The Speed of the Wizard tour kicked off November 2nd in Dallas, Texas and will continue until November 26th in Santa Ana, California. Originally billed as a double headlining tour with sonic titans High on Fire / Municipal Waste (co-headlining) with Toxic Holocaust and Haunt as support is now down one band. High on Fire had to pull out recently after Matt Pike (lead singer/guitarist) had a medical emergency and have part of his toe amputated. We all at Concerthopper.com want to wish Matt a speedy recovery! As the tour rolls through each town, Municipal Waste is calling out to friends/bands in each city to help fill that void left by High on Fire.

For example in Atlanta, The Masquerade combined this tour (which was scheduled in Heaven) with another show that was happening in Hell across the courtyard – Doyle / Die 985 / Hembree & The Satan Sisters / The Aggravated. So you might be asking yourself why the addition of the Doyle tour is noteworthy. Well Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein is best known for the countless years he spent recording and touring as a member of The Misfits. Yeah that Doyle… so let that news sink in for a minute. The event started at 5:00 pm which was too early for me to get there to cover the opening bands: Die 985, Hembree & The Satan Sisters, and The Aggravated.

I was fortunate enough to make it for the band Haunt though! When Decibel Magazine has an online article titled, “You Should be Listening to Haunt”…then you probably should if you’re into “classic, old-school New Wave of British Heavy Metal”. When I saw these guys on the lineup, I was very excited knowing that this lineup was really coming together as a mix of so many genres of metal and punk. Check out Haunt’s Official Bandcamp to hear for yourself.

Next up was the band Toxic Holocaust who is a thrash / speed / black metal band that was founded by Joel Grind (lead vocals/guitars/drums/bass) in Portland, Oregon back in 1999. They have five (5) LPs, four (4) EPs, two (2) Live LPs, and numerous splits with bands like Nocturnal and Municipal Waste. While on the road, Grind has selected Nick Bellmore (drums) and Charlie Bellmore (guitar/backing vocals) to aid in creating the live Toxic Holocaust experience. Check out Toxic Holocaust’s Official Soundcloud page if you have never heard of this band until now and find yourself curious.

As mentioned previously, Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein was a founding member of the influential punk band The Misfits. Currently, he tours in a band named Doyle with Alex “Wolfman” Story (vocals), Brandon Strate (bass/backing vocals), and Wade Murff (drums). They have released two LPs: Abominator (2013) and Doyle II: As We Die (2017). This was a first for me as I have never seen The Misfits, Doyle, or Glenn Danzig live for that matter. So really I was due for this moment! See for yourself and check out Doyle’s Official Soundcloud page today!

Founded back in 2001, Municipal Waste is a crossover thrash metal band from Richmond, Va. that has gone through a few lineup changes over the years. Tony Foresta (vocals) and Ryan Waste (guitarist) are the only original members but that has not stopped them from releasing six (6) LPs, three (3) EPs, and four (4) splits over a seventeen (17) year span. Their most recent full-length release, Slime and Punishment (2017), shows that Municipal Waste is steadily bringing the heat with tracks like “Bourbon Discipline” and the title track “Slime and Punishment”. Check out Municipal Waste’s Official Soundcloud page today!

You can find more music related articles, photo galleries, indie music reviews, and our ‘Bars & Bites’ section out www.concerthopper.com. Please ‘Like’ our page on Facebook and follow us on Instagram in order to stay up to date in 2018 on all music related events/festivals such as: Ron Gallo: Live at The Earl, Jim James: Solo Tour, STS9: Live at the Roxy (2 night stand), Sleep: Live at Variety Playhouse (2 night stand), Atreyu with Memphis May Fire: Live at Anthology, & Khruangbin: Live at Variety Playhouse by following us on all social media formats: Concerthopper on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Also, you can follow my personal concert hopping on Facebook and Instagram for even more photos not available on Concerthopper.com.

Remember don’t think about it, just buy the damn ticket! As always, hope to see you at a show or festival soon!

Speed of the Wizard Tour: Municipal Waste / Toxic Holocaust / Doyle / Haunt