There’s no shame in wanting to stand up for your bandmate, but Lamb of God guitarist Art Cruz may be sparking one of the more heated debates in metal when he recently said Randy Blythe was “the greatest frontman in heavy metal history.”
Cruz made his feelings known during a recent episode of the Talk Toomey podcast. transcribed by Blabbermouth, in which he discussed the band, the ongoing tour, and the new record Omens.
“Randy Blythe, he’s the greatest frontman in heavy metal history, in my opinion — not just on a vocal level; it’s more of a performer, you know what I’m saying? Metal bands need a performer and somebody like that that can really take it and lead you through this adventure. So I think between Randy and people like Jamey Jasta [Hatebreed] and obviously Phil Anselmo [Pantera], these are elite frontmen, in my opinion. That’s just in my generation too. You can go back even more and start going deep into the older stuff, the classic metal days and stuff like that. There’s a lot more performers happening now, I think. From the hardcore scene and that New Wave Of American Metal that came through, your frontman was kind of everything.”
It’s important to note here that Cruz joined the band when Chris Adler left. Cruz admitted that he was “speaking as a fan” when he said that about Randy, so his statement makes sense in that context.
Still, while I don’t think anyone’s going to say Randy Blythe isn’t a killer on stage, saying of all time is inviting a hell of a lot of criticism and knowing metalheads, some very heated debate.
Who wins: Randy Blythe or Bruce Dickinson? Randy Blythe or Rob Halford? Randy Blythe or James Hetfield? It ultimately doesn’t matter who’s better in the end, since you like who you’re going to like.
Again, I want to stress that Randy Blythe is one of this generation’s best frontmen bar none, hands down. But them’s some lofty words there, my dude.
Lamb of God’s newest studio release Omens is coming out on October 7 and is available for preorder via Epic Records.
Lamb of God, Omens
- Nevermore
- Vanishing
- To The Grave
- Ditch
- Omens
- Gomorrah
- Ill Designs
- Grayscale
- Denial Mechanism
- September Song
You can also catch Lamb of God live on tour at one of the dates below:
Lamb of God w/ Killswitch Engage, Baroness, Suicide Silence
Sep 13 – Youngstown, OH – Youngstown Foundation Amphitheater
Sep 14 – Baltimore, MD – Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena
Sep 16 – Atlanta, GA – Coca Cola Roxy
Sep 17 – Jacksonville, FL – Daily’s Place
Sep 18 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sep 21 – Boston, MA – MGM Music Hall at Fenway
Sep 23 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life Festival *No KSE, No Suicide
Silence
Sep 24 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
Sep 25 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amp at Freedom Hill
Sep 26 – Indianapolis, IN – TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park
Sep 28 – Minneapolis, MN – Armory
Sep 30 – Denver, CO – Fillmore Auditorium
Lamb of God w/ Killswitch Engage, Motionless In White, Fit For An Autopsy
Oct 01 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Great SaltAir
Oct 02 – Grand Junction, CO – Amphitheater at Las Colonias Park
Oct 04 – Fresno, CA – Selland Arena
Oct 07 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock Festival *No Fit For An Autopsy
Lamb of God w/ Killswitch Engage, Spiritbox, Fit For An Autopsy
Oct 09 – Vancouver, BC – Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre
Oct 10 – Kent (Seattle), WA – Accesso ShoWare Center
Oct 11 – Portland, OR – Theater of the Clouds
Lamb of God w/ Killswitch Engage, Animals As Leaders, Fit For An Autopsy
Oct 13 – Inglewood, CA – YouTube Theater
Oct 14 – Phoenix, AZ – Arizona Federal Theater
Oct 15 – Albuquerque, NM – Isleta Amphitheater
Oct 16 – El Paso, TX – UTEP Don Haskins Center
Oct 18 – San Antonio, TX – Freeman Coliseum
Oct 19 – Houston, TX – 713 Music Hall
Oct 20 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
