DISSONANCE OVER THE WEST – Coroner at The Usual Place, DTLV

February 4, 2026 – Swiss thrash band CORONER kicked off the Dissonance Over the West tour at The Usual Place in Downtown Las Vegas with special guests, HEATHEN, along with local openers, MADZILLA.

MADZILLA

I’ve seen Madzilla a number of times through the years, and what a journey they’ve had! I think the first time I’d seen this band was back in 2020 when they opened up for Soulfly. They’ve had some lineup shifts, and maybe a little bit of a sound shift, especially with the guitarist moving over to vocal duties. This is not a complaint. It was a good move for them as a band. I had written before that they reminded me of a mix of Megadeth & Overkill, but now they pull more heavy elements, but still staying pretty true to the thrash sound. Madzilla has had a number of successful tours through the world the last few years, and I am here for it! Definitely a worthy band to check out in the genre. (Plus, I love a band with badass women doing their thing, and 2/4 of the band are women, so there’s that.) Keep up with Madzilla over on their official band website, HERE.

HEATHEN

I was looking forward to Heathen. I saw them last on their opening run with Exhorder in 2023, but I also saw them with Warbringer back in 2022. These guys are really fun. I’m grateful that I’ve been able to see them in such intimate, small venues. They command the attention of the crowd, and the crowds don’t ever fail to bring it. I would very much lump these guys in with a list of Bay Area thrash bands that have been overlooked because of the Big Four. (I’m no hater, though. Just an observation.) I did have a little bit of a chuckle during their set when vocalist David White glanced over at me and noticed I had my hand on my face and mimicked me. I was standing next to a speaker and was pushing my ear plug into my ear so I wouldn’t have a headache and damaged ear drums later. I always end up near some fucking speaker at these shows. *insert crying laugh emoji here*

Anyway, go see Heathen. They just signed with Napalm and are going to be releasing a new record soon, so make sure you’re keeping tabs on that! https://heathenthrash.bigcartel.com/

CORONER

I’ll admit I’m not overly versed in the Thrash scenes overseas. And honestly, that’s a fault of mine. Outside of Kreator and Destruction I’m a little out of the loop. Those faults aside, though… I really enjoyed Coroner. This four piece is HEAVY and they’ve got some intriguing elements that create a bit of an atmospheric sound that is intoxicating. This tour is a bit of a comeback for the band. Last year Coroner released Dissonance Theory, which is their first listed album since 1993. (Not including compilation records from 95-96, respectively.) The 2025 release was seemingly a long work in progress, with some choppy back and forth press and communications over it. Basically, it was a long time coming. And as I sit here and indulge, I’m just mad at myself that yet another band slipped through my sight in my earlier years of finding and exploring the thrash genre and subgenres.

Coroner’s setlist featured a good mix of their older material, with the obvious highlight on songs from the latest release.

Posted Setlist: