Metallica, Slayer + More Look Back on ’80s Thrash in New Documentary
The Murder in the Front Row: The San Francisco Bay Area Thrash Metal Story documentary is set to premiere next month on April 20. The film chronicles the rise of the now legendary Bay Area thrash scene and includes over 50 interviews with principle members of Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, Exodus, Testament, Death Angel and plenty more. Now, the first official trailer has been released and can be seen above.
The documentary, which was inspired by the 2012 photojournal of the same name, was directed by Adam Dubin and features narration by headbanger comedian Brian Posehn. Dubin's work can be seen in the Metallica documentaries A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica Parts 1 & 2, Hit the Lights: The Making of Metallica Through the Never and Freeze 'em All: Metallica in Antarctica, as well as the music video for "Nothing Else Matters."
"These are just good stories, and they are very human stories," says Dubin. The Bay Area scene was very inspired by British acts such as Iron Maiden, Motorhead and UFO, and Dubin added, "All these bands were mainly from England, and they never really toured the West Coast. So these young people started creating their own music, starting their own fanzines, booking clubs and trading tapes. These were people who were adamant about music and the bands, but also each other."
While it's the "Big 4" that garner most of the attention in the thrash conversation, Dubin argues that Exodus were just as influential. "I particularly think the movie will inspire viewers to re-evaluate the contributions of Kirk Hammett, who founded Exodus in the Bay Area three years before Metallica came to town," commented the director. "Kirk was the central mover who put the band together, guided the music and found frontman wild man Paul Baloff."
The film's name, of course, it taken from a lyric in the Exodus song "Bonded By Blood," which is highlighted in the closing moment of the trailer. The premiere will at 1 p.m. April 20 at AMC Kabuki 8 in San Francisco.
Murder in the Front Row and Loudwire are presenting Metal Allegiance's 5th anniversary tour. Get more info here and see tour dates below.
Metal Allegiance 2019 Concerts
April 17 — Phoenix, Ariz. @ The Van Buren [tickets]
April 18 — Los Angeles, Calif. @ The Belasco Theater [tickets]
April 19 — Las Vegas, Nev. @ House of Blues [tickets]
April 20 — San Francisco, Calif. @ The Fillmore [tickets]
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