Mayhem & Midnight @ The Vic in Chicago April 1st

CHEck out full gallery here

​Norwegian black metal legends, Mayhem, brought the Sanguine Sodomy of North America tour to The Vic Theatre in Chicago, this past Friday, April 1st. Mayhem was scheduled to co-headline the tour with Swedish black metal band, Watain. Unfortunately, a couple of days before the tour was set to start, Watain announced they had problems with obtaining their visas and had to drop out of the tour entirely. 

Midnight, led by vocalist/bassist Athenar brought the energetic and blasphemous sounds of blackened speed metal, opening with their song "Black Rock 'n' Roll" the masked trio played 45 minutes worth of their discography, with some of the crowd favorites being "Evil Like a Knife" "You Can't Stop Steel" and the closing song "Unholy and Rotten"
While the crew worked on putting the finishing touches on Mayhem's production, fog filled the theater giving an already eerie vibe a boost. Mayhem vocalist, Attila, came out, cloaked and masked, to the sounds of their song "Falsified and Hated" from their latest album, Daemon. There were 3 acts in their set, with short intermissions for wardrobe and backdrop changes. Act 1 finished up with Voces Ab Alta and Act 2 quickly started up with the famous "Freezing Moon" riff off of their first studio album, De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas. The band's light show definitely shined in the last 2 acts, being only back-lit, Mayhem's unique look and sound made for a great sight to see. For act 3, all 5 members removed their cloaks and masks, giving it their all on stage. True Norwegian Black Metal is still alive and well, as Mayhem showcased that almost 40 years later, despite multiple member deaths and changes, they can rock the stage. 
Mayhem said they would be back to the USA soon, whether that's with Watain if they solve their visa problems or not, is yet to be seen. Whatever the lineup is, it'll be a killer time. 

Review/Photo By: Heriberto Gallegos