{"id":872366,"date":"2026-04-04T21:32:25","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T21:32:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/872366\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T21:32:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T21:32:25","slug":"live-review-kreator-o2-academy-glasgow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/872366\/","title":{"rendered":"LIVE REVIEW: Kreator @ O2 Academy, Glasgow"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is this the best metal tour of the year? 80s thrash titans KREATOR\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0EXODUS<\/strong>, infinitely influential death gore deities\u00a0CARCASS\u00a0<\/strong>and grinding powerviolence puglists\u00a0NAILS\u00a0<\/strong>have joined forces for a lesson in violence that Glasgow won\u2019t soon forget. All these bands need no introduction and it\u2019s a privilege to attend this show on a chilly Sunday evening. The queue of ragtag metallers outside the city\u2019s\u00a0O2 Academy<\/strong>\u00a0snakes down many metres in anticipation of such a shit hot event.<\/p>\n

\"NailsNails live @ O2 Academy, Glasgow. Photo Credit: Duncan McCall<\/p>\n

First up is American powerviolence ideologues\u00a0NAILS<\/strong>. A sizeable contingent has rocked up to the\u00a0O2 Academy\u00a0<\/strong>mostly to catch them. They\u2019re a rare sight in Glasgow, having last nuked the city in 2013, and mainman\u00a0Todd Jones<\/strong>\u00a0is accompanied by a new lineup since then. While the trio start their agitated paroxysms, unfortunately, the venue is still filling up and isn\u2019t even half full when they roar out opener\u00a0I Can\u2019t Turn Off<\/strong>. This impacts their usual performance as a mosh pit is slow to form and is minuscule in proportion to the venue\u2019s size. The sound is a mess for half of the set;\u00a0Jones<\/strong>\u2018 guitar cascades into a wall of noise and it takes some time to discern the songs. The band plays with the rabid conviction that their bastardisation of grindcore and hardcore demands, but looks lost remaining static on such a broad stage.\u00a0I Will Not Follow<\/strong>,\u00a0Endless Resistance<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0You Will Never Be One of Us<\/strong>\u00a0are brilliant for oozing your worldly frustrations from your pores. They\u2019re the most intense act of the night, as closer\u00a0Unsilent Death<\/strong>\u00a0confirms, but they really benefit from levelling a compact, squalid sweatbox, rather than a voluminous, ornate theatre.<\/p>\n

Rating: 7\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"ExodusExodus live @ O2 Academy, Glasgow. Photo Credit: Duncan McCall<\/p>\n

This concert marks Bay Area thrash veterans\u00a0EXODUS<\/strong>\u2018 return to Glasgow, following their days-before-lockdown gig in 2020. Like the openers, they really should\u2019ve come back sooner. Since then, vocalist\u00a0Steve Zetro Souza\u00a0<\/strong>sadly waved goodbye to the \u201980s thrashers, so previous vocalist\u00a0Rob Dukes<\/strong>\u00a0is back in the fold.\u00a0QUEEN<\/strong>\u2018s\u00a0We Will Rock You<\/strong>\u00a0sees the band take over the stage before tossing themselves with full force into\u00a03111\u00a0<\/strong>from the new album Goliath<\/strong><\/a>. While the fans may not like or be very familiar with this release, it doesn\u2019t prevent them from ripping open a hole in the centre of the room. But it\u2019s the following favourite\u00a0Bonded By Blood<\/strong>\u00a0that transmogrifies the venue into a total maelstrom, with tides of thrashers flowing over the barriers.\u00a0EXODUS\u00a0<\/strong>commands the largest pit of the night and it doesn\u2019t stop for the whole set either, as you\u2019d expect.<\/p>\n

With a shorter set than they should have, the Americans have to be picky about their setlist. Wisely, the plodding title track is the only other song from\u00a0Goliath<\/strong>. The usual suspects, like\u00a0Deathlist<\/strong>,\u00a0A Lesson in Violence<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Toxic Waltz<\/strong>\u00a0(teased before with a snippet of\u00a0SLAYER<\/strong>\u2018s\u00a0Raining Blood<\/strong>\u00a0from\u00a0Gary Holt<\/strong>, the now live guitarist for that unholy alliance), get showered in glory. Hyper-caffeinated tempos, electrifying solos and drumming that hits deeper than an oil rig smack all four walls of the room are reasons\u00a0EXODUS\u00a0<\/strong>rose to the forefront of thrash metal four decades ago. They\u2019re also impacted by major sound drawbacks \u2013 the guitars sound hollow but this improves after a few songs. In defiance of their age, they\u2019re dynamic, constantly moving and headbanging. There are some intriguing stage moments, such as\u00a0Dukes\u00a0<\/strong>strumming on\u00a0Holt<\/strong>\u2018s guitar while the guitarist\u2019s left hand hammers out a solo, and someone wearing a weird ape mask with long curly red hair taking over\u00a0Lee Altus<\/strong>\u2018 rhythm guitar for a bit. The galloping\u00a0Strike of the Beast<\/strong>\u00a0closes the performance and leaves its mark on the venue. This is an utterly devastating showing that the following two acts will struggle to match.<\/p>\n

Rating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"CarcassCarcass live @ O2 Academy, Glasgow. Photo Credit: Duncan McCall<\/p>\n

It\u2019s time to wake up and smell the\u00a0CARCASS<\/strong>, the originators of both impressively goregrind and melodic death metal. They\u2019ve hit the city more frequently and recently than the preceding acts, but you really can\u2019t ever have enough of them. The soundman has got his shit together as the English death legends sound solid from the opener,\u00a0Unfit for Human Consumption<\/strong>. Perhaps the crowd need a break after the intense action from\u00a0EXODUS<\/strong>, as their energy is markedly lower for this stellar reunion song. The melodically inclined\u00a0Buried Dreams\u00a0<\/strong>from the incredibly influential\u00a0Heartwork\u00a0<\/strong>gets a slightly more enthusiastic reaction. But it\u2019s the third song,\u00a0Incarnated Solvent Abuse, from the seminal\u00a0Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrius\u00a0<\/strong>album, that truly ignites the fire under the crowd\u2019s arses.<\/p>\n

As usual, the band are tight, with outstanding musicianship rarely seen in any variety of death metal they march through. Guitarist\u00a0Bill Steer<\/strong>\u00a0can construct leads that burrow through your entire torso, like\u00a0Genital Grinder<\/strong> (where he also handles growls). Yet he can also pen catchy, meandering grooves, as demonstrated on\u00a0No Love Lost<\/strong>, all while refusing to stand still even for a second. \u201cJust when you thought he couldn\u2019t get sexier, did you know his mum\u2019s from Glasgow?\u201d quips frontman\u00a0Jeff Walker<\/strong>. All albums are touched upon, except the death \u2018n\u2019 roll\u00a0Swansong<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"CarcassCarcass live @ O2 Academy, Glasgow. Photo Credit: Duncan McCall<\/p>\n

Getting personal with the chaotic organ-squelching\u00a0Exhume to Consume<\/strong>, the blast-furnace intensity of\u00a0Corporal Jigsore Quandry<\/strong>,\u00a0the bluesy reign of\u00a0Dance of Ixtab (Psychopomp & Circumstance March No. 1 in B)<\/strong>\u00a0and catchy iconic closer\u00a0Heartwork\u00a0<\/strong>(supplemented with a quick dash of\u00a0Carneous Cacoffiny<\/strong>) is a tour de force of versatility. Walker<\/strong>\u2018s idiosyncratic snarls are on point. Evidently, the band still influences new blood, with most of the overproduced, plastic modern death metal production flimsily trying miserably to ape his renowned rasped growls. Drummer\u00a0Dan Wilding<\/strong>\u00a0is temporarily substituted with\u00a0OPETH\u00a0<\/strong>drummer Waltteri V\u00e4yrynen<\/strong>.\u00a0Walker\u00a0<\/strong>remarks that they didn\u2019t rehearse with him, and this was his second time playing with them; he is impressively nailing it. It\u2019s truly hard to top\u00a0CARCASS\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 their musicianship, innovation, memorability, humour, continued relevancy and spirited live shows mean they won\u2019t ever be a nostalgia act, a fate that afflicts too many metal luminaries.<\/p>\n

Rating: 9\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"KreatorKreator live @ O2 Academy, Glasgow. Photo Credit: Duncan McCall<\/p>\n

Finally, Teutonic thrash divinity\u00a0KREATOR\u00a0<\/strong>take aim at the venue. New song\u00a0Seven Serpents<\/strong>\u00a0begins the expedition through over forty years of their existence, accompanied by scorching pyro. They\u2019ve recently progressed their music to incorporate melodic death metal elements, building on the tuneful guitars of their mid-era. This genre-bending has seen many fans fall out of love with their later albums, and tonight, these songs don\u2019t elicit the same level of crowd participation as their more purist compositions. However, with a munificent set that clocks in over one and a half hours, there\u2019s something for every fan of these calamitous Germans tonight.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s\u00a0Enemy of God\u00a0<\/strong>that first gets those thrash metal die-hards salivating. It\u2019s bitter 2000s-fuelled take on the sub-genre remains a classic today, proof KREATOR\u00a0<\/strong>aren\u2019t a nostalgia band. The quartet sounds smooth for most of their set but not all of it. After\u00a0Hate \u00dcber Alles<\/strong>, frontman\u00a0Mille Petrozza<\/strong> walks to the side of the stage and dashes his guitar on the floor in frustration, following the guitar and bass inexplicably cutting out. Fortunately, this is the only tantrum he shows the fans in this city. The eldest songs, like the acerbic Betrayer<\/strong>, the scrappy\u00a0Endless Pain<\/strong>\u00a0and the more Americanised and restrained\u00a0People of the Lie<\/strong>, have no problem raising mosh pits and currents of supine bodies floating towards the barrier. It\u2019s fantastic that they haven\u2019t neglected their mid-era, with cuts like\u00a0Hordes of Chaos<\/strong>,\u00a0Violent Revolution<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Phantom Antichrist\u00a0<\/strong>showcasing the renaissance of the group. In years before,\u00a0Petrozza\u00a0<\/strong>would pepper his set with unintentionally cartoonish evil introductions to his songs. While these are mostly gone these days, there\u2019s an element of cheese that still remains. Microphone stands are adorned with plastic-looking severed heads, and interludes are decorated with two people dressed in robes and rubber masks of the KREATOR\u00a0<\/strong>mascot Violent Mind<\/strong>, holding torches. As if this wasn\u2019t a bit much, for\u00a0Loyal to the Grave<\/strong>, Petrozza<\/strong> dons what appear to be some Halloween costume-style demon wings. At least the pyro\u2019s (paradoxically) cool!<\/p>\n

\"KreatorKreator live @ O2 Academy, Glasgow. Photo Credit: Duncan McCall<\/p>\n

Petrozza<\/strong>\u2018s guitar proficiency and venomous snarl are still on top form, as is original drummer\u00a0Ventor<\/strong>, who slaps the skins with resounding force, in spite of his age. The band\u2019s energy and showmanship make it clear they\u2019ve run tight live performances for decades. Even if the songs from their latest album\u00a0Krushers of the World<\/a><\/strong>, like the title track,\u00a0Loyal to the Grave<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Satanic Anarchy<\/strong>\u00a0don\u2019t hit the spot, their musicianship can be easily admired. There are peaks and troughs to the spectators\u2019 energy, and quite a few start heading for the door prematurely, but this doesn\u2019t deter the headliners. Closing classic\u00a0Pleasure to Kill\u00a0<\/strong>shatters the venue for a final time before the band separates from their instruments. It\u2019s surprising that they don\u2019t play usual staples Flag of Hate<\/strong>\u00a0or\u00a0Tormentor<\/strong>, but this is just additional evidence that\u00a0KREATOR\u00a0<\/strong>are far from a nostalgia act.<\/p>\n

Rating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n

Check out our photo gallery of the night\u2019s action in Glasgow from Duncan McCall here:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Like KREATOR on Facebook<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Is this the best metal tour of the year? 80s thrash titans KREATOR\u00a0and\u00a0EXODUS, infinitely influential death gore deities\u00a0CARCASS\u00a0and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":872367,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[7826],"tags":[748,93552,27927,918,4884,112050,53560,126001,712,16,15],"class_list":["post-872366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-glasgow","tag-britain","tag-carcass","tag-exodus","tag-glasgow","tag-great-britain","tag-kreator","tag-nails","tag-o2-academy-glasgow","tag-scotland","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116348580802840462","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/872366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=872366"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/872366\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/872367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=872366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=872366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=872366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}