Right, let's get the unbelievable shit out of the way. Myself and Mr E. (or Zig as he came to be known again within an hour) actually got to a gig in time to catch all the bands on a bill. Sepultura have a tour manager who treats support bands like John Holmes used to treat women's bottoms. Sepultura are on the kind of form to rival their performances on the 'Roots' tour. Yes, you heard right.  Despite a few merely OK showings over recent years, they really are on fucking fire, but more of that in due course.

Having made our unaccustomed early arrival we got to watch the rather uncomfortable soundcheck of local lads with a very big future, Boys With X-Ray Eyes. Having been told to "either play as you are or get docked 10 minutes", they kick into their aural equivalent of an alleyway stabbing with great aplomb. Blasting through a quick half-dozen tunes they hopefully manage to win a few new fans with their Every Time I Die stylings, played with razor sharp precision and underpinned by the human battering ram that is drummer Phil Edwards. Watch this lot explode very soon.

Next on are Taint who must be one of the most underrated bands in Europe over the last few years. The wall of sound they produce is utterly crushing which is no mean feat when you're a three piece. Guitarist Jimbob, bassist Chris and drummer Al create a sound a five piece would kill for, hitting a thick stoner groove that leaves you absolutely absorbed. They make lengthy songs seem like two minute punk songs such is their intensity and energy. This is typified by the epic 'All Bees To The See' which closes their quite excellent set.

Lowering the intensity but upping the fun level, Gama Bomb are making sure every gig they do is like a trip back to the 80s. And a hell of a lot of fun it is. It's hard not to be grinning like a fool by the time they've ripped through 'Hammer Slammer', 'OCP', 'Bullet Belt' and the like. Phil Byrne and his cohorts hit all the right spots whilst keeping tongues firmly in cheek. It's just a shame they're missing a bassist at the moment as live, they do really need one.

And so to Sepultura. In hindsight I feel almost ashamed to say my expectations weren't that high. A couple of merely OK shows in the past few years gave me the impression that they'd never really come to terms with balancing their legacy with the here and now. However, by the time the opening quintet of 'A-Lex IV', 'A-Lex I', 'Molito Mesto', 'Arise' and 'Refuse/Resist' had flattened you, there was a real sense among those present that the Seps really were gonna celebrate this 25th Anniversary Tour in style.

As a unit they sounded fucking amazing. Andreas Kisser seems to have stripped down his guitar parts to far better suit his lone guitar role than he ever has previously. In fact, on the form he was on tonight, few could touch him. Paulo Jr is still one of the best bassists in the business and new drummer Jean Dolabella is a fucking phenomenon. Really, I have not seen a more brutal and precise display of drumming ever (Cavalera and Lombardo included). And to top it all off you've got the old Sepultura anti-hero himself, Derrick Greene. Destined to always be regarded as "not Max Cavalera" you've got to give the guy credit as he always turns in 100% and really has made all aspects of the Seps set his own.

And so it is that they subsequently rip Cardiff a new one as they effortlessly combine Sepultura classics new and old. 'Dead Embryonic Cells', 'Convicted In Life', 'Slave New World', a crushing 'Attitude' and 'Sepulnation' all take turns to kick the shit out of you on the way to set closer 'Inner Self', by which time the near sell-out crowd has slammed, thrashed and headbanged themselves senseless. The encores are no less relentless, leaving the baying crowd absolutely spent as they send everyone on their way with a blasting finale of 'Roots Bloody Roots'. 

If you'd told me beforehand they were gonna be this fucking good, you may well have got more than a hint of sarcasm in my answer. Afterwards you'll get two words.....Fucking Awesome. Happy 25th Anniversary boys.