This show was not even on my radar, to be honest, until I was asked to step in as cover. Four bands, Killswitch Engage, Hatebreed, Fit For An Autopsy and Decapitated, all of whom bring with them years of experience and a host of well-regarded albums, and ones that I, in all honesty, would very rarely play. Maybe, except for Decapitated, whose stuff still gets the occasional listen.
Killswitch Engage – Hatebreed – Fit For An Autopsy – Decapitated
Depot, Cardiff – 12 October 2025
Words And Photography: Paul Hutchings
All four bands I have seen several times over the years, whose popularity has waxed and waned, but who together make this a feisty bill. It is a Sunday evening in Cardiff, but the show has been sold out for months.
Depot is a new venue for me. Located in one of the less salubrious parts of the capital, it is an industrial area which has seen modern housing blocks and a new university building sit side by side with gritty workshops and homeless hostels that back onto the Butetown housing estate, which is unlovely in every way.
Making my way across the city, it was easy to find, following the Metal hordes to the main entrance, and the home of the team that have been running gigs across other venues, notably the magnificent Castle for many years.
Killswitch Engage
Bloodstock headliners in 2023, Killswitch Engage are in no mood to be upstaged by any of the strong undercard. They roar onto the stage as headliners, benefitting from the space which appears once the multiple backlines have been stripped away.
Tight and precise, they are imperious tonight. There is a confidence that oozes through the band, and their melodic brand of Metalcore sees them adored by their fans. And this is adoration in every sense, for the entire venue is singing along from opener Strength Of The Mind to closing anthem My Last Serenade.
It is incredible that Jesse Leach has been back behind the mic for 13 years now. But that was the last line-up change, and it shows with a slick, powerhouse of a set which draws from across their catalogue.
Leach is masterful at controlling the crowd between songs, hands aloft during A Bid Farewell and snarling anger during Broken Glass. Most eyes are focused on Leach and guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz, who remains one of the most entertaining guitarists around, with his gurning, thumbs up and beer drinking not detracting from some lightning fast fretwork.
But Killswitch are a unit and work best when belting out anthemic songs. And there are plenty which elevate the frenzy in the pit, the heat in what is basically a warehouse soaring.
Everywhere you look, there are fans with their fists in the air, singing the words to songs like Rose Of Sharyn, Beyond The Flames and My Curse.
The lights are not mind-blowing but enough to give the status that a headliner deserves, with Leach able to use the backline to walk behind drummer Justin Foley.
It is intense devotion for a band who are dangerously good, and who have not been in these parts for six years. As they end on The End Of Heartache and My Last Serenade, it is evident that they could fill the venue up the road, which is twice this capacity.
Over 25 years into their career, there is still plenty more to come from Killswitch Engage.
Hatebreed
It has only been a few months since Hatebreed had a 20-minute slot at the Slayer show at Blackweir. Twenty minutes, if you are a Hatebreed fan, is never enough, and if you dislike their stomping delivery, it is probably too much.
No sign of dislike tonight as the Connecticut outfit roll back the years with a muscular display which ignites a frenzy in the pit and pushes the crowd control to the limit as the waves of crowd surfers storm the front.
There are few better opening songs than I Will Be Heard, and if there is the musical equivalent of blue touch paper, then this is it.
The venue erupts as Jamie Jasta races onto the stage and proceeds to command the crowd for the next 40 minutes. It is a display of controlled aggression that sees the place bouncing to Destroy Everything, roar to In Ashes They Shall Reap and fight with the infamous Ball Of Death for several songs.
The band are restless souls, rarely standing still as they race around the stage, occasionally cutting the rock star shape but mainly smiling as they watch the carnage they are responsible for unfold in front of them.
Body after body rolls over the barriers, fans shouting the words to the band even as they are escorted back into the chaos on the floor.
Hatebreed remain a marmite outfit. Tonight, it is clear that everyone loves them, and with a performance of such power, it is easy to see why they remain such a draw.
Fit For An Autopsy
They are probably the heaviest band on the bill tonight, but one moment of compassion proves what we Metalheads know. When it comes to caring, there is nothing to touch us.
Fit For An Autopsy are tearing through their set, mid-point into second track It Comes For You and singer Joe Badolato’s attention is drawn to an incident in the crowd.
It is evident that it is serious as he immediately halts the band’s crushing Deathcore and calls for assistance. It transpires someone has gone down in the swirling pit, potentially sustaining some serious injury, and Badolato is adamant that nothing is happening until we are good.
It is a poignant moment and hugely impressive, if only because it is what you would expect to happen. 
Once Fit For An Autopsy get moving again, there is no let-up, and if anything, the band are energised to an even higher level of intensity. Huge bass grooves underpin their sound, and whilst I am not their biggest fan, many in the venue are fully in tune with the punishment dished out.
It is closer Far From Heaven that I am most familiar with, and it is an epic finale to a set which despite the incident, demonstrates that this is a band who deserve their place on a brutal bill.
Decapitated
I don’t recall the last time I saw Decapitated. Probably in a field at Bloodstock a few years ago, I would think. But I do recall the first time, which was in a small club in Cardiff over 15 years ago, when they were a slightly different animal.
There may only be founder Wacław ‘Vogg’ Kiełtyka in the lineup from that show, but the band are still one ferocious outfit. The venue is still filling but far from empty as they kick off the evening with the title track from Cancer Culture, which dominates the songs.
It is explosive, with strobe lighting giving headaches for the togs and front row alike. It is in keeping with the atmosphere, though, and the devilish reds that bathe the stage merely add to the overall feel.
Singer Eemeli Bodde may be relatively new, but he prowls the stage with the demeanour of someone who has done this many times. And of course, having James Stewart behind the drums ensures precision from one of the best in the Extreme business.
It is his power that propels the band forward, with the evergreen Spheres Of Madness inciting first pit action and the start of the surfers who do not relent all evening.
A final burst of Iconoclast, complete with Robb Flynn’s digital backing vocals, concludes their 30-minute set. Another reminder that such bands are still delivering at a very high level.
