Maximum Metal Rating Legend

Primal Fear - History Of Fear DVD 2004 Nuclear Blast reviewed by: EC

Track Listing Chapter One - Wacken 2001 Chapter Two - Black Sun European Tour 2002 Chapter Three - Videoclips Chapter Four - Metal Warriors Report / Wacken 1999 Chapter Five - Bootleg Section

When a metal fan buys a music DVD, they basically want to create the live atmosphere of a heavy metal event, they want to create a German metal fest, complete with a huge sound, plenty of in your face metal screams, tons of fans shouting their guts out, and basically a complete package of total chaos ready for display in their room of choice. With Primal Fear's newest DVD, "History Of Fear", you basically get everything you would ever need from a metal concert, other than that smelly guy with the hairy back grinding up against your member yelling, "Satan Rules!!".

This neat little DVD package is filled to the seams with all things Primal Fear. This great collection features a full live set from their Wacken Open Air Fest in 2001, a full concert from the Black Sun European Tour 2002, Promo Videos for "Angel In Black" and "Armageddon", a Wacken Open Air Fest special from 1999, and my favorite addition, a "bootleg" section chock-full of studio footage, live shows, festival appearances, and bloopers.

This truly is a "history of fear", taking fans from the early days of Primal Fear, circa 1999, all the way through the group's few American dates on the Metal Gods Tour 2003 with Halford and Testament. All the classic songs are performed live here, with the Black Sun European Tour really being the major highlight, showcasing the band's set in an all digital recording, with plenty of pro-shot footage that doesn't try to force too much on the viewer/listener. Unlike Maiden's "Live In Rio", where the camera angles change so rapidly that it's hard to keep up, the producers here focus on a few tight angles and try to change views every minute or so. It really makes it easy to enjoy the show in a concert style sitting.

The Wacken 2001 footage is just fantastic, really bringing home the fact that Primal Fear are a great band and can truly entertain 5,000 people during their sets. The mass of spectators is just awe-inspiring, and to see these Germans just go on stage and play the music they love is really breathtaking. I loved the "bootleg" footage, with material ranging from studio recordings of "Black Sun" to European TV shows featuring band interviews and bloopers.

As if this DVD isn't filled with enough material to keep you busy, the collection is also packaged with a "bootleg" audio disc of the band's live performance at Wacken.

"History Of Fear" is the perfect companion-piece to accompany your Primal Fear recordings. This is a monumental collector's piece to enjoy through the ages. Those German airline prices can be outrageous, so why not just enjoy the show from home?


--EC 03.03.04