One of the most influential bands of all time has officially reached the 40 mark. I first heard Killing Joke in high school my sophmore year and they introduced me to the genre that is post-punk and industrial metal bands like Godflesh among others.
If you never heard them, Killing Joke began as a post-punk band that experimented with industrial elements as well as hardcore and metal. Many bands cite them as an icon including but not limited to: Metallica, Godflesh, Nirvana, Ministry, Faith no More, Nine Inch Nails, My Bloody Valentine, Soundgarden, the list goes on and on. If you enjoy any band that these guys inspired, I guarantee there is at least one album you will enjoy.
Beginning the night, there was another english band opening, I believe they simply called PIG. This band I don't know anything about but the appearance of the band was quit astonishing. The vocalist was wearing a catholic priest's collar and robe under a flashy Rob Halford style disco jacket, shades, and cop hat. He eventually took the jacket off to reveal he was also wearing BDSM gear. My guess was he was trying to look like a gay priest. The other two members just wore black eye shadow.
PIG's sound was just plain and simple KMFDM style industrial metal. Nothing too impressive in my opinion but the appearance was what made it. The vocalist would constantly be doing flamboyent dances and pacing back and forth on stage. Certain vocals were sampled but occasionally, the guitarist would do some backing vocals and it was clear as day and I actually thought the vocals were sampled.
The moment Killing Joke walked out on stage, you knew the night has only begun. One thing they are known for is dressing up on stage. The guitarist walked out in a soldiers uniform, the bassist in a goofy hat. Jaz with his signature goth makeup and a jumpsuit and the keyboardist in a goth getup as well. THey began with the song, "Love Like Blood" and I could not believe how soothing Jaz's voice still is after 40 fucking years. For the first few songs of the set, it was the post-punk songs. Hearing these songs in the flesh is a huge step up from a recording from the 80's. The lighting made the songs visual even more vibrant.
The first song they played where Jaz would do his more hoarse vocals was of course "Eighties", you may know this one as the song Nirvana ripped off. Jaz switched between his two vocal styles flawlessly and I still can't believe it. These guys really earned their mileage. His movements on stage were subtle and almost frankenstein like but some songs when the tempo would pick up, he would follow suit. The more the night went on, the heavier and more aggressive the set would get. The crowd would even participate in "Asteroid", the music would stop just before the chorus for the crowd to scream it. If there's one song that blew me away the most, it was definitely "Loose Cannon". Jaz headbanging and shouting "I'M A LOOSE CANNON!" as passionately as he could matched up with the riffs sounding 10x times heavier than normal as well as the sporadic lighting just made me feel llike I was seeing KJ in there prime.
In between songs, Jaz would give speeches but keep them rather short, just how I prefer it to be honest. He would discuss the current state America is in, mostly because of the president. KJ pay attention to our country because it affects them too. After hearing this a member of the crowd shouted "Sorry!" to which Jaz replied "No need to apologize, it's not your fault". Another thing he mentioned was being in Boston just makes him think of historical events such as the tea party.
Killing Joke ended the set with "Pssyche", thanked the crowd and walked back stage. Barely even a minute later, they came back with a whopping 4 song encore. Their allowed to do this, they're a big deal. First with "Primitive" to get back into the 80s post-punk vibe, the "Death and ressurection Show". The last two they picked up the heavy with "Wardance" and ended with "Pandemonium".
This had to be the oldest band I've seen live at this point. I'm more than impressed at how well Killing Joke manged to keep up with the times and remain an incredible band with I believe a majority of the original lineup. 40 years spent well.
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