SLAUGHTER TO PREVAIL / WHITECHAPEL / ATTILA – HAMMERSTEIN
By Donna Marie Eriquezzo
Slaughter To Prevail brought their spring tour to the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City with Whitechapel and Attila for support.
It’s a beautiful sunny warm day and we are New York City bound to see Slaughter To Prevail at the Hammerstein Ballroom. We actually arrived early as it was smooth sailing into the city. Even at 5:30 pm the line was pretty long to get into the venue and the crowd was hyped up, a lot of people had their Slaughter To Prevail masks with them and the energy level was high.
The first band of the night was Attila and they hit the stage with “CONCRETE THRONE” and I knew this was going to be an epic show, the stage diving commenced immediately and the crowd was going wild.Next they went into their song ‘Moshpit” and the crowd stayed wild.
These guys have a killer groove and infectious energy that I love with a rap/metal sound kind of between deathcore and nu metal. Third they went into their hit “AMERICAS REJECTS” and they just kept the crowd going and they just had an intensity that made you move to the music and they had everyone jumping up and down. These guys are a must see.
Attila hails from Atlanta , Georgia and they are well known for their unique style of metalcore/deathcore. They formed in 2005 and they have a reputation for their energetic performances and distinct sound with heavy breakdowns, aggressive vocal, and electronic influences.
The founding members include Chris “Fronz” Fronzak on vocals, and Chris Linck on guitar, Nate Salameh on guitar, Kalan Blehm on bass, and Tyler Kruckmeyer on drums. Attila gained significant attention with their 2010 album,Southern Hostility which showcased their heavy sound. Again if you haven’t sen these guys it’s a must, they are heavy to the core and a really tight band.
The Hammerstein is really packed now and the crowd is waiting anxiously for the next band which is Whitechapel who I can’t wait to see again. Whitechapel hits the stage with their heavy hit “Prisoner 666” and everyone goes nuts, the music is heavy, the growls are guttural and long and the intensity of the vocals and music is high . People are crowd surfing again and the moshpit is growing bigger by the minute as Whitechapel effortlessly kills it on stage. The next song is “Hymns in Dissonance” and believe it or not the crowd gets crazier as this is off their new album that was released on March 7, 2025.
Phil Bozeman, the vocalist for Whitechapel is known for a mix of extremely low guttural growls, mid-range hardcore shouts, and more recently, clean singing and man does he deliver with a lot of control and rhythmic precision. His vocals are so heavy yet understandable and the depth of emotion he portrays is pretty profound. He has definitely helped shape what people expect from deathcore vocals.
I also have to say that having 3 guitarists gives them such a heavy sound. Having 3 guitarists they can double or triple track riffs, they can make the breakdowns sound thicker and more crushing and instead of one rhythm guitar you get a literal “wall of sound”. These guys are able to create a more orchestral metal sound and they have seamless transitions live. What a powerhouse these guys are.
Whitechapel is an American deathcore band formed in 2006 and they are from Knoxville, Tennessee. The name Whitechapel is inspired by the infamous Whitechapel district in London, which is associated with Jack the Ripper murders. Whitechapel is very well known for their heavy sound that fuses elements of death metal and metalcore, characterized by aggressive riffs, complex rhythms, and brutal growling vocals.
The band’s second album, This Is Exile, released in 2008, is what established Whitechapel in the metal scene. They have since released a few more albums such as Mark of the Blade in 2016. Their music has dark and lyrical themes, with subjects such as despair, loss, and personal struggles. Whitechapel has been recognized for their very intense live performances and they have a huge following in the metal community.
This is my second time seeing them this year and wow am I impressed, even more so than when I recently saw them headline in CT which was an incredible show but the show at the Hammerstein was something else. At one point Phil held a guttural growl for so long it was truly impressive. The effort these guys put into their show is something else.
The band is comprised of Phil Bozeman on vocals, Ben Savage, Alex Wade, and Zach Householder on guitar, Gabe Crisp on bass, and Brandon Zackey on drums with the band remaining the same since 2007 with the exception of the drummer.
Finally its time for Slaughter To Prevail who has a very cool stage setup with the guys on risers as well as the drummer on a high riser and a huge, and I mean huge bear on the stage that looks like he is growling. They kickoff with their song “Bonebreaker” which is not a random choice, this song is built to be an opener!! It starts with that eerie Russian count-in “one, two, three…six, six, six” which is kinda like a ritual before violence, then it drops straight into crushing riffs and blast beats.
Needless to say the crowd goes wild , the crowd surfing is the craziest its been all night and the whole floor is now a giant mosh pit. Honestly this was the perfect song to open up with as the energy spiked immediately and stayed high through their entire set.
Next they played “Banditos” and third was “Russian Grizzly in America” and the place is a madhouse. I’m not sure which song it was that the Wall of Death happened but it was huge and the whole floor seemed to participate and have a blast, definitely metal at its finest.
Slaughter to Prevail consists of Russian musician, Alex Terrible on vocals, British musician Jack Simmons on lead guitar, and Russian musicians Dmitry Mamedov on rhythm guitar, Mike Petrov on bass, and Evgeny Novikov on drums.
The band all wears masks with Alex the Terrible removing his after the first song. The masks give a hint of mystery and they aren’t just for looks, they are a mix of identity, atmosphere, and straight-up branding. Alex especially uses the mask to become something bigger than himself, the mask turns him into a menacing figure on stage kind of like a horror villain. The masks visually reinforce their brutal, violent, almost apocalyptic sound and makes the performance more intense almost like your watching something dangerous, not just a concert.
These guys definitely make a lasting impression with their performances and I love seeing them play live and the way Alex interacts with the crowd, having everyone jump, or having the crowd split and the Wall Of Death. It’s something everyone should experience at least once, I guarantee you will be back for more!
Slaughter To Prevail live is definitely way heavier than the recorded version. You don’t just hear the bass, you feel it in your chest. The drums hit like impacts. The breakdowns are not just musical, they feel more like physical events in the room. It is like controlled destruction watching the crowd get more intense even though they are hot, sweaty, and exhausted. I love the crowd interaction with the band and you don’t just hear these guys, you survive them for 75 minutes of shared chaos.
So let me tell you a bit about Slaughter To Prevail. They are a Russian deathcore band formed in 2015 in Yekaterinburg. The band was founded by Alex Terrible who is known for his aggressive vocal style and deep, guttural growls. They gained a lot of attention in 2017 with their debut EP , Chapters Of Misery which really showcased their blending of deathcore and metalcore with their deep and heavy sound.
Their music is characterized by its ferocity with complex guitar work, heavy breakdowns, and a distinctive combination of guttural vocals and melodic elements. Their latest album is Grizzly which was released on July 18, 2025, has a 13 song tracklist, with notable collaborations featuring Ronnie Radke on “Imdead” and BABYMETAL on “Song 3”. This album has an increased focus on melodic elements as well as their signature heavy aggression.
Slaughter To Prevail closed out the show with their hit “Demolisher” with its blend of breakdowns, complex guitar riffs, aggressive drumming and of course highlighted by Alex Terrible’s powerful and guttural vocals. This song has an aggressive tone that resonates well with the crowd. It was a great way to end the night. This was definitely a crowd favorite.
What a great night with three immensely heavy bands at a kickass venue. Goodnight NYC.
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