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Concert Review – Lamb of God (Great Canadian Toronto, Mississauga, ON, 03/20/2026)

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Metalheads from all over the GTA walked with Lamb of God in hell once again on a fantastic Friday night of pure heavy music.

OPENING ACTS: Sanguisugabogg, Fit For An Autopsy and Kublai Khan Tx

After a full day of rain in Toronto and vicinities, the weather finally settled down closer to the evening, and it was only slightly cold (for Canadian standards, of course, as it was still very cold for anyone else) when the almighty LAMB OF GOD took the always welcoming Great Canadian Toronto by storm with their undisputed North America 2026 Tour, featuring the more than special guests SANGUISUGABOGG, FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY and KUBLAI KHAN TX, on a night of pure adrenaline and a celebration of heavy music. It was a true honor for Keith Ibbitson of Metal Paparazzi and I to cover such an amazing night, and as the show at the casino was one hundred percent SOLD OUT, you can imagine how much fun everyone who attended the show had inside the massive circle pits formed during all four concerts.

It was around 7pm when Columbus, Ohio’s own Brutal Death Metal/Deathcore entity SANGUISUGABOGG kicked off the party with their vicious attack. Having released the excellent Hideous Aftermath in 2025, available on both BandCamp and Spotify, the band formed of the unstoppable frontman Devin Swank, guitarist Drew Arnold, bassist Ced Davis, and drummer Cody Davidson put on a phenomenal performance onstage, already inspiring the crowd to headbang and slam like true metalmaniacs until the very last second. What a wild kickoff, with the very romantic songs Face Ripped Off and Dead as Shit making the entire casino shake. I’m sure Sanguisugabogg will return to Toronto with their undisputed violence sooner than you can say their name, spell their name, or read their logo. Any of these work.

Setlist
Rotted Entanglement
Face Ripped Off
Felony Abuse of a Corpse
Abhorrent Contraception
Dead as Shit

Band members
Devin Swank – vocals
Drew Arnold – guitars
Ced Davis – bass
Cody Davidson – drums

The bar was set super high with Sanguisugabogg, but of course nothing that New Jersey’s own Death Metal/Deathcore beast FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY couldn’t take care of armed with their venomous and melodic brutality. Frontman Joe Badolato was having an amazing time onstage “managing” the vicious circle pit going, and the crowd roared back at him during their incendiary performance. Playing songs from their already solid discography (available on Spotify), including some killer tunes from their latest opus The Nothing That Is, from 2024, those being Lower Purpose, Hostage, and Savior of None / Ashes of All, the band delivered everything their fans were expecting and more, with the intense crowd surfing getting to a point I lost count of how many of the “banana boys” crossed my path after letting their peels being touched by all fans inside the pit. Maybe I should say the entire venue went bananas during Fit For An Autopsy, right?

Setlist
Lower Purpose
It Comes for You
The Wretch
Black Mammoth
Hostage
Savior of None / Ashes of All
Warfare
Pandora
Far From Heaven

Band members
Joe Badolato – lead vocals
Pat Sheridan – guitars, backing vocals
Tim Howley – guitars
Will Putney – guitars
Peter “Blue” Spinazola – bass
Josean Orta – drums

Although I’m familiar with the music by Texan Metalcore ensemble KUBLAI KHAN TX, I didn’t know they were so famous and loved by the Toronto fans. Every single person in the room was having an amazing time during their performance, singing all songs along with the band led by the charismatic Matt Honeycutt. The guy didn’t stop a single second onstage, and that obviously translated into a lot of action inside the pit. In addition, it’s impressive how heavy their kitchen formed of bassist Eric English and drummer Isaac Lamb sounds, in special the utterly thunderous bass by Eric. The guy was making my chest tremble with his jabs. If you know nothing about those talented and humble guys, you can check their ass-kicking music on Spotify, like their 2024 album Exhibition of Prowess, but get ready as they will smash your cranial skull mercilessly.

Setlist
Darwinism
Supreme Ruler
Low Tech
Antpile
Boomslang
The Hammer
The Mountain of Corsicana
Antpile 2
Self-Destruct
Mud
Swan Song
Theory of Mind

Band members
Matt Honeycutt – vocals
Nicholas Adams – guitar, backing vocals
Eric English – bass, backing vocals
Isaac Lamb – drums

LAMB OF GOD

At long last, it was time to walk with Richmond, Virginia’s own Groove Metal masters LAMB OF GOD in hell during their absolutely heavy, vibrant and flammable performance. Having released the phenomenal Into Oblivion just a week before the show (available on Spotify and also on the special Into Oblivion website), the band fronted by the iconic D. Randall “Randy” Blythe showed no mercy for our necks and bodies with another killer performance in Canadian lands. It’s so cool how Lamb of God moved from a small venue like The Opera House when they first played in Toronto years and years ago, to selling out such a massive venue like the casino. To be fair, that’s expected when the music in question is so good, catchy and electrifying.

Randy was on fire during their entire show, as well as his bandmates, with Mark Morton and Willie Adler showing why they’re two of the best metal guitarists of the current scene. John Campbell and his trademark headbanging were also excellent, not to mention Art Cruz delivered a striking drum solo for our total delight. Before the show, he hid a few drumsticks around the venue for fans to try to find them, an initiative that I personally considered very cool (despite the fact I couldn’t find any of them). All that talent made their already amazing songs like Ruin, Laid to Rest and 11th Hour sound even stronger live, driving fans wild during their entire set, and maybe because it was a Friday night at a venue with no curfew we were also treated to a classic that hadn’t been played before Friday, the awesome Omerta.

Their new songs also sounded incredible, in special the infuriated Parasocial Christ, making the circle pit move even faster. There were some tunes that were screamed by the entire crowd together with the band, like 512, Walk With Me in Hell, and Memento Mori, three of my favorite Lamb of God songs, and you can imagine how happy I was seeing so many fans from all ages having such a great time with Randy and his henchmen. And as the icing on the cake, we could all scream, raise our fists, headbanging and jump up and down together with the boys during their metal masterpiece Redneck, putting a beyond epic and climatic ending to the show.

I wish I could have stayed longer at the casino after the show to eat something and maybe even try my luck, but the lines to get into the casino were insane. I’m not complaining, as I love the fact a metal concert can make a casino so busy and vibrant, and I can’t wait to enjoy one of the best venues in the GTA again in a few weeks. Anyway, back to the concert, it’s more than obvious that it won’t take long for Lamb of God to return to the city as they’re undoubtedly one of Toronto’s favorite metal acts. I dare to say they’re THE favorite metal band of a huge chunk of the new-ish generation of metalheads, and as Randy himself said in a recent interview, just like he wants to keep playing with Lamb of God until his last breath, we also want to headbang with Lamb of God until ours.

Setlist
Ruin
Laid to Rest
Blood Junkie
Into Oblivion
Resurrection Man
Grace
Desolation
512
Walk With Me in Hell
Parasocial Christ
Omerta
11th Hour

Encore:
Memento Mori
Sepsis
Redneck

Band members
D. Randall “Randy” Blythe – vocals
Mark Morton – guitar
Willie Adler – guitar
John Campbell – bass
Art Cruz – drums

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Album Review – Lamb of God / Into Oblivion (2026)

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Beholden to no one, and with nothing left to prove, these Groove Metal titans are unleashing upon us all their tenth studio album, as we all head into oblivion.

Beholden to no one, and with nothing left to prove, Richmond, Virginia’s own Groove Metal titans Lamb of God are back with album number ten in their undisputed career, the hard hitting Into Oblivion, following up on their critically acclaimed VII: Sturm und Drang (2015), Lamb of God (2020), and Omens (2022). Produced and mixed by longtime studio collaborator Josh Wilbur, and recorded across multiple locations tied closely to the band’s identity, the new opus by the iconic frontman D. Randall “Randy” Blythe, guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler, bassist John Campbell, and drummer Art Cruz finds the band embracing their position as modern metal veterans. The ten-song collection references the band’s roots, doubles down on their signature groove, and expands their approach, resulting in an album that feels both deliberate and untethered.

In the opening track Into Oblivion we already see Randy deliver his trademark acid lyrics (“I – I am the chaos / I am the voice you can’t unhear / Strife and betrayal / I am the war re-engineered / In a life far worse than death / I am the thief that steals your breath”) while the music is heavy, atmospheric and enfolding thanks to the hammering drums by Art and the always sharp riffs by Mark and Will; and it’s then pedal to the metal in the best Thrash and Death Metal style in Parasocial Christ, with Randy vociferating rabidly as usual accompanied by the metallic riffs and solos by the band’s unstoppable guitar duo. The rumbling bass by John sets the stage for another vicious attack by Lamb of God entitled Sepsis, a neck breaking aria of first-class Groove Metal, followed by The Killing Floor, a demented song perfect for igniting a maniacal circle pit, with Art crushing his drums like there’s no tomorrow. And after such a thunderous tune it’s time for the dark ballad El Vacío, where Randy delivers deep, passionate clean and harsh vocals.

St. Catherine’s Wheel offers more of their trademark (and utterly headbanging) sonority led by the visceral riffs by Mark and Will, supported by John’s menacing bass, whereas Blunt Force Blues brings to our avid ears another round of their acid words growled by Randy (“Here comes another enemy / A goddess standing on the wall / For all the men doomed to die / An alabaster beauty sweats / Paints the currents black, they must ride / Last breath decays / Do you hear?”) while Art’s drums dictate the song’s bludgeoning pace and vibe. The band continues to hammer their sonic weapons of mass destruction in Bully, also presenting elements from Southern Metal added to their core groove madness, followed by A Thousand Years, a mid-tempo aria as grim and obscure as it can be, with Randy declaiming the song’s devilish lyrics rabidly from start to finish. Lastly, they invite us for one final slam into the pit to the sound of Devise / Destroy, a venomous beast of Groove Metal where their scathing riffs and pounding drums match perfectly with Randy’s enraged roars.

“For me, the album is about having the space to breathe creatively and not feeling like we have to keep up with any trend or expectation,” said Mark Morton. “It feels nice to be untethered from any agenda beyond rallying around the notion of, ‘Let’s just make music that we think is cool,’ which is really where it all started.” Randy Blythe also explained why the band decided to name the album Into Oblivion. “Because that’s where we’re heading. In general, the album is about the ongoing and rapid breakdown of the social contract, particularly here in America. Things are acceptable now that would’ve horrified people just 20 years ago.” We’re living dark times indeed, and you can join Lamb of God in their daily fight against all that’s wrong in our rotten society by following them on Facebook and on Instagram, by checking their acid videos on YouTube, by streaming their incendiary discography on Spotify, and of course by purchasing their first-class new album from their own webstore or from the special Into Oblivion website. In the end, as we’re all heading into oblivion like Randy said, at least let’s go down in style, raising our horns to one of the best metal albums of the year.

Best moments of the album: Parasocial Christ, The Killing Floor, Blunt Force Blues and Devise / Destroy.

Worst moments of the album: None.

Released in 2026 Century Media Records/Epic Records

Track listing
1. Into Oblivion 3:34
2. Parasocial Christ 3:20
3. Sepsis 3:38
4. The Killing Floor 4:16
5. El Vacío 4:17
6. St. Catherine’s Wheel 4:05
7. Blunt Force Blues 4:11
8. Bully 4:13
9. A Thousand Years 3:53
10. Devise / Destroy 3:49

Band members
D. Randall “Randy” Blythe – vocals
Mark Morton – guitar
Willie Adler – guitar
John Campbell – bass
Art Cruz – drums