True to my word my friends and I walked into the First Union Center about 8:15, just as Static Xcrement was finishing their set. Slayer hit the stage promptly at 8:35 with Disciple. It was nice to be the only ones there who knew the words, although most of the fans were teenagers there to see Pantera and wouldn't have known if it was new or not.

Up next was a crunching version of Death's Head, there must have been a problem with the soundman because at first all you could hear were the drums, but the guitars finally kicked in for the first verse. After a short break to talk to the crowd, Dead Skin Mask was up next, and as is usual even the Pantera fans knew it and sang along. They really held the last notes of the song when underneath it came the thundering triple thud of Raining Blood.

The pit went into a mad frenzy as is only right for the theme song of Thrash. That led directly into War Ensemble. After a brief break Tom came back out and introduced Bloodline. The song came off really well live and was accented by a screaming guitar solo from Kerry, they also added another bridge to the end of the song. Mandatory Suicide came next and was performed brilliantly and led right into Chemical Warfare. South of Heaven came after a short break followed by the closer which, of course, was Angel of Death.

45 minutes is never enough but goddamn I expended more energy in that short time then I do all week at work. I will certainly have whiplash for the next 3 days minimum, but it serves as a reminder that I have yet again witnessed the most brutal show on the planet. Needless to say we left as soon as they were done only pausing to buy 2 T shirts at $32 apiece.