TESTAMENT / OBITUARY / DESTRUCTION / NERVOSA @ O2 FORUM, KENTISH TOWN 11TH OCTOBER 2025
Four bands. One mission. Testament, Obituary, Destruction and Nervosa joined forces for an unforgettable evening of thrash, death and pure metal fury. From Brazil to Germany to the US, each act brought its own intensity, ensuring this was a night no metal fan will soon forget.
NERVOSA
Hailing from São Paulo, Brazil, Nervosa are the openers tonight and have a short thirty-minute set to showcase their talents. Despite that, they attract a good turnout. They are less well-known than the rest of the bill, but have a strong pedigree of their own, having been in existence for fifteen years and releasing five albums during that time. They are not short on material and have the strength of musicianship and songwriting to produce a blistering performance.
This really is the perfect bill for them, as their form of melodic death-tinged thrash is ideal for this environment, and they clearly make many new fans among those who came out early to see what the noise was all about.
They put on a storming set showing that the girls can more than stand up against their long-term male compatriots. With lead vocalist and guitarist Prika Amaral snarling through the songs, they bring an entirely joyous blend of guttural, angst-ridden, venomous metal that warms up the mosh pits early for the other bands.
Lead guitarist Helena Kotina brings some flash and flamboyance to the show, wringing both melodic solos alongside bone-crushing riffs as she throws down the gauntlet to the audience.
They open with two songs from their 2023 album Jailbreak — Seed of Death and Behind the Wall — and in between provide a set culled from their earlier material. Finishing with two further tracks from this latest opus, title track Jailbreak and Endless Ambition, they show that they are a force to contend with, and that the new material is as strong as anything that has gone before.
The mix of songs provides a perfect introduction to the band, who are clearly here not to make up the numbers, nor to take any prisoners. They provided the perfect start to the night’s proceedings, ensuring none of the other bands could do anything but bring their A-game.
Tracklist:
Seed of Death
Behind the Wall
Kill the Silence
Perpetual Chaos
Venomous
Jailbreak
Endless Ambition
DESTRUCTION
Following on from Nervosa was no mean feat, yet Destruction were clearly up for it. Not regular visitors to these shores, the German metal titans were as much of a draw as the headliners. Sadly, like Nervosa, they only had limited time to ply their wares, yet from the moment they hit the stage there was no holding them back as their trademark Teutonic thrash tore into the audience with no mercy.
Entering the stage to a bombastic drumming display and clouds of CO₂, they rip into Curse the Gods, with lead singer Marcel “Schmier” Schirmer bringing a Priest-style, Halford-esque scream to proceedings.
Having been in existence since 1982, they are a band who have developed their sound over the years, and though clearly still top of the thrash game, they bring old-school heavy-metal crossovers into their sound.
Nailed to the Cross was monumental, with a rammed venue moshing to oblivion — fists raised, pits open — it was heavy-metal carnage.
Newer song Scumbag Human Race, from their latest album Birth of Malice, did nothing to lower anticipation, and the chaos continued, although perhaps in a slightly more pointed political vein. This is a band who do not hold back, either musically or lyrically.
No Kings No Masters was another newer song that was well received, as the tune was turned into a sing-along. It was intense, it was atmospheric, with pulverising drums and frenetic guitar interplay.
Unsurprisingly, the short set was over rapidly with a pit-churning, self-titled Destruction. This was a welcome return from the German giants, and hopefully a return will follow shortly.
Tracklist:
Curse the Gods
Nailed to the Cross
Scumbag Human Race
Mad Butcher
No Kings No Masters
Thrash ’Til Death
Bestial Invasion
OBITUARY
Having seen Obituary headline at Bloodstock only a few weeks earlier, it was interesting to see if the set had changed at all. Realistically, not much. There were two changes — Sentence Day and A Lesson in Vengeance replaced Threatening Skies and By the Light — but otherwise it was the same set. That said, if you weren’t at Bloodstock, then you were in for a stunning, full-force explosion of doomy, thrashy death metal. If you were there, then welcome back for a second helping.
Opening with seasoned favourite Redneck Stomp, they proceed to brutally batter the audience into delighted submission. This is incendiary stuff, and the audience throw themselves on the dark altar of Obituary.
The main element of the set is seven songs from their second album, 1990’s Cause of Death, with Michael Whelan’s eye artwork displayed ominously across the back of the stage. This album may well have been one of the great introductions to death metal for many, and the gore-fest reigned blood, sweat and perhaps a few tears as they unceremoniously tore the songs to shreds.
It was a maelstrom of perfect chaos — Infested, Body Bag, Dying, Cause of Death. Yes, there’s an obvious theme on display here, but all and sundry are craving this, and the circle and mosh pits draw the welcoming moshers gleefully into their mad vortex.
Circle of the Tyrants was a welcome cover of Celtic Frost’s classic song — they own this track now as much as the originators.
Lead vocalist John Tardy revelled in the evening, urging the crowd surfers on into his veil of dry ice. Security had their hands full.
This was what tonight was all about. It was brutal, it was dynamic, and it was full-throttle, full-force intensity. Yet unlike many of their peers, there is another side to this band, and Obituary do not need to play their songs at full speed to get the appropriate dynamism out of them. Why play a thousand notes when some perfectly placed down-and-dirty chord structures will have the audience baying?
This was strong stuff, and a set that many will remember for a long time. Certainly, for me, this was the event of the evening.
Setlist:
Redneck Stomp
Sentence Day
A Lesson in Vengeance
The Wrong Time
Infected
Body Bag
Dying
Cause of Death
Circle of the Tyrants (Celtic Frost cover)
Chopped in Half
Turned Inside Out
I’m in Pain
Slowly We Rot
TESTAMENT
As the final band and co-headliners for this show, Testament had a lot to do to follow the aural onslaught that Obituary brought to the stage. Interestingly, there was more room to move during Testament’s set, which rather indicates that Obituary were the big draw for many tonight. But the draw of Testament is still strong and, unsurprisingly, these old-school thrash titans still know how to deliver. For those here tonight, they delivered a storming set of both old and newer material — a fine crossover to keep long-time and recent fans more than happy.
Opening with D.N.R. (Do Not Resuscitate) from the 1999 album The Gathering, they arrived with full-force intent. WWIII from the Titans of Creation album followed as they cranked up the ferocity.
With Eric Peterson and Alex Skolnick on guitars, they were an imposing presence, providing a display of note-perfect duelling. Chuck Billy on vocals prowled the stage as the electrifying performance developed.
With a new album released the day before this show, it was no surprise that two songs from it featured — Infanticide A.I. and Shadow People, the two singles currently released. These were received like old favourites, despite the fans being less familiar with them (yet). However, the rest of the set was a roll through the classics — Practice What You Preach, Native Blood, Low. Perhaps there’s an element of playing it safe here, but the fans were screaming for it — and that’s the key point: keep the fans happy.
With a blistering Electric Crown and a frenetic Into the Pit, the show was over. The fast and the furious — not so much a film as a Testament show!
We won’t mention the inflatable demon behind the drum kit. Just go and see the next Spinal Tap film instead.
Tracklist:
D.N.R. (Do Not Resuscitate)
WWIII
Practice What You Preach
Sins of Omission
Native Blood
Trail of Tears
Low
More Than Meets the Eye
Drum Solo
First Strike Is Deadly
Infanticide A.I.
Shadow People
Return to Serenity
Electric Crown
Into the Pit
WORDS: ADRIAN STONLEY PHOTOS: ROBERT SUTTON
