Krisiun, Abysmal Dawn, Pyrexia, Gorgatron
- Bleeding Priest
- 12 minutes ago
- 4 min read
DNA Lounge
San Francisco, CA
November 15, 2025
It was a rainy Saturday night in San Francisco and it showed with the dreadful turnout at the DNA. I felt bad for all the bands on the bill. Bands on the road rely on Saturday nights to be a big success with attendance, crowd enthusiasm and income. Despite the small size of the crowd they gave it their all and made the bands feel appreciated. There was great energy in the room.
Openers Gorgatron had it the worst. When they started there were less than 10 people in the club. By the time they finished there were about 35. If we’re talking numbers that’s a 250% increase. If you look at it that way that’s pretty damn good. Seriously though, Gorgatron played a good set of your standard Death Metal fare. Actually their soundcheck was the best part. They were cracking each other up doing Paul Ryan (Origin) impersonations. It was a hoot!
Next up was O.G. Long Island death metal legends Pyrexia. Everything about this band screams East Coast. You can certainly tell these dudes come from the same pool as Suffocation. Lots of Mike Smith (esque) blast beats. Lots of breakdowns and a very tough, streetwise attitude onstage. There was a hint of hip-hop at times as well which I could’ve lived without but they still put on a helluva show. The vocalist spent most of the set on the dance floor doing what he could to get the crowd into it and it worked.
Next was supporter Abysmal Dawn. I’ve seen these guys tons of times over the years. For a while there they seemed to be on every Death Metal touring package coming through town. I always thought they were pretty good but never really made a huge impression on me. That all changed at this gig.
First off, the improvement of sound from the first two bands to Abysmal was astounding. Honestly, the sound for the first two acts wasn’t anything to write home about. Especially with Gorgatron. You really couldn’t make out the riffs a lot of the time and except for when he did higher register screams the vocalists death growls were inaudible. The sound was a little better for Pyrexia but not by much.
Abysmal Dawn and Krisiun spent the money and had their own sound man. Money well spent. It really blows my mind when bands of this speed and volume go on the road without their own sound person. They’re basically throwing caution to the wind working with a different engineer every night who probably is not familiar with their music let alone the details within that music. In my opinion, bringing a sound person on tour is the most important “thing” to bring. What’s it all for if your band sounds like crap nightly? I’m not saying anyone sounded like crap but you get what I’m saying. What was I talking about?…..oh yeah! Abysmal Dawn.
They sounded great and drummer James Coppolino impressed the living hell out of me. His creative approach to blast beats and brutal musical passages gave Abysmal Dawn a unique edge that many of their peers lack. His work with the splash cymbal alone pushed some of the beats and fills to a whole new semi-jazzy level. But he always kept it punishing for sure. Their songs this time around resonated with me much more than ever before. I even bought their vinyl after the set. Great Death Metal from Los Angeles.
And now, the mighty KRISIUN!!! My love for these dudes is well known. I’ve had the honor of sharing the stage with them many times. I’ve said this before and I won’t stop, Krisiun are one of the most consistent and powerful live acts in the Metal world. And these boys are hard working too. They tour quite a bit. It feels like this was the third time I’ve DJ'd a show of theirs at the DNA in like a year and a half.
On this tour they’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of their third album Conquerors Of Armageddon. A classic in a discography of classics. They ripped through a set showcasing this album as well as stuff from others and just absolutely destroyed the place. The only hiccup was towards the end of the set drummer Max had to stop a song due to issues with his snare. Other than that it was a perfect hour of Brazilian Death Metal at its best.
I hope the disappointing turnout doesn’t sour them on coming back later than sooner. The Bay Area loves Krisiun and we need them in our lives. San Francisco, SHAME ON YOU! Next time our death metal brothers from Brazil are in town you better come out!
–Bleeding Priest
