Mar 14

Mar 14 Show Review: Cannibal Corpse Bring "Violence Unimagined" Tour To Sacramento

Cannibal Corpse
w/ Whitechapel, Revocation, Shadow Of Intent
Ace of Spades
Sacramento, CA
March 10th, 2022

Photos and Review by Jared Stossel

It's been a long time coming, but I finally got a chance to catch Cannibal Corpse in action. The first time I got approved to cover the show, I was incredibly ill and had to skip out. Every time they’ve come through the area since, something has always conflicted with my schedule. This time around, things worked out and I got to witness the act (along with a stacked lineup of other death metal and deathcore bands) play to a sold out crowd at Sacramento’s Ace of Spades on Thursday evening.

The show was kicked off by Shadow of Intent and Revocation, who each brought forth absolutely crushing sets with their own brand of deathcore and technical death metal. Their performances were followed by a brutally intense set from the main support act of the evening, Whitechapel, who have made a name in this scene over the last decade. Phil Bozeman is still one of the best deathcore vocalists in the game, and each guttural roar was only emphasized by the syncopation and intensity of the band playing beside him.

But of course, this was all a warmup to the band with song titles like “Fucked With a Knife”. “Gutted”. “Unleashing The Bloodthirsty”. “I Cum Blood”. I’m sure that if you were to look in an encyclopedia for the term “death metal”, you’d find a big picture of Cannibal Corpse there to greet you. The five-piece Buffalo, NY-based band played through a merciless 18-song set that spanned their decades-long career, with a selection of tracks taken from their most recent effort, 2021’s Violence Unimagined. And whenever the crowd seemed more subdued than usual for a show of this nature, vocalist George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher called them out (and it was funny whenever it happened).

It was fun to watch Cannibal Corpse. While I cover a lot of rock shows, death metal is the one genre I don’t end up seeing all too often, so it’s fun when given the chance to step into that world. They play with such ferocity, such fierceness, and it never got boring. It’s clear to see why they still draw a crowd after all these years. The fact that they can still sell out theaters across the country is a testament to the band and their longevity in the heavy metal cultural zeitgeist. I’m glad I finally got to catch one of their shows, and I can’t wait to see what imaginative song titles the next album brings forth.

Cannibal CorpseSet List
The Time To Kill Is Now
Scourge of Iron
Inhumane Harvest
Code of the Slashers
Fucked With A Knife
The Wretched Spawn
Gutted
Kill Or Become
I Cum Blood
Evisceration Plague
Death Walking Terror
Necrogenic Resurrection
Condemnation Contagion
Unleashing The Bloodthirsty
Devoured By Vermin
A Skull Full of Maggots
Stripped, Raped and Strangled
Hammer Smashed Face