It finally happened. Two years after the original date, since this particular concert was one of the first (or the first, I’m not sure) that was postponed due to the fact that we had the first lockdown in our country a few days ago. After many postponements, finally the German legends came to Greece even if some idiots claimed that it would never happen because they believe that with the situation we were experiencing it was very easy to plan something like this with a name from abroad. Well, jokes on you. Suck it.

The scheduled timeframes for the support acts were precise by the minute and this should be highlighted by what we have seen so far. Due to a long line outside of Fuzz I lost a few minutes from the set of Fragments Of Despair. The quartet plays heavy/thrash metal with black vocals, sometimes with fast and up-tempo moments and sometimes with more mid-tempo melodic ones. They were very good on stage but the audience did not seem to respond to their music. However, they received widespread applause when their appearance came to an end.

They were followed by Domination Inc., who came out on stage with the aura of a big band. And this is because they are such. Hyperactive, full of energy and infallible, they stirred up the venue from their first riffs. They play as a quartet now, since the second guitarist and one of their founding members Costas left a while ago, they reminded everyone how awesome was their latest album “Memoir 414” and made me look forward to the next one that they are currently recording. The smoke machines they had combined with a great light show made their performance even better and they also stated their opposition against any kind of war in their own special way. One of the best bands that our country has to offer. Many congratulations for their dynamic show.

With a few minutes delay, Sodom finally made their appearance. Strong start with “S.O.D.O.M.” which was followed by “Sodom & Gomorrah” and it made me wonder if they would play all the songs that have their name in them. They did not, since the historic “Tired And Red” followed. And when you have the luxury of playing a song like this so early on in your set, it shows the tremendous quality of your discography. The sequel with “Christ Passion” was just as awesome, something that I believe many didn’t expect.

In general, the setlist was a trip down to memory lane as it had a lot of material from the band’s first works and the fans were excited by this. The most represented were “In The Sign Of Evil”, “Persecution Mania”, “Agent Orange” and their latest full-length that still doesn’t excite me, even when played live. Of course, it makes sense for them to focus on the first years, both because of Frank Blackfire who returned to the band but also because this concert had an anniversary character since Sodom are celebrating 40 whole years of history!

Very nice moment when a cake came up on stage with their logo in which there were candles with the number 40. The fans did not stop showing their love to the German legends by rhythmically shouting their name at every pause and it was seen how much Frank Blackfire and Tom Angelripper enjoyed it with their constant smile and thanks to us. The latter did not omit to express his opposition to the war in Ukraine, calling on us all to shout “stop the war” together.

Their show did not have a single weak moment and they also decided to play more than what was planned, as they reached almost two hours. And they included the cover of “Iron Fist” which was off the setlist. Why? Because they are Sodom and are not with a watch in hand. They go out on the stage in order to satisfy the people who follow them. And they did it easily. One of their best performances in our country with no doubt.

Setlist: S.O.D.O.M., Sodom & Gomorrah, Tired And Red, Christ Passion, Suicidal Justice, Sodomized, Agent Orange, Conflagration, Better Off Dead, Sodomy And Lust, Outbreak Of Evil, Euthanasia, Nuclear Winter, Incest, Caligula, The Harpooner, Blasphemer, The Conqueror, Equinox, Iron Fist (Motörhead cover) Ausgebombt, Witching Metal, Bombenhagel

In general, Sodom on stage were devastating. With an anniversary set that excited everyone, although I personally missed the favorites “The Saw Is The Law”, “Napalm In The Morning” and “Fuck The Police” but whining does not fit here. In the article I wrote for their concert back in 2017 on this webzine, I stated that if you are a fan of thrash metal this is one of the five bands of the genre that you should definitely see live. After this night, I stand by that statement.

George Terzakis

Photos: Peter Papapetros