Due to the awesome head office of Metal Machine, I had the pleasure to witness not one, but TWO epic tours that wound together with a late addition show in Midland, Texas, at La Hacienda! I was witness to the Industrialist Tour for Fear Factory joining the Super Collider Tour from Megadeth, with Nonpoint opening up for the pair. This tour is a not miss opportunity, and I took full advantage!

To open, the venue was amazing! This was my first time going to an indoor venue in Midland, and I was very impressed. It was large and spacious, with the sound circle far enough back that everyone could press toward the stage and not flare out. And there were several well placed bars with many bartenders, who were quick and courteous. also, the bathrooms were plentiful and large, which, for metal concerts, is exceptionally important! I need room to flare my legs and take a minute to not be surrounded by sweating dudes as I handle my junk. Ya know?

Left of the entrance into the actual venue, very classy and spacious

I do have two complaints, however. This place isn’t perfect. When I got to the venue, I went to the ticket window, as I was informed by MM that I had a pass and a ticket to get into the show. The window then informed me that I was on no lists at all, and that I had nothing waiting for me. Luckily, the List Holder was a really cool guy, and he let me in, due to the mistake and I owe him a debt of gratitude, because I couldn’t miss this show….

Second complaint is just a drop in the bucket, but they only had mainstream light beers! $5 A POP! WTF?! They had no Shiner, nor even regular Bud! What hell did this place get its beer list from??? And for those that don’t live anywhere near Texas, Shiner beer is what Jesus drinks as he rides a T Rex in a race against Dime and Dio for the last Black Tooth of the day. Its a golden elixir that can only spring from the legendary Rolling Hill Country of my great state…. Sorry, i waxed poetic for a bit. Won’t happen again. Maybe.

Oh my love, how bittersweet my sorrow at your absence...

Now for the show!

It started just a bit before the posted time of *pm, which was really awesome, and everybody was getting amped on Nonpoint. This is my first time to see them, as I had always gone to shows that they were featured on and just never had wanted to see them. I really should have seen them before, as they put on a masterful show, full of great crowd control, super high energy playing and stage movement, and impassioned stage presence from every member of the band. And I’ll admit it, I only knew the closer song, Bullet with a Name, and totally, shamelessly sang it with everybody else. I knew no other songs, which I will rectify as soon as I have spare cash for a music binge.

I will say, as far as musical talent, they run a bit generic to me, especially compared to who was stacked to play next; but that’s not how you should judge them, and they are a great live band regardless of what my personal tastes run. Recommended if they play near you and you want to see some fun heavy music. Especially enjoyed their ode to their Hispanic culture, and again, didn’t know the track name, but I love when a band has a song in their native tongue and puts the passion they have into it. It was the mid set highlight to me, and I was totally into it.

It was a short lull after Nonpoint finished their set, with some awesome camaraderie with some fellow 806ers, comparing bands seen and such, and the Fear Factory roadies walked us through some crushing drums and vicious guitar sounds. I swear they make Dino’s strings out of some government metal that was recovered from an alien wreck or Russian weapons program. Those tones just aren’t natural…

And to be clear, I listen to a lot of music. I know quite a bit of FF back catalog, but I do forget things, but I got the set list typed down as they went. They were kind enough to shout most of the track titles as they went too, so shout out to those guys! Here’s how that went:

The Industrialist
Shock
Edgecrusher
Damaged
Martyr (Sang the shit out of this one! Held those MARTYRSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!)
Demanufacture
Self Bias Resistor
Replica (Badass closer to an amazing set)

Fear Factory are absolutely the heavy water of metal. The industrial sound thunders through your chest, and challenges your heart to see what will change first. Hint: not the band. As soon as Shock hit us, the pit opened up like a Sarlacc mouth and just went riot. A few people I had met said it got too risky late in the set, and they had to bail. It was EPIC. nobody stopped moving the entire set and I’m pretty sure soem children will be born with active X-Genes. It was like watching machines create music that assimilated you. My first time was no disappointment at all! Dino was tracking like a cd, and I couldn’t tell a difference from the band and a MP3. Plus, one of the first tours in YEARS, so don’t any of you dare miss this! Even had a couple from Kansas come down for FF, so its exactly that awesome.

Once Replica wound down, the energy didn’t wane at all, as we watched all the screens on stage start firing up, and some very familiar VMNT V guitars start getting checked, and blinding lights pointed directly at my beardedness. Pretty standard soundcheck, and really cool to watch a pro setup like Megadeth. I have seen them twice previously, once this year on Gigantour, once with Exodus, so I was fairly familiar with the current tour list and was still very excited. Once we got a thumbs up from the stage hand, the crowd went nuts! Lots of old school fans, and several young guns, made this a very good mix of a crowd, and one of the amazing things to see at metal shows. I love the diversity that this type of music brings to people.

From opener to encore, this tour hasn’t let me down in two different venues, and it’s just a great one to throw on the ol’ Itunes playlist and go shopping with:

Hangar 18
Wake Up Dead
In My Darkest Hour
Set the World Afire
Sweating Bullets
Tornado of Souls
A Tout Le Monde
Kingmaker
(I wasn’t familiar with these next two, but the ride back fixed that Problem right away! nothing like late night drives back…)
Trust
She-Wolf
(The place detonated with the last two regular set songs, but you knew that.)
Symphony of Destruction
Peace Sells
Encore:
Holy Wars… The Punishment Due

Chris Broderick, Dave Ellefson, and Dave his own self are a triumvirate of stringed virtuosity, and this was a master class. This is the legendary Tri-Force, and we were bathed in the healing glow of those git-fiddles. I came away awed, which shouldn’t surprise, but also deeply pleased with a great show by legendary bands. This tour is truly something to go see, even if you’re a bit of a drive away, it will all be worth it, ludicrous beer prices not withstanding.

Overall, from beginning to end, this band list features new finds, legendary acts, and just some much needed cleansing of the soul under the heavy tides of music. A show of this caliber is therapy, and its a lot cheaper. You leave on tired feet, maybe battered if you went Pit, and it will all just be in the smile on your face. I may be selling this a bit hard to some of you, but this music is what I need so I can wake up in the morning, and I came out with a shit-eating grin and nothing could put me off. Go leave it all on the floor, and have some fun!

(As an added bonus: For all you who aren’t southern, or the right kind of southern, filled my empty belly with some Whataburger! If you ever attend a show in Texas, or any state with one, GO! It will just top off that concert going experience, and cut off a bit of that hangover, depending on how hard you went. Orange and White for Life!)