To celebrate 40 years of metal, Vader made its way through America. I had been wanting to see Vader for some time now. They are one of my favorite death metal bands, maybe even one of my top 10 favorite bands. So, when their tour with Krisiun and Decrepit Birth was announced, I was fuckin interested in going. I had already missed them on their 2020 American tour and wasn’t sure when they’d be coming back. And then the dates for this tour got announced.

Richmond

Two Vader shows were relatively close to me – one in Philly and one in Richmond. It was a toss-up between the two dates. Then I asked a friend of mine who grew up in Philly about the venue. He advised going against going there since it was in a rougher part of Philly. So, Richmond it is! It honestly worked out a bit better since my friend and I would be back from Hell’s Heroes the day before.

We opted to drive down, as we had already flown the day before. After a long drive down (a few bad drivers and a lack of easily accessible rest stops too), we finally made it down to Richmond. We were worried a little that we’d be late but managed to get there as the doors opened. The venue was Canal Club, a small place not far from the James River. It was a bit smaller than I anticipated, but it worked for the show and the bands playing.

Gutted Christ

First up was a local act – Gutted Christ. From Virginia Beach, VA, Gutted Christ is a blackened death metal four-piece. I always enjoy bigger bands bringing in smaller local acts for tours. But, in my opinion, they were alright. A little stock for my tastes, but hey that’s just me. Honestly not much else to say beyond that.

Decrepit Birth

The first of the main acts was Decrepit Birth, from California. They play technical death metal, and for some reason, I thought they were from New York. No idea how that thought popped up. But overall, their set was pretty good. For a Monday show, they put a ton of energy into their set. One thing I noticed during their set was just how packed the venue can be. Not with people, but in terms of viewing space. There are these like support pillars in the middle of the floor, which makes viewing the stage a bit tough. Hence why the shot is at such an angle comparatively.

Krisiun

Joining in from Brazil was the death metal trio in Krisiun. I was actually really interested in seeing them along with Vader. I don’t know many bands from Brazil outside of Sepultura, Sarcofago, and Crypta. So seeing these guys was a cool introduction to the larger Brazilian metal scene. Hell, I may end up doing a discography dive on them. They were pretty damn good! On top of that, they were very thankful for the fact that people came out to see their set. I’m guessing they don’t get to tour America very often. Fun fact, these guys are all brothers too!

Vader

And finally, Vader took to the stage! They performed songs from throughout their discography, like “Shock and Awe”, “Triumph of Death”, and “What Color Is Your Blood?”. Vader was intense from start to finish! On top of that, despite the limited space, some of us managed to get a small mosh pit going throughout. Hell, I might have strained my neck a bit from headbanging so much. Piotr, Spider, and everyone in Vader knows how to put on one kickass show that doesn’t let up in the slightest!

What’s even better was that my friend got to mosh for pretty much the first time. These kinds of shows don’t really come near where he lives. So, getting an experience like this, seeing Vader, was very fun for him. Even though it was a long drive down, and ultimately a long drive back up, it was well worth it!

Vader is hands down one of the best death metal bands there is! Go see them if you can!