Earlier in the week, I got the privilege of seeing one of heavy rock’s greats, Killing Joke, in an intimate setting before their headline show at the Royal Albert hall. And now, just a few days later, I find myself in a similar scenario as one of Heavy Metal’s biggest juggernauts, Lamb Of God, headline the LCR in Norwich in a pre-tour warm-up before they wreak havoc on the rest of the UK!
Lamb Of God – Heriot
The LCR, UEA, Norwich – 11 March 2023
Words and Photography: Lawrence Potter
A short break after Heriot opened the evening, and everyone’s back to the floor as the mighty Lamb Of God were about to make their Norwich debut. The lights go out, and we’re full speed ahead straight into Memento Mori, and as predicted, the crowd absolutely lose it. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen these guys live, and my god, are they as fantastic as ever?
Frontman, Randy Blythe, has what seems like an endless supply of energy. Whether it was constantly running up and down the stage or jumping 10 feet in the air from the drum set riser, he was absolutely on form, as were the whole unit! This was Lamb Of God at their absolute finest.
About halfway through the set, Blythe mentions how he had a stroll around the City earlier in the day, but to his dismay, the famous marmite shop was closed. Apparently, someone forgot to tell them Lamb Of God were in town.
Nevertheless, he dedicates the next song to the owner of said shop, and the song in question is none other than, Now You’ve Got Something To Die For.
A bit later on, Randy shares another story from his day out, and this time it involves an altercation with an old man. It was by a nearby lake where he came across the man walking his dog. Against the owner’s words, the dog, whose name was Chester, jumped up at the Heavy Metal hero after being egged on, which didn’t go down too well. This story blends nicely into 512, which was dedicated to Chester.
Throughout the set, the Richmond, Virginia, Metal giants played a strong, heavy-hitting set that included the likes of Walk With Me In Hell, Omerta and Omens. And to end the night in a perfect way, it had to be Redneck to send the crowd home happy.
Lamb Of God put on an absolutely incredible performance, and it certainly shows that they’ll not cheap out on their fans in the slightest, whether they’re playing in a more modest size venue like tonight in Norwich or somewhere the likes of their upcoming show at the Wembley arena.
After all these years, Lamb Of God are one of the greatest Heavy Metal bands to ever do it, and it was a fantastic experience seeing them in such a humble setting.
Heriot
First up were UK’s own, Heriot, a band who have been setting the UK Heavy Metal scene alight recently. Coming off a blinding performance at Download festival as well as supporting some big names, they have been tipped for big things. As I was fairly new to this band at the time, I was pleasantly surprised.
Heriot put on quite the show, full of pure emotion and energy. The group did an immense job of starting the evening with some good ol’ Heavy Metal brutality and more breakdowns than you can shake a stick at. The UK certainly has a lot to look forward to with these guys!