Mr. Bungle with Special Guest Battles, at History. Toronto, On, Canada. 09/13/23

The experimental band from Eureka, California, Mr. Bungle, made a stop in Toronto for the first time in 23-years on their current North American Tour. The band delivered a stunning 19-song set for a crowd of extremely energetic Torontonians.

It was a night that I had been looking forward to for a very long time. I feel incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to cover one of my favorite bands. Mr. Bungle has been on my bucket list of bands to see since the early nineties. I can still remember grabbing their self-titles album on cassette and putting in the regular rotation with some of my other favorite bands such as, Helmet, Metallica, Slayer, Living Colour and many more. It feels like yesterday.

Mike Patton (Lead Singer), Trey Spruance (Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals), and Trevor Dunn (Bass Guitar) continue the legacy of the Mad Rabbit and bring the essence of Mr. Bungle by adding the one and only Scott Ian (Anthrax) on rhythm guitar and Dave Lombardo (Tomahawk, Slayer) on the drums. Mr. Bungle returned to Toronto after 23 years and they did not disappoint their fans who were primarily a mixture of Millennials and Gen X.

Their Setlist was primarily songs from their latest release The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny Demo, plus several cover songs such as “I’m Not in Love” (by 10cc), “Just Sit There” (by Crumbsuckers) and “True” (by Spandau). I particularly enjoyed a song from their first release back in 1991 “My A** is on Fire” starting with back-and-forth riffs from Scott Ian and Trevor with beatboxing from Mike Patton and the unforgettable “Pepto Bismol” theme at the end.

Throughout the night the attendees were mesmerized by Mike Patton’s voice and modus operandi of entertainment. Patton uses all sorts of gadgets to distort his vocals, including a rubber piggie that he used during the cover of “True” by Spandau Ballet. Another highlight of the night was watching Dave Lombardo drum. The guy is extremely talented and has razor sharp speed and precision with his over 40 years of experience behind the drum kit.

Battles, a band from New York City, was the opening act, featuring Guitarist / Keyboardist Ian Williams and the legendary Drummer John Stainer (Tomahawk. ex-Helmet). Battles showed off their unique looping sounds, experimental rock and hyper performed a nice variety of their repertoire with a solid seven song setlist.

Battles Setlist:

The Yabba
Summer Simmer / Ice Cream
A Loop So Nice…
Titanium 2 Step
Sugar Foot
Atlas
Ambulance

Although Mr. Bungle’s Fall Tour was short with only seven US and Canada dates, they may have more dates coming up in Spring of 2024. Keep your eye out and grab tickets because you do not want to miss these guys.

Mr. Bungle Setlist: