The UC Theater in Berkeley, CA has a storied history stretching back just over a century. They’ve transitioned from musicals and plays to movies and became a first-rate live music venue in 2016. It’s a little far for me being all the way in Berkeley but thankfully is on a Saturday. The commute from my side of the bay to Berkeley was still horrendous but at least I had all the time in the world. Bonus: car didn’t get stolen like the last time I saw Kreator.
This marks the second time I’ve seen German thrash titan Kreator and who knows how many times I’ve seen Sabaton. Fun fact: tonight is the five year anniversary of the San Francisco show of Sabaton’s first US headlining tour. They played in a tiny venue called Thee Parkside which is only slightly bigger than my living room (and my living room is not big at all). They’ve come a long way since then even going so far as to have their own musical festival.
Kreator would take the stage first and get things going. “Finally, the Kreator has returned!”
Helmed by Mille Petrozza and fellow founding member Jurgen Reil, Kreator has been going for three and a half decades strong. Formed in Essen, Germany, Kreator is one of the four pillars of Teutonic thrash metal. You can consider this tour in support of their most recent album, 2017’s “Gods of Violence.” Mille gave note to the east bay’s place in thrash metal (home of the likes of Metallica, Exodus, and Testament). Europe meets America.
One thing that I really like about Kreator’s is that for all its, for lack of a better word, thrashiness, it just flows so well. It has a near-perfect blend of speed, aggression, melody, and musicality. The high-speed foundation laid down by drums and bass are layered with guitars and Mille’s gutteral, throaty voice. This is evident in almost any of their songs be it Violent Revolution, Civilization Collapse, or Hail to the Hordes.
Naturally closing out the show would be Sabaton. Sabaton had advertised that they would be bringing one of their biggest production values to this tour and they did not disappoint. A large array of LED screens were placed behind the band and played all manner of video. Sometimes lyrics, sometimes associated imagery, and even animations meant to set the stage for upcoming songs. Now it’s not the massive tank riser you see at European festivals but this will have to do (that I don’t know how you’d feasible move that thing around…)
As is tradition they started off with Ghost Division. I’ve only seen them once where they haven’t started with this song and it’s the perfect way to bring a concert from 0-60. Following this was Uprising and between this and Ghost Division I was having trouble deciding whether to sing along or shoot.
The Lion From the North, which I consider one of the underappreciated songs of the Carolus Rex album, was played live and for me marks the first time I’ve seen it in person. Night Witches, another song I enjoy, was present too. Rounding out the set were Winged Hussars and Shiroyama from their latest album The Last Stand and To Hell and Back from Heroes. A song I did notice missing was 40:1 which I.
One special note is that they broadcast through Facebook and YouTube live a part of their shows. This is great and it let me relive things and even better, actually see the background screens dead on. I spent a lot of my night in the side alcoves where I was above the crowds but much of the screens were unavailable from this position.
All in all, well worth the trip. Grabbed some pizza from Berkeley’s late-night pizza joints (this is a college town after all) and headed home. I’ll be waiting for the next time these two come back.
