Assembling an incredible line-up of pageantry and power, the Don't Go In the Forest tour saw theatric metal madcaps Avatar lead the charge with support from Italo-symphonic death dealers Fleshgod Apocalypse and Texas brutalizers Frozen Soul. Combining each's band's unique brand of savagery with keen sense of showmanship made for an evening that more than lived up to the swell of hype leading into the engagement at L.A. Live.
Starting and ending their set with selections from their epic, Don't Go In the Forest, selections like "Captain Goat" and "Tonight We WIll Be Warriors" proved galvanizing, bookending a set that underscored the band's wholly convincing execution.
Relentless with their energy onstage, the zeal among the Avatar's army was further affirmed as entries like "The Eagle Has Landed" from Feathers and Flesh, "Colossus" from Hunter Gatherer,"Bloody Angel" from Hail the Apocalypse and "Let It Burn" from Black Waltz spoke directly to some of the room's longest-running advocates.
At the helm of the madness, AVATAR's Johannes Eckerström submitted the kind of performance that merits inclusion among the all-time greats. Somewhere between P.T. Barnum and Eric Draven, the frontman's delivery is second to none with the kind of spectacle that pairs unmistakable talent with a reverence for the stage - such that nothing is left in the tank when the set is done.
For the band's final act, a trio of their most beloved entries functioned as a Coup de grâce that sourced from different eras of Avatar's domination. From the title track to Don't Go In the Forest, to the boisterous Black Waltz era in "Smells Like A Freakshow" to the conclusive finale of "Hail the Apocalypse," Avatar further cemented their legacy as metal music impresarios - illuminating the possibilities of heavy music's performative power.
The remaining North American dates of the Don't Go In the Forest tour can be found following the gallery below. All images by Maurice Nunez.
AVATAR
FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE
FROZEN SOUL
Get tickets to see AVATAR, Fleshgod Apocalypse and Frozen Soul on the Don't Go In the Forest Tour - HERE
