Onslaught, Warlord, Haunter, Trencher
- Bleeding Priest
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
DNA Lounge
San Francisco, CA
March 25, 2026
Ok, I know I’m behind on this review but give a guy a break. In the past five days I was the DJ for three shows, DJd a Metal night at a bar and played a show with Nefarious. I’m trying to get all the info sorted out in my head….which takes a minute.
So…this Onslaught show was a doozy for a number of reasons. Shall we discuss?
Opening were Oakland favorites, Hectic/Bleeding Priest Records alumni and quite frankly one of the hardest working bands in our scene Trencher. There’s not much to say here that I haven’t already stated in my review of their last show a week or so ago and the review before that.
Trencher are clearly on an upward trajectory with each show getting that much better. A number of folks said to me it was the best time they’d seen the band. I’d be hard pressed to disagree.
Now before I get into L.A. 's Haunter and talk about the “incident” I must tell you that Hectic will be interjecting on this since he witnessed it firsthand while I was outside smoking weed with Gil from Hellhunter. You might ask, “Will, what the fuck? Aren’t you supposed to be reviewing the show?” And you’re right, I should be.
Here’s the thing, Haunter sounded terrible! It’s as simple as that. And it falls squarely on the guy who was on stage with a bass. He was clearly HAMMERED from the get go. He couldn’t figure out how to get his gear working.
Once he did you’d wished he hadn’t. His lack of ability due to being completely inebriated completely ruined their set. I’ve seen these guys before and enjoyed them very much. I know what they’re capable of. Getting on stage THAT drunk is inexcusable. The problem had to be handled BUT, maybe not in the manner the guitarist did. Take it away Hectic :
Will had seen Haunter once before with Trencher, with a generally ok report. Unfortunately this time their sound was a bit of a mess from the start, owing mostly to the bass player being visibly drunk onstage. Things really escalated a couple of songs in, when the singer / guitarist gave the bass player a hard shove in frustration, and he fell right off the stage onto the stairs below head first.
Now that is something I hadn't seen before, and a rough way to be fired from a band. There were a few tense moments with the DNA security team tending to the bass player, as it seemed like he might be knocked out.
Luckily the (ex) bass player started moving again, and was escorted out of the club to recover. Haunter somehow continued on for a couple more songs, before DNA management rightly cut their sound off and announced over the PA that they were done. Quite an unfortunate spectacle.
So there you have it. When I was outside I noticed the music had ended early. I ran back in to start my DJ set and everyone in the DNA looked bewildered and/or shocked. The staff was just like “did you see what just happened?” It was the talk of the rest of the night. Look, I hope their bass player is ok and the guitarist’s actions were way extreme however, I feel where he’s coming from. Some lessons are hard learned.
Up next we had the LEGENDARY Warlord!! It’s pretty crazy their debut EP, Deliver Us, came out in 1983 and this is the first time they’ve ever played the Bay Area. I mean they’re only 6 hours away (LA). They’re currently on their very first U.S. tour. They’ve played Europe sporadically over recent years but we’re talking decades of never playing live.
Warlord did not disappoint. The only original member is drummer and rabid right winger Mark Zonder. The dude can play. Check out his work with Fates Warning. Very tasty.
Warlord sounded incredible. A perfect mix of clarity and power. Their current vocalist nails the highs of the early material. The guitarists were one of the tightest duos I’ve ever witnessed.
You could tell this band rehearses A LOT and takes their craft as seriously as a heart attack. It truly showed through. I respect any band that puts that much time and effort into giving their fans the best. Warlord did just that. One of the best examples of U.S. Power/Trad. Metal I’ve ever seen.
Now, headliners Onslaught. I saw these guys years ago in the small upstairs room of The DNA with Neil Turbin singing. It was a bit of a train wreck. Tonight’s performance was a far cry from that.
Back in the band is none other than Sy Keeler, my favorite Onslaught vocalist. To celebrate his return they played 4 of 7 tracks from their best album (in my opinion) The Force including “Metal Forces” which is an absolute Thrash Metal classic. Unfortunately they didn’t play my favorite track from The Force, “Flame Of The Antichrist. Man do I love that tune.
In addition they played a hefty chunk of songs from their debut Power From Hell. They seemed to be playing with a new sense of gusto. It was like someone recharged their Thrash Metal batteries. These versions were ripping.
The set was finished off with a rocking version of Motörhead’s “Iron Fist”. Much better than doing their limp wristed version of “Let There Be Rock” from the late 80’s.
Onslaught, with Sy Keeler fronting them, are once again a “Force” to be reckoned with. Ahh, see what I did there?
–Bleeding Priest
