“On December 15th, 2005, in New York City, Roadrunner Records celebrated its 25th Anniversary with the Metal concert to end all Metal concerts. 39 musicians, representing 25 different Roadrunner bands, performed 25 songs from 19 different bands’ repertoire. This unique and unprecedented aggregation of musicians was no jam session. Each song was studiously rehearsed and arranged, coming together with exuberant perfection, to produce a concert that can only be called legend.”
These are the emotive words branded upon the back of the DVD. In celebration of Roadrunner’s 30th anniversary, I have chosen to review this ambitious DVD. Read on after the jump to see what I make of it.
Let’s just say that those words I have quoted above are no lie. This DVD captures things that many Metalheads had only imagined were possible in their dreams. 25 years of Roadrunner Record’s history and legacy, is re-created and re-played in one phenomenal night in New York. I have no idea why it took Roadrunner 3 years to release this, but I’m glad they did, because I, along with many others, did not get a chance to see that special one off show.
Many legends and talented artists were involved in the concert, with everyone from Corey Taylor, Dino Cazares, Scott Ian and Andreas Kisser, to Adam Duce, Joey Jordison and Glen Benton making appearances. Although the concept may sound a little cheesy and “karaoke,” it really is amazing seeing the different musicians performing other bands’ classics, and actually doing the songs justice in the process. There’s just something amazing about seeing Robb Flynn tearing his way through Slipknot’s Surfacing, or Killswitch Engage performing My Last Serenade with both Howard Jones and ex-vocalist, Jesse Leach. Neither are things you see every day.
Many would say, ‘well that’s all well and good, but are the results actually any good?’ Well I can tell you that, for the most part, yes they are. There are various highlights in the DVD, such as the two mentioned above, but there are also many more. Corey Taylor performing the acoustic Bother with Life of Agony’s vocalist, Keith Caputo is exceptionally good. In addition, having Robb Flynn, Matt Heafy, and Tim Williams all screaming their lungs out on Machine Head’s classic, Davidian, was also epic. And then there’s all the songs from the Roadrunner United album that were performed live. This is possibly the only time these songs will ever be performed.
Undoubtedly though, the greatest highlight of the entire concert though, was the ever so sexy Glen Benton, my man-crush, coming out some lovely S&M gear. I tell you what, if this isn’t enough to get a woman’s (or man’s) blood flowing, I don’t know what is. That said, I tried it out on my girlfriend once, and let’s just say, I don’t have a girlfriend anymore. But who cares? Lulz I still have porn.
If this doesn’t make you do a little sex wee, I don’ know what will.
Overall, the DVD is fantastic. I don’t think there’s really much I can fault. I mean, like the Roadrunner United CD that came out, you probably aren’t going to like everything. Roadrunner have tried their best to include everything that has their company what it is (although thankfully they omitted Nickelback phew), so if Metalcore isn’t your thing, you’re not going to be so into those tracks. Or if Death Metal isn’t your thing, again you might not like those tracks so much. That’s just how it is though with a label that has such a diverse range of artists, but there’s always something for everyone. Without a doubt though, this is something Metalheads should definitely check out.
The concert itself lasts about 2 hours, and then there’s also a documentary as well. I’ve got to admit, I’ve only ever watched the documentary once, so it could last just an hour, or it could last more or less, I don’t know. Music documentaries aren’t my thing really. If they’re your thing, then cool, even more reason for you to buy this.
4/5
