The Decibel Magazine Tour 2025 with Mayhem, Mortiis, Imperial Triumphant and New Skeletal Faces

Photos and Review by Chris Besaw

This past Sunday in the charming little town of Reading, PA, the longest running North American extreme heavy metal tour, made a stop at the Reverb concert hall. This year’s tour feature the Norwegian black metal legends, Mayhem, and they brought with them some incredible bands, Mortiis, Imperial Triumphant and New Skeletal Faces.

Starting off the evening was the California based gothic metal band, New Skeletal Faces. The band formed in 2017 and is comprised of Errol Fritz on guitars and vocals, Don on drums and Kro on bass. New Skeletal Faces brought their brand of horror themed rock and metal to the rapidly growing crowd at Reverb.

Truthfully, I had not heard of New Skeletal Faces prior to this show. I enjoyed their horror-Esque, dark metal sound. I really enjoyed their live performance of “Leather Funeral” off their 2019 release Celestial Disease. Although their set was short, it caught my attention, and I am going to check out more of their music.

The next band to take the stage was one that I had been wanting to see for quite some time, Imperial Triumphant. Prior to the show, I was able to spend some time with the band. We chatted about their influences, the story behind the creation of their masks and I shared how excited I was to see them live.

Imperial Triumphant kicked off their set with “Lexington Delirium” off their current release, Goldstar. Imperial Triumphant includes Zachary Ezrin (vocals/guitar), Steve Blanco (bass), and Kenny Grohowski (drums). For a three piece they create a sound that could easily fill an arena. I encourage you to check them out. They are not like a typical black metal band; they fuse elements of black metal with an Avant Garde jazz sound. It is unique!

They also have cool, shiny gold masks. Aside from providing the band members with anonymity, it allows their fans to focus on the music and immerse themselves in the experience. Imperial Triumphant played a nice mix of songs from their various albums and although their set was not as long as I would have liked, it was an impressive performance.

Setlist:

Theme from A Clockwork Orange (Beethoviana)

Lexington Delirium

Lower World

Cosmopolis

Chernobyl Blues

Black Psychedelia

Play Video

Swarming Opulence

Atomic Age

Up next was another legend of the black metal world, Mortiis! Mortiis (Håvard Ellefsen) has been making music and touring for over thirty years and show no sign of slowing down. His music combines black metal aesthetics with a synth sound creating some eerie dark, electronic music with medieval, gothic and horror fantasy themes. Mortiis along with percussionist Jon Siren played a very captivating forty-five-minute set that includes macabre visuals displayed on the LED screens in the background. The visuals helped submerse the crowd in the world of Mortiis and his music. It was an amazing experience, and I encourage everyone to check out their live show.

Setlist:

Født til å herske, Part I

En mørk horisont pt.2

A Dark Horizon pt.I

Født til å herske, Part II

Visjoner av en Eldgammel Fremtid

En mørk horisont pt.2

A Dark Horizon pt.II

Visions of an Ancient Future pt.I

A Dark Horizon pt.IV

A Dark Horizon pt.VI

Visions of an Ancient Future pt.VII

It was finally time for the evening’s headliner, the enigmatic black metal titans, Mayhem. Mayhem has been recording, touring, and horrifying the masses for over forty years. Mayhem is fronted by vocalist, Attila Csihar, with Necrobutcher on the bass, Hellhammer behind the drums and the dueling guitarists, Ghul and Teloch. Mayhem is a more traditional black metal band. I have been captivated by both the band’s music and their interesting history. Finally getting a chance to see them live was a nightmare come true for me.

Mayhem does not rely on over-the-top stage setups or flashy props; they are a no BS band who can play. They opened their set with the heart pounding, heavy track “Malum” followed by “Bad Blood.” The heavy-hitting tracks set the tone for the rest of their performance. It was a non-stop metal assault. I was in awe of how packed the venue was with moshing metal fans.

Mayhem played an intense set spanning their forty-year career. A few highlights include, “Freezing Moon,” De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas,” and “Funeral Fog.” Their live show is pure, raw metal, there is nothing half-assed about it. They put their all into every moment. After seeing them, it is easy to understand why they are still going strong after forty years. Check them out if you get the chance. I already cannot wait to see them again.

Setlist

Malum

Bad Blood

MILAB

Psywar

Illuminate Eliminate

Chimera

My Death

Crystalized Pain in Deconstruction

View From Nihil

To Daimonion

Ancient Ski