Live Review: Slayer Day! at Finsbury Park, London (06/07/25)

A day in the park with Slayer! I can think of worse ways to spend a Sunday in London, even if one minute we’re getting soaked and the next, burnt to a crisp. The good old British weather, eh?

So, Slayer are back and fresh off hanging out with Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, and a host of legendary rock and metal stars (Back to the Beginning – the final Black Sabbath/Ozzy live show), they’ve arrived in London to show that age is but a number, and we should never believe anyone when they say they’re retiring.

It’s a day of celebration, Slayer day, and while Finsbury Park isn’t a usual hangout for thousands of metalheads, London has turned up and everyone is determined to have a bloody good time, especially as they’ve not come alone. It’s an all-day metal festival that kicks off with the Danish death metal band, Neckbreakker working very hard to liven up a lethargic crowd not quite ready to let loose. To be fair, it’s only just past lunchtime when Neckbreakker hit the stage and they only have twenty minutes, but they throw a lot of energy into their short set, and they sound great.

Which applies to all bands in fact (aside from some early muted vocals for Mastodon). We spent most of our day watching from the right-hand side (facing the stage) and the sound was on point.

Following a brief, but heavy, shower of rain, it’s Hatebreed time and you know what that means! Balls of Death! Alongside some meaty hardcore grooving noise. Jasta is all smiles (when is he ever not smiling!?) and demanding that the bulging crowd gives it all they’ve got. An easy demand to give in to when they’re dropping bangers like I Will Be Heard, Perseverance, Destroy Everything, and Looking Down the Barrel of Today. Hatebreed always deliver.

Mastodon have had some trials as of late, splitting with long-time lead guitarist, Brent Hinds (who has had some choice words for his ex-band mates). They’ve brought in Nick Johnston, who seems to be in the role permanently now (he was even introduced on stage here), and genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves here. Hell, I don’t think I’ve seen rhythm guitarist Bill Kelliher as animated as he was during their punchy, but brief, set.

In keeping with the day, Mastodon give us a ‘best of’, drawing from their rich history, and, really nailing the intricate detail that makes their music so appealing, while being anthemic as hell. At first, Troy Sander’s vocals are too low, but this is something that does improve as the set goes on and we get the pleasure of head banging to the likes Tread Lightly, The Motherload, Crystal Skull, Megalodon, and Blood and Thunder. It wasn’t them at their best, but it was still a mighty, mighty show.

Got the time!? It’s Anthrax and, as always, the legendary thrashers look like they’re having an absolute blast from the moment they kick off their set with Among the Living to the moment they wrap it up with Indians. I can’t go into too much detail here as I was getting some food and drink to begin with (the sound travelled well and the big screens were awesome for viewing from a distance), but got back over for a lively showing of Antisocial, a fun cover of Got the Time, and the aforementioned, Indians. All good fun, even if though I’ve seen them so many times before!

Whereas I can’t imagine I will ever get bored of seeing Amon Amarth, who come with godly power, hellacious fire, and a stage show that is always such a treat to witness. Especially as the band have big smiles plastered over faces throughout. Everyone was just having the best time, it seems, especially a crowd that swelled to immense sizes at this stage.

Amon Amarth do not mess around either (even with playful banter) and burn through iconic horn-throwing, head-banging, and drink-raising hits like Guardians of Asgaard, Deceiver of the Gods, Put Your Back Into the Oar (a whole lot of rowing was going on), First Kill, and everyone’s favourite drinking song, Raise Your Horns. They even had an encore, delivering the explosive Twilight of the Thunder God to a very happy crowd.

They were awesome and could easily have stolen the show. Except… it’s Slayer time and following an unfortunate mishap with the stage cover (it got caught up on one side and when tugged a little too much, came down), we were treated to a video package recapping their iconic history and reminding everyone (if they needed it) of their importance.

It’s Slayer and sure, you can be cynical about the whole retirement thing not lasting long, but why not just enjoy the opportunity to see them again? Especially as they are still on impeccable form. In fact, they’re sounding incredible, tight all over, and with such a history of songs that they can fill a 20-track setlist with wall to wall bangers. They can also bring a show, bathed in red most of the set, and with pyro going off left, right, and freaking centre. Hell, even Raining Blood has red fireworks raining down from the top of the stage. It’s a spectacle, and that’s before you take into account the band themselves. Cool as f**k, Tom Araya’s smile is infectious and he genuinely looked overwhelmed at times. Which is madness when you think about it, they’re f**king Slayer!

Kicking off with South of Heaven means the pits are insane from the start, and then we get the likes of Repentless, War Ensemble, Mandatory Suicide, Dead Skin Mask, and Seasons in the Abyss, to name but a few. The latter was the first Slayer song I ever loved, so that one is always special.

How about Raining Blood and Angel of Death as closing tracks though! While it does feel like it ends abruptly (no encore), there’s no feelings of dissatisfaction at all. Slayer brought it, and the entire day can be summed up as eventful. Heavy freaking metal is alive and well, and let’s home we get more shows like this in the future!