Interesting to note though was Zetro’s comment on the London audience, which he stated as being just like the Bay Area thrash scene back in the 1980’s. With a comment like that coming from the lead of Exodus, one could only feel hopeful for the future of metal among the kids of today.

Setlist:

Black 13
Blood In, Blood Out
And Then There Were None
Children of a Worthless God
Deranged
Salt the Wound
Body Harvest
Metal Command
Piranha
A Lesson in Violence
Blacklist
War Is My Shepherd
Impaler

Encore

Bonded by Blood
The Toxic Waltz
Strike of the Beast