With a day off from the Amonklok Tour, lucky fans in Chicago were treated to an epic headlining show celebrating 20 years of Dethklok and Adult Swim’s “Metalocalypse.” Usually the co-headlining show with Amon Amarth would see equal time for them and Dethklok, so this solo show gave the hardcore fans of Dethklok an epic treat and more songs. With tour opener Castle Rat not appearing on the bill, two other fitting acts were added to support the Klok.
Chicago’s own Bongripper was a truly atmospheric start to the evening. The doom metal group was a simple performance. No vocals, no frills, just some of the heaviest, loudest riffs ever for their full 30-minute set. Admittedly, the stoner doom metal element fits perfectly with the theme of the night and the fanbase of many of Adult Swim’s shows. While it didn’t feel like a performance that needed to be watched to be enjoyed, it certainly set the mood of the evening and kept the crowd entertained and moving while they eagerly anticipated the next acts.
Goblin metal took over the stage for the second opening act of the night, with the heavy and hilarious Nekrogoblikon. Opening with “Show Me Your Goblin” from their newest EP “The Boiling Sea,” the group immediately shot into high gear, following it up with “The Many Faces of Herbert Malbec” and “Darkness.” “The Boiling Sea” is the first album featuring John Goblikon on clean vocals and Infant Annihilator’s Dickie Allen on screams, and it saw plenty of love on this set. Keyboardist “Raptor” also provided clean backing vocals on many of the choruses, which was a great addition.
Goblin singer and hype man John Goblikon continually referred to Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom as the “Aragorn” Ballroom, noting that goblins are not fans of the revered “Lord of the Rings” character. Between songs, John kept the crowd laughing with his jokes and insights, casually referring to Dethklok as “Aqua Teen Hunger Force,” a completely different Adult Swim show. The long set was a treat for fans of the group, with songs spanning across all of their albums, including the fun and lighthearted “Magic Spider"; a new addition to the live performances, "Mold"; and the classic “Powercore” from their very first EP.
Another highlight included a surprisingly fantastic cover of “Changes” by Black Sabbath as a tribute to the late Goblin king himself: Ozzy Osbourne. John Goblikon and Raptor’s vocals, accompanied by the piano, were a sight to see, and the crowd joined in singing along to the entire track. It was a nice break from an eccentric and heavy set. With the tone of the night fully realized by the rest of their set, the crowd was certainly ready to face the headliners.
In classic “Metalocalypse” fashion, the show opened with fully animated and voiced clips introducing the tour and setting the stage for the night ahead. For those not in the know, Dethklok was formed as the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Brendon Small. The fictional band’s adventures were showcased in the Adult Swim series “Metalocalypse,” which also spawned five full albums and a cult following like no other in the heavy metal scene.
The show barely felt like a live performance, with even the fastest, wildest of Dethklok songs being performed flawlessly by Small and his bandmates in total darkness, while epic animated music videos were shown on the giant screen behind them. Opening with the show’s theme song, aptly titled “Deththeme,” the circle pit grew to a massive size immediately as they transitioned into “Awaken” and “Bloodrocuted.” Keeping up the mystique of the show, Small never spoke as himself, only doing the voices of the multiple characters that he voiced on the show. At one point, he even had conversations with himself, switching between characters, which was honestly one of the most impressive parts of the night outside of the blistering guitar and vocal parts he handled.
The ultra-violent music videos were not for the faint of heart, but most fans of Dethklok would not be fazed by the over-the-top, satirical levels of violence that Dethklok has showcased and parodied in their many releases. The original album “The Dethalbum” got lots of love, with many of the oldest, fan favorites saved for the end of the show, but there were tracks from all four of the albums, and even “The Duel,” an instrumental from the movie “Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar,” made an appearance.
As someone who watched “Metalocalypse” from the very beginning, I have never been so satisfied watching a screen for 90 minutes while heavy metal was played live. Even with their current tour alongside the incredible Amon Amarth, catching Dethklok playing live after 20 years would be an amazing experience in itself for fans of the series or metalheads in general.
