Bangers Open Air 2025 – Part 2
Bangers Open Air 2025 – Part 2
04/05/2025
Memorial da América Latina São Paulo, Brazil
Review by Metalphycisist
Following on from part 1, here’s my review of the bands I’d most wanted to watch at the spectacular Metal festival in Brazil, Bangers Open Air 2025.
The most awaited bands
As I told you in part 1, I only saw Blind Guardian’s concert through the screens next to the stage, because they played between Kerry King and Wasp’s sets, on the left side of Cold Stage; So I am not sorry for my choice, because I wanted to be on the Cold Stage’s front row to watch my favorite bands of BOA.
Kerry King
At 5 o’clock Kerry King’s band was on stage to perform one hour of punishing songs, and it was obvious that the band members went on stage to make history. I was on the right side of the stage, where Kerry King was positioned exactly in front of me and he rarely attacked the left side of the stage. Of course, that was kind of gift for me and for the fans that were cramped in front of the stage, crushed by the fans behind us – probably about 20,000 people getting insane especially when the band played ‘covers’ of Slayer and Iron Maiden’s songs (‘Killers’ – in homage to Paul Di’Anno, who left us on 21st of October 2024).
Kerry King attracts fans like a magnet, although he doesn’t care much about having a more participatory performance, as do the other members of Kerry King’s band. Kerry King rarely faces the audience with his eyes tuned to his guitar, which has never been unusual for those who have been fans of Slayer for decades. Today I guess that he was more focused on playing the riffs and guitar solos to perfection which was fair enough, because even though everybody around Memorial of America Latina was hypnotized by the set, there are always fans there who’d rather pay attention to the musicians’ performances, to see if they miss a note or play something that doesn’t match what Kerry King plays on the albums of his self-named band and Slayer. I hate that kind of stupid attitude specially during a fucking Thrash Metal set.
To be honest, even though I worship Kerry King I was interested to follow all the band members today and to headbang along to songs from Kerry King’s debut album “From Hell I Arise”, which I consider very cohesive and executed to perfection by the whole band – completed by Bostaph, the Death Angel’s singer, Mark Osegueda, the bass player from Hellyeah, Kyle Sanders, and Vio-lence, and ex-Machine Head guitarist, Phil Demmel. That is a Heavy/Trash dreamtime, isn’t it?
As I told you before, while Kerry King was stocked on his side of the stage – rarely invaded by the other band members. It seemed to me that they were half comfortable on stage and half worried to perform as expected by their boss; that’s for sure. And they did a great job! The set opened with ‘Were I Reign’ and Paul Bostaph set the pace for the carnage in the form of music that was just beginning. Mark Osegueda was a great surprise, delivering impressive, powerful vocals, but never cracking a smile. Forget to compare him to Tom Araya, because it would be pointless and a lack of respect in the face of Osegueda’s brilliant performance tonight. Even when Mark Osegueda sang Slayer’s cover songs, such as ‘Disciple’ and ‘Reign Blood’, he let his vocals leave a fingerprint.
Bassist Kyle Sanders added some groove to songs such songs like ‘Trophies of the Tyrant’ until the faster fade of the song. His performance was also the most charismatic, inciting pits to spin around, which opend chaotic vortexes in several parts of the audience, and following the drum notes on ‘Residue’ and the highlight of the set in my opinion, ‘Two Fists’, which bridges the gap between Slayer’s last album (Repentless) and the Kerry King’s musical personality with it’s Punk attitude. And what can I say about Phil Demmel inspired performance? I had the privilege to see Phil on his last gig with Vio-lence and he was living two dreams at the same time! Definitely Kerry King climbed the bar with Phil sharing the riffs and guitar solos with his boss.
That was an astonishing set of showcasing songs from Kerry King’s debut (‘Idle Hands’) as well as giving fans what they were waiting for – Slayer’s hits, which I won’t waste my time naming. The set ended with the song ‘From the Hell Raise’, which left the fans with their souls cleansed and waiting for Kerry King’s return once more!
https://www.facebook.com/KerryKingOfficial
WASP
After seven years, Blackie Lawless and his three henchmen finally returned to Brazil for the fourth time – the first time they played in our country was in 2005, to the delight of the fans who have worshipped WASP since their first self-titled album was released in Brazil, in 1985.
In 2009, WASP returned to the Brazilian fields in a time when Lawless converted to Christianity and performed a set with songs from the albums “The Neon God I and II”, “Dominator” and “Dying For The World” among Wasp’s greatest hits. Then, Lawless – a former mutilator of defenceless women in the 80’s – played in a stony manner and, apparently, a little grumpy due to the terrible sound of the venue. In 2017, WASP returned to Brazil, closing a Double Bill with Accept, featuring a set full of the band’s greatest hits and songs from their latest albums – “Golgotha” and “Babylon”, which I think are really cool.
In 2025, giving in to the requests of bookers and his audience base in several countries around the world, Blackie Lawless kicked off the new tour to play “Wasp” (1983) from start to finish, only one more time in this lifetime. That was a huge happening for longtime fans like me!
Headlining the Ice Stage here at Bangers Open Air was to be their only performance in Brazil, in front of around 30,000 fans, from the elder generation, over 45 years old (me included), to younger fans, from 16 years old! Wasp is a band that has converted generations with its unique musical style and the intimidating stage presence of Blackie Lawless. Say what you will about them, but this was one of the few bands from the 80s that released albums regularly amidst constant touring. And, at 68 years old Blackie – the dedicated songwriter who led Shock Rock moving on with great skills and radio-friendly songs – is still kicking it. WASP have been non-stop touring since last year, playing over 100 dates – a they’re still going on into 2026. Those are the numbers, which cannot be denied, no matter what.
Blackie Lawless, as usual, stepped into the Ice Stage 10 minutes late, but ready to re-energize the fans present – as we’d already been at the Memorial da América Latina for about 8 hours. The night fell and helped a lot to lift the spirits of the crowd, who’d been punished by the day, but had held on tight until 7 p.m. to watch their idol right in front of them.
The set opened with the first song of “WASP”, ‘I Wanna Be Somebody’, which was kind of odd to me, because the band has always saved their greatest hit for the encore. They continued with ‘Love Machine’ which got the crowd more excited. The fact is that WASP fans consider the debut album as a collection of hits and being able to sing along to songs like ‘The Flame’, ‘B.A.D.’, and ‘The Torture Never Stops’ was unforgettable for me. ‘Hellion’ and ‘On Your Kness’, which are usually played as a medley, also featuring ‘Murders in The New Morge’ and ‘I don’t Need No Doctor’ were performed from start to finish here, to the delight of me and the rest of the the crowd – everyone was going crazy with what they were seeing on stage.
One question that is always debated, regarding bands that are already on their last tours, is whether the musicians are actually playing live or whether there is playback and lip-sinking. Here, it was noticeable that, during the chorus, the sound of the speakers explodes, tripling the power accompanying the on-stage backing vocals, together with the audience. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with it, and I also did not go to this gig to find fault. Lawless himself answered this question from fans very honestly during meet-and-greets that happened on North American tour, explaining that to play consecutive nights, that kind of support was necessary so the show dates would not be canceled. Sounds fair enough to me. End of story.
Regarding the musicians, Mike Duda and Doug Blair performed furiously on stage in a great style, which compensated for Blackie Lawless not moving much. By the way, there is no reason to be nostalgic and expect Mr. Lawless to invite the controversial guitarist Chris Holmes or even Randy Pipper, because Doug Blair surpasses both of them in terms of performance quality, laying down perfect riffs and amazing solos, which made him the highlight of the set, especially on the extended solos on ‘The Flame’ and ‘Headless Children’, which were jaw-dropping. Let’s not forget that Aquiles Priester – born in Southwest Africa and moved to Brazil in 1985 – is an excellent drummer who could play the drums in a much more technical way than he does in WASP’s songs. It seems to me that Aquiles’ professional humility paid off, since he has been playing for several years in WASP, the band that he was a fan of in the past. At the end of the set, Blackie Lawless handed proceedings to Aquiles, who talked to his Brazilian comrades, who told us he was without words about playing at a festival of this magnitude. Yes, he was on top of the world here, and he deserved to achieve this feat.
Finally, Blackie Lawless did not bite raw meat on stage, nor did he perform fake mutilation or drink blood from a skull-shaped chalice, which he did in 1985 with great skill. What would be the point of today’s Blackie emulates the 80’s Lawless? To recreate the ambience of those times, he used a big screen that showed the band’s old days, counting with all the peculiarities of WASP in its early years, when the band played on the stages of Sunset Strip, putting other bands to shame with all their tricks and more aggression than faces and expressions on stage, that you’d see with bands like Ratt and Motley Crue.
And, while he played here, he often turned his back to the crowd as if reliving his youth. He seemed to be very proud of the musical achievement he delivered for almost half a century – always walking according to his own terms.
https://www.facebook.com/W.A.S.P.Nation
Epilogue
The set was over, and I headed to the exit gate of the event. Avantasia were taking to the Hot Stage to close BOA, which I wasn’t interested to see, but which will be remembered forever by the crowd. WASP had finished me off, and my old bones needed to go to bed! But as a parting gift, the 2026 version of the festival has already been announced! Let’s see what next year brings!
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Disclaimer: This review is solely the property of The Metalphysicist and Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of both parties. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.
