Cattle Decapitation/Brujeria: House of Blues - Anaheim, CA - 4/19/26
Death metal/deathgrind band Cattle Decapitation announced their 30th anniversary tour. This tour also marks the finale of the promotion of their latest album Terrasite released in 2023 before going into the studio to record the next album. Joining them on tour are Brujeria, No Cure, and Knoll. The first stop on the tour was at the House of Blues in Anaheim, California. Cattle Decapitation has such a loyal fanbase that the first stop of the tour was sold out. It was set to be a wild night with lots of great metal bands.
Brujeria have been around since 1989. Their name means “Witchcraft”. The theme of their songs revolves around immigration, drugs, smuggling, and politics. Although they have had had many past members, the main driving force of the band were vocalists Juan Brujo and Pinche Peach. Sadly, both members passed away just a few months apart in 2024. The band has chosen to continue playing with their third singer El Sangrón who has been their third vocalist since 2014. Plenty of Brujeria fans were in attendance wearing their merch, so you know that’s one band they were excited to see. The lights went out and the fully packed venue cheered as the members came out. They started their set with “Brujerizmo” (“Witchcraft”). The sold-out venue quickly erupted with mosh pits and crowd surfers. The first thing you’ll notice is how the band members wear bandanas around their mouths to hide their identities as if they’re fugitives running from the law. Other notable songs from their set included “Colas de Rata” (“Rat Tails”), "Hechando Chingasos (Greñudos Locos II)" ("Throwing Punches [Crazy Headbangers II]"), "La Migra (Cruza la Frontera II)" ("La Migra [Border Crossing II]"), and "Raza Odiada (Pito Wilson)" ("Hated Race ["Dick" Wilson]"). Regardless of what song they played, the fans sang along and moshed. Their live performances are powerful, and you feel like we’re all one big happy family. To end their set, Brujeria played their most famous song, "Matando Güeros" ("Killing Whites"). The crowd went wild and continued to sing along to this super catchy song. Their set ended and the band said their goodbyes. Already a crazy and sweaty night and the show still had one more band left.
Cattle Decapitation were the last to come out on from the lineup and by then, fans were hot and sweaty from all the moshing they had been doing all night. Still, they had the energy to keep going for one of metal’s best bands. The lights went out, and the packed venue roared with excitement as the band made their way to the stage. After the intro track finished, the band jumped into the first song "Terrasitic Adaptation," the first track from the Terrasite album. The brutality of the music filled the venue and, naturally, the fans continued to mosh and smash into each other. The next two songs were “Your Disposal” and “Solastalgia.” Travis Ryan is one of metal’s best singers and he proved with every song he sang. His singing style ranges from deep guttural growls to ear-piercing shrieks. Cattle Decapitation continued to play more songs from throughout their career. Some of those songs included “Scourge of the Offspring,” “Bring Back the Plague” and “We Eat Our Young.” Cattle Decapitation is one of those bands that don’t need theatrics or fancy getups to make their show better. Their music alone gets you pumped up and will have you raising your horns and banging your head. One of the best songs they performed on their set was one of their best songs, “Forced Gender Reassignment.” The music was heavy and the fans kept moshing and crowd surfing. The last song performed was one of their best songs “Kingdom of Tyrants.” The fans continued to mosh and gave their last bit of energy to the band. The show came to an end, and there was nothing but smiles amongst the fans as they had been more than satisfied with the whole tour. Hopefully it’s not long before Cattle Decapitation come through again to pulverize their fans with metal.
