The Undisputed Heavyweight Champions of Death Metal, Cannibal Corpse, took over House of Blues in Anaheim, CA on Saturday night, October 4, for a sold-out live massacre along with Municipal Waste, Full of Hell, and Fulci. About halfway through a 5-week US headline tour, this four-headed monster of a show left all bruised, bloodied, and wanting more. Still out supporting their September 2023 release, Chaos Horrific, Cannibal Corpse continue to bring the brutality like no other as they cement their legacy as the most controversial death metal band in existence.
Three banger bands opened the show, starting with Italy’s own Fulci, a vicious Death Metal band using violent horror-themed images on the large video screen backdrop. Playing in almost pure darkness, the band kicked off the night in the perfect way, fast and heavy, and the crowd was into this band from start to finish. Fulci earned their stripes on this night, with only 30 minutes on stage, they more than warmed up the audience to commence this night of extreme music.
Maryland’s Grindcore masters, Full of Hell, took the stage at 7:45 and blasted out some blisteringly fast songs that had a large circle pit moving about. Playing in the dark must have been a theme on this night as Full of Hell played their set in darkness as well. While the set was moving along in fine fashion, it seemed to have ended as fast as it started, as they abruptly left the stage after only 25 minutes of playing. It is unclear whether that was part of the schedule or if something unexpected happened. In any event, the crowd was now fully primed for what was to come next… Municipal Waste.
Virginia’s crossover thrashers, Municipal Waste, now 25-year veterans in the scene, are always one of the most intense live bands, as the crowd is always trying to get onstage and diving back into the crowd. Vocalist Tony Foresta always brings the fun with his intensely high-energy delivery, and the rest of the band is just as fast and furious. Opening the show with “Unleash the Bastards,” “Grave Dive,” and “Breathe Grease,” Foresta welcomed “Ana-Slime” and encouraged more crowd surfing, stating the show the night before in Ventura was much more active.
The stage setup had two toxic, wasted skeletons popping up and out of toxic waste barrels flanking the stage. Guitarists Ryan Waste and Nick “Nikropolis” Poulos traded solos and riffs, often jamming together center stage. Bass player Philip “Land Phil” Hall and drummer Dave Witte had the thrash gallop on point all night long as the fans crowd surfed over the barrier.
Of course, the set concluded with the Municipal Waste anthem, “Born to Party,” and the pits and surfing spread to the entire floor area, making for quite a spectacle to view from the balcony. Now, some 2 ½ hrs into the show, after three brutal bands, the crowd had a 15-minute break before the mighty Cannibal Corpse began their onslaught.
The lights went down at 9:45 pm sharp, and the band casually took the stage, and the thunderous pummeling began with “Blood Blind” off Chaos Horrific, and hair was flying everywhere as the head-banging started and never stopped (by the band and the crowd). With hair covering his face, George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher delivered the most guttural, haunting lyrics in death metal, and headbanging like no other with the hair “windmills”—he is a monster on stage. Alex Webster on bass and Paul Mazurkiewicz on drums are the de facto rhythm section in extreme music, as these two are absolute masters at their craft.
The musical onslaught continued with “Scourge of Iron” and “Inhumane Harvest,” and the crowd surfing intensified, keeping the security team extremely busy for the remainder of the night. Erik Rutan has been playing live with the band since 2021 and is ferocious on guitar. However, long-time guitarist Rob Barrett was missing—it was announced before the start of this tour that he would not be joining the band on the road without explanation. Hopefully, he returns at some point. But filling his shoes in fine fashion was former Black Dahlia Murder guitarist Brandon Ellis, who did a perfect job nailing those chunky rhythms and solos.
You always know exactly what you are going to get with a Cannibal Corpse live performance, no fancy stage props, just a backdrop with stacks of amps. While the band doesn’t move around much onstage, they make up for that with the intense headbanging and hair-whips—the band blows you away with their massive sound. It was great to hear “Pit of Zombies” and “Disfigured,” and of course ”Corpsegrinder” introduces “I Cum Blood” by stating, “This next song is about shooting blood from your cock,” which always seems to get a super loud crowd reaction.
You know the set is going to end with the two most brutal, gruesome songs, “Stripped, Raped and Strangled,” then finally “Hammer Smashed Face.” If you dare, read the lyrics to these songs, but be warned, it is not for the faint of heart. It’s 2025, and there are no signs of Cannibal Corpse slowing down or mellowing out. We all look forward to the next bloody disgusting album (hopefully coming out in 2026).
MUNICIPAL WASTE
