So far this year, the concert pickings have been slim within…really, a four hour radius of me. But last Saturday was a welcome exception, as High on Fire rolled into Atlanta’s Masquerade for a highly anticipated gig with Pallbearer, Lucifer and Venomous Maximus. It was my first time seeing any of these bands and the night did not disappoint. The venue, as always, was exceptional; everyone from the bartenders to the house security were pleasant and accommodating to the large crowd.

In between door time and show time the crowd grew exponentially, beer was flowing and the merch tables saw an influx of customers. The large array of merch offered by all bands was top notch, with little to no wait times to purchase. Once everyone had the chance to unload some cash, Houston’s Venomous Maximus took to the stage to kick off the proceedings.

Their set was one of high energy, balls-out rock ‘n’ roll that got the crowd off to an early frenetic start at a level rarely seen among opening bands. Touring on the heels of their latest release Firewalker, the band roared through roughly half an hour of hard, fast riffs with a punk rock attitude. Vocalist Gregg Higgins, looking the part of a metal statesman, was an absolute madman on stage. The best phrase I could use to describe him off the top of my head would be “boundless energy.” I’ve got no doubt that myself and the majority of the crowd would have really dug a longer set,but with four bands on the bill and a strict timetable to keep to…short happens.

Next up were occult rockers Lucifer. After opening with zero stage lighting and an eerie spoken word passage that was loud enough to pierce an eardrum, guitarist Gaz Jennings immediately set the band to work with his heavy, downtuned riffs. Vocalist Johanna Sadonis seemed to “flow” around front and center of the stage, reminiscent of an early Stevie Nicks. The sound was perfectly mixed for the band and the result was an immensely heavy, full-bodied performance — full of soaring vocals, brain shaking drumming and monstrous riff after monstrous riff. This is a band that actually sounds better live than on record, and this was an incredible performance of cuts from Lucifer I. Unfortunately, during the band’s set, a couple of assholes felt compelled to make catcalls directed towards Johanna. This was absolutely and completely uncalled for. Grow the fuck up or don’t go to shows, it’s as simple as that.

By now the crowd had swelled considerably in anticipation of Pallbearer and their emotional brand of doom metal. The band’s known for their long songs, and they fit four of them into the set. (Unfortunately it took almost three of those to get the sound mixed correctly.) Either way, Pallbearer invoked a hush over the crowd, and once the sound got where it needed to be, they sounded amazing. The highlight of the set was easily closer “The Ghost I Used To Be,” which was exactly what I’d been hoping to hear. It left me nothing short of mesmerized where I stood. Yep…this song was that good.

Finally it was time for High on Fire and riff lord Matt Pike. By this point, it would have been impossible to fit another body in the venue. The band was in top form throughout, and at times even managed to sound even better than they do on their albums. With the band touring behind their most recent release, Luminiferous, the set list comprised mostly tracks from that album, but a few other choice cuts were mixed in along the way.

Pike was an absolute beast, playing for the most part at an inhuman speed and growling out the words to the songs with the stage presence of a god. It’s clear why Pike has been around this game as long as he has, and it’s also clear from his performance that there aren’t many out there capable of out-dueling him on guitar.

And the rest of the band followed suit perfectly. Jeff Matz’s bass lines were just as furious as Pike’s guitar work, and Des Kensel never once lost a step on drums. The chance to finally hear and feel that marching cadence in a live setting was one of the many highlights of the evening for me. Running through a nice lengthy set, the band kept to mostly high-tempo and fast-paced songs, with each member getting an opportunity to show off. The audience crowd-surfed and moshed through the entirety of “Luminiferous” before Pike unleashed probably his best vocal performance of the night on “The Falconist.” And those choice cuts I mentioned earlier? No big deal, just stuff like “10,000 Years” and closer “Snakes for the Divine.” The band was at its tightest on the former, as Matz and Kensel got a nice long showcase at the beginning while Pike bludgeoned his way through.

All told, this is one bill I’m glad to have seen from start to finish of the almost three-and-a-half hours of stage time. I truly feel sorry for anyone that missed even a second of it. I look forward to seeing these openers on their own headlining tours in the near future — and as for High on Fire, they not only met my expectations but far exceeded them with their stunningly heavy set and extreme musicianship. I’m already hoping for a return tour sooner rather than later.

-Josh