Kill 'Em All with New Realm
Caught in the act in Wichita Falls
Kill ‘em All is a Dallas tribute to Metallica and although they’ve played in Wichita Falls a number of times, this was our first chance to see them.
We took in Kill ‘em All’s show at the Iron Horse Pub with local metalheads New Realm in support, and together they threw down an incredible night of chugging droptuned metal.
Kill ‘em All features Larry Campion on lead vocals and guitar, in the role of James Hetfield, and he told us they’ve been doing the Metallica tribute for 14 years.
He sounds the part, and notably looks a lot like a black album era version of the metal icon. Bassist Taylor Dennis also looks a lot like his famous counterpart in the role of original Metallica bassist Cliff Burton, but it seemed to us that Dennis also incorporated some Jason Newsted-esque antics into his performance.
Lead guitarist Matthew Chapman absolutely shreds as Kirk Hammett. Of all the guitarists we’ve seen in our city, Chapman is one of the most incendiary. Chuck Encenias plays drums for Kill ‘em All and he’s a talented skinsman.
If you’re a Metallica fan, you can’t go wrong with Kill ‘em All. They play all the obvious stuff, plus early Metallica favorites like Whiplash, Seek and Destroy, and their cover of Diamond Head’s Am I Evil.
The support act on this night was local metal steamroller New Realm, recreated with a new lineup not too long ago, and now rising in the Texoma scene like a finely oiled machine.
That’s not just cliche language — New Realm grooves have a mechanical precision. A New Realm song can slow to beats-per-month or chug forward at a propulsive tempo. Either way, this band is damn tight.
Lead vocalist Brandt Holmes is always captivating with his voice and his physical performance, leaping to the top of his monitors frequently as he belts full-throated vocals.
TJ Stephens and Matt Skelton are a great guitar tandem from opposite sides of the stage, and Skelton’s better half, Autumn Venzor, plays the bass. The three of them together meld as if one with their master timekeeper, Louis Tucker, a powerful-yet-precise metal drummer.
Someone please name a better up-and-coming metal band than New Realm playing Texoma venues right now. Right down there in the comments. We’ll wait.
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