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April 2nd 2010, The Avalon, Hollywood CA: The doors to the Avalon opened at 7:00 PM. The crowd was ecstatic, the energy was high, and Immortal would take the stage in just over an hour and a half.

The show opened with a supporting band called "Lightning Swords of Death". An interesting band, they really captured the look and aura of true extreme black metal. Their songs were great, and the musicianship was absolutely superb, but in between each song, they seemed to just screw around and make a lot of noise with their instruments. I don't know if it was the sound system, or the band itself, but it just didn't sound too nice. Their bassist played a really awesome solo, complete with tapping, something that is pretty hard to do on a bass. Would I see them again? Hell yes. Unfortunately, I was completely unfamiliar with their material and didn't catch any of their song titles.

After Lightning Swords finished their set, Immortal's crew came out to tune the instruments, turn the amps on, and prepare the stage for what would be the greatest black metal show in Los Angeles history. The show began with Horgh walking to his drum kit, followed by Apollyon and Abbath. The recorded intro for "All Shall Fall" began to play, the second they played the first note, the crowd went WILD. The entire venue was like one big slam pit. With each song, the crowd got crazier and crazier. People were crowd surfing through every song, the mosh was brutal, and everyone was having the time of their lives. The musical aspect of Immortal is completely mind-blowing. Abbath is a top-notch black metal guitarist, who can take the simplest riff and turn it into pure brutality. Apollyon is a great bass player, very methodical, and very melodic, and Horgh is one of the few black metal drummers worthy of "God" status. Immortal put on a very intense stage show, and tonight was no exception. Everything was perfect and in your face. Abbath's guitar tone was perfectly balanced and Apollyon's bass was in perfect pitch with everything. Abbath's live vocals are much different from his recorded vocals. Live, his vocals are far more brash and raw, fitting the atmosphere perfectly. They played a set of both new and old material, and when I say old, I mean CLASSIC Immortal songs. They played a few songs off of "All Shall Fall" which were pure awesome.

The feeling you get when you see Immortal live is far different than seeing video of them. I got a feeling that I haven't felt in a long time. I was excited to see them, but I was even more excited knowing that the mighty Immortal were right in front of me. It was a surreal feeling that I hope all Immortal fans can feel one day.

Stay heavy, my friends. Hail Immortal!

Here is the entire set list for the night:
1. All Shall Fall
2. The Rise Of Darkness
3. Solarfall
4. Sons Of Northern Darkness
5. Tyrants
6. Hordes To War
7. Norden On Fire
8. Grim And Frostbitten Kingdoms
9. Pure Holocaust
10. Unearthly Kingdom
11. One By One
12. Withstand The Fall Of Time
    Encore:
    
13. Beyond The North Waves
14. Battles In The North
15. Blashyrkh (Mighty Ravendark)