On June 7th at Gabe’s 252, in Westfield, Mass., The Paradise Slaves record release show was one of those nights. It was raw, redemptive and absolutely unhinged in the best way possible.
Some nights hit harder than others. Some nights remind you why you ever fell in love with heavy music in the first place—why you screamed lyrics until your lungs gave out, why you threw yourself into mosh pits like a form of prayer, why you believed that sometimes the heaviest songs carry the most healing.
Formed from the wreckage and through the triumphs of 36Crazyfists, Diecast and Pentagram, Paradise Slaves may come off on paper like a metal “supergroup,” but that word doesn’t even scratch the surface. This is not a one-off. This is not a vanity project. This is a resurrection, unshackled by thunder.
Their debut album, “With hell in his eyes, is ten tracks of feral intensity and haunted melody. A genre-crushing slab of metalcore that manages to be deeply human beneath all the grime. And live? It’s even nastier. Their set felt like a mass exorcism, packed wall-to-wall with family and fans who didn’t come to watch, they came to bear witness.
The band opened with “A Fever to Defeat,” an absolutely ferocious track that doubles as a middle finger to COVID and a war cry for survival. Hearing it as the set opener was straight-up mind-bending. The first chorus detonated with the lyric: “In a whirlwind of damage, I will find release.”
That line didn’t hit. It landed, like a fist to the jaw, followed by catharsis.
It brought a flood of memories. A reminder of why Brock Lindow’s lyrics have always meant the world, not just to this photojournalist, but to every metalhead, outcast and fighter who ever found Peace inside the panic.
Mid-set, the band tore into a blistering, gut-ripping cover of Soul Asylum’s “Somebody to Shove”. It’s a bold choice that worked. They didn’t play it. They owned it. It slotted seamlessly into their set, bridging generations of angst and grit, as if the song had always belonged to them.
But it was the closer, “Dreamers,” that sealed the night in fire and finality. A fan-favorite and album standout, it’s the kind of track that walks a tightrope between melody and metal without missing a step. Big, bruising riffs and glassy-clean vocals came together in a perfect storm, leaving the room breathless. The song doesn’t ask for attention, it demands it. Come the final note, there was nothing left to give.
For this writer, someone who grew up surviving life storms soundtracked by 36Crazyfists, there was something poetic about sharing a Corona with Brock Lindow before the set.
It felt full circle. A quiet moment before the chaos, grounding and surreal. But the night wasn’t about nostalgia. It was about now. It was about music that still swings like a hammer and heals like a scar.
Let’s not forget the support—Wishful Thinking, Dead Reflections, The Hero and the Horror, and Byzantine. Each delivered sets that added fuel to the fire. These are bands that are an absolute must for anyone who isn’t familiar with them yet.
Byzantine in particular brought the room to a pre-Paradise boil, setting the stage for the main act to detonate.
Paradise Slaves didn’t meet expectations. They crushed them underfoot. This was a record release party that felt like a revival. A scene gathering. A reminder that heavy music isn’t just alive, it’s thriving.
If this was the beginning, the rest of the world better brace itself. Paradise Slaves aren’t here to play nice. They’re here to burn it down.
Setlist: A fever to defeat, How far from fragile, With hell in his eyes, For those who watch the sea, Aesthetic of serpents, Glass mountain, Somebody to shove (Soul Asylum cover), Always have always will, River runs red, Dreamers
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