Suicide Silence and Dying Fetus at The Madison Theater, Covington, April 20, 2023

The Chaos and Carnage Tour landed on the shores of Covington, Kentucky last week on the national marijuana holiday, 4-20. Suicide Silence and Dying Fetus headlined the traveling mini festival with Aborted, Sanguisugabogg, Born Of Osiris, Crown Magnetar, and Slay Squad.

It all happened at the Madison Theater in the river city of Covington, Kentucky, a stone’s throw from where the Bengals play in Cincinnati. It is very similar to a lot of venues in the tri-state area, with a main floor and a balcony/mezzanine space. The thing that is different is the main floor is also tiered, with about half in front of the stage where circle pits can form naturally at death metal shows, and the other half a few steps up, with a less active vibe. It works out extremely well, allowing everybody to have the experience they are looking for by choosing the appropriate level.

Slay Squad started things off. Among the bands, I’d say they are the least death metal of the group. I had never heard them before and so I did not know what to expect. It was clear three minutes in they were a great choice to begin the show because they brought incredible energy and they got everybody moving. Their music is a mesh of hip-hop, metal, rap, and deathcore, and it hit the spot. When you go to the show, make sure you get there early to see their set.

Crown Magnetar was another first-time experience for me. They are a deathcore band from Colorado with an unhealthy attraction to beans (don’t know what that’s all about, but when you go to a show you will see for yourself). Their first album, The Codex of Flesh (2021), ripped and roared, and they are on the cusp of releasing a new one in a couple months, Everything Bleeds. They have a very precise execution and a wild and loose stage presence, fostered particularly by their charismatic frontman Dan Tucker. Great set.

Sanguisugabogg is the band I have seen most of the seven at the show in the past couple of years. That is a little surprising, I’d say, since they are a relatively new band and I am an old metal head, but it is true. They were kicking up a fuss last year supporting their first album, Tortured Whole. Now they have a new record to sing about that dropped a couple months back, Homicidal Ecstasy. They are a Texas death metal band with a growling, roaring stance and lyrics to shock the elders. I’d go see these guys headlining, opening, or right in the middle of the storm, because it is always an amazing show. And who knows, you might get a chance to play murderball and pick up some merch. Go see them live and see what I mean.

Born Of Osiris is a progressive deathcore band that I have admired for many years. Their origins go back twenty years or so, and they have been operating under their present moniker for more than fifteen of those. It was a night of mystery for the band as they played with a very dark lighting set up, making them hard to see and sometimes it was even difficult to know who was where on stage – I included a photo of one of those saturated moments to give you an idea of what it was like being there. It was an excellent choice to slate them just past the middle of the long night because it gave the crowd a visual tempo shift that allowed them to reset and dig in for the final three bands.

International metallers Aborted brought a beach-casualty to their grindcore stage – at least that is what it seemed like for a couple of seconds. Pacing the stage and blasting the death metal is what actually happened. If I project back for a moment, it could have been the crazy music that was played between the acts that put my head in such a weird space, but whatever was careening around in my cranium, Aborted straightened me out tout de suite. I wouldn’t say that they are a particularly hopeful band, lyrically, but if you are speeding toward the cliff, this is the music you want to hear.

The penultimate spot was held down by Dying Fetus, the death metal trio from Baltimore that has been shaking the earth for more than thirty years. I expected them to go on last, but that is just the way I read the poster as they are co-headlining, perhaps switching off on the anchor spot. Seeing Dying Fetus is something I have been meaning to do for a great long while, but the universe has always intervened in the past. The stars finally aligned.

Starting off with “Justifiable Homicide” and rolling through one savage number after another, their performance lived up to my expectations and exceeded them. Not just me, the entire crowd was enthralled. By the time the band played “Wrong One To Fuck With,” I became concerned about structural damage. It was an amazing set.

The night came to a close with California deathcore band Suicide Silence. Their latest album is Remember … You Must Die (Century Media), and it came out in March. The band has a long history going back more than twenty years. I have a great appreciation for their early work, with No Time To Bleed (2009) being my personal favorite from way back when. I like the new stuff even better, and their latest album is a killer.

Suicide Silence played many cuts from the new record, and they also dug into the past as well. Judging by the t-shirts, diehard fans of the band were well represented. It was a long night for the later-in-life crowd (like me), but I didn’t see anybody leaving early. Suicide Silence closed the show with a spellbinding set, capping off a night of music that made me glad I had crossed the river. Chaos and Carnage is one of the top heavy music tours this year, and no mistake.

Check out the tour poster at the bottom of this article for the remaining dates. There are a lot of chances to catch the show, so get out there and do it. There are more photos of each performing band if you want to take a look – press the links in the gallery list below.

Photos by Wayne Edwards.

Links.

Dying Fetus, https://dyingfetusband.com/

Suicide Silence, https://suicidesilence.store/

Aborted, https://goremageddon.be/

Sanguisugabogg, https://sanguisugabogg.com/

Born Of Osiris, http://bornofosiris.com/

Crown Magnetar, https://crownmagnetar.bandcamp.com/album/the-codex-of-flesh

Slay Squad, https://www.slay111.com/shop

The Madison Theater, https://madisontheater.com/

Photo Galleries.

More Dying Fetus photos, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2023/04/22/photo-gallery-dying-fetus-at-the-madison-theater-covington-april-20-2023/