Summer’s Last Stand Tour with Slipknot, Lamb of God and Bullet For My Valentine

Summer’s Last Stand was indeed summer in every way. The temp in the asphalt parking lot that holds the MGM Resort Village was at a sweltering 106, have to give all the bands extra kudos for giving absolutly 200% and managing not to pass out during their sets. Throngs of metalheads braved the heat and packed the barricades for the lineup that included Bullet For My Valentine, Lamb of God, and headliner Slipknot, with fans coming in from Cali and beyond for the farthest west coast show for the summer tour.

Bullet For My Valentine took the stage for the last hour or so of light from the fireball that was the sun, and kept the energy level high starting off with “Your Betrayal” as frontman Matthew Tuck alternated between powering out vocals and running across the stage with his guitar to play to the crowd, or as close as he could get to them considering the size of the stage. BFMV played a mix of older material and new tunes form their 2015 release “Venom” for a relatively shorter set before the night crew geared up for the rest of the show.

Lamb of God at least got to hit the stage after the sun began to set, the light from the sun changed slowly to stage lights and LOG victoriously made it through a hour long set, with Randy Blythe still making the jumps and belting out vocals in spite of the never-ending heat. “Walk With ME in Hell” started off the set, and the fans got a taste of the new cd VII: Sturm und Drang (VII: Storm and Stress) with “Echoes” and “512” along with expected LOG standards in the mix. Randy Blythe waxed poetic, dedicating “Ruin” to Slipknot, “those poor f#ckin’ bastards that have to get up after us in this heat”.

Headliners Slipknot didn’t back down from the challenge, Corey Taylor belted out ”Sarcastrophe” with fists in the air, amid a fiery backdrop of explosions, flames and smoke to really make the Resort Village a small burning hell in the desert. The theatrical stage and show mixed with the pyro overload made for a frantic feel at times, hits “Psychosocial”and “Duality” got fans’ hands in the air and the band did not let up, weaving through a set that encompassed Slipknot catalogue from their first 1999 release to last year’s .5: The Gray Chapter, the first studio album by the band in six years and the first not to feature founding bassist Paul Gray. The masks and the stage sets may change, but Slipknot stays consistent as the times and the cast go on at driving their unique relentless and aggressive look and sound.