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Summer’s Last Stand Tour – First Niagara Pavilion – 8/6/2015

The Summer’s Last Stand tour featuring Slipknot, Lamb of God, Bullet for my Valentine and Motionless in White rolled into First Niagara Pavilion and it was a heavy metal lovers delight.  With the recent demise of the Mayhem Festival due in part to poor ticket sales, Slipknot and company proved that metal is not dead.

Playing to an almost sellout crowd at First Niagara Pavilion, Motionless in White got things started with a solid performance, and managed to get the crowd sufficiently warmed up.

Bullet for my Valentine was up next with a hard hitting set featuring a few songs from their upcoming album Venom.

Lamb of God hit the stage next and and these metal titans brought it all, supporting their newest album VII: Sturm und Drang.  Singer Randy Blythe is constantly moving and is so full of energy it’s hard to stand still.  From the opening notes of “Walk With Me in Hell,” to the closing chords of “Redneck,” Lamb of God was on fire.

Up next was the main event – Slipknot.  With their trademark masks and stage set straight out of a nightmare Slipknot knows how to put on a show.   Starting off with “Sarcastrphe,” the set kept getting more intense as the show progressed.  Corey Taylor has a commanding presence on stage but he does not overshadow his fellow bandmates.  There is so much happening on stage at any given time it is hard keep track of everything.  But even with so much going on,  the stage show never outshines the music.  Aside from several songs off of their newest album .5: The Gray Chapter, the band included all their big hits.

While Mayhem may be over, Slipknot and Lamb of God showed us all that metal is alive and well.

Check out pics from Bullet for my Valentine, Lamb of God, and Slipknot below:

Slipknot

Lamb of God

Bullet for my Valentine