Review and Photos by Fred Kuhlman
Venue: The 44 Sports Grill & Nightlife (https://the-44-sports-grill-nightlife.business.site/ )
Date: Sunday September 7th, 2025
Tour: The Mega Years
Every once in a while, The 44 Sports Grill & Nightlife bar gets a fantastic touring band to perform there. Tonight, we were lucky enough to see Kings of Thrash.
I was never a big Megadeth fan. But I do enjoy a number of Thrash bands including Metallica and one of my local favorites, Varkan. The Kings of Thrash was formed by former Megadeth’s bass player Dave Ellefson and guitarist Jeff Young. They are joined by frontman and singer and guitarist Chaz Leon and Fred Aching on drums. Tonight, guitarist Chris Poland did not join the band.
I have seen Dave Ellefson a number of times but have never really got any good photos of him. I was either behind the Megadeth moshpit (for my protection) or the stage was bathed in only red light (my personal nemesis). But tonight, the stars all aligned and I was able to finally get some amazing photos of both Dave and the rest of the members of the Kings of Thrash.
This tour is a celebration of all thing Thrash. A number of songs were from Dave’s and Jeff’s time with Megadeth. They also included a number of their own songs. In all they performed about 85 minutes. No one song stood out to me, they all were just good. What I enjoyed more was the interaction of the band with the fans.
Jeff Young was probably the most animated. He was constantly moving to the front of the stage and leaning over the front fans. He used one of the stage speakers as a guitar strummer. He also did guitar tapping.
Dave Ellefson was just a monster on the stage as he laid down the bassline for the songs. At times he would raise his bass vertical and play. Other times he would rev up the crowd by doing fist pumps.
Fred Aching on drums was just powerful. He provided the heart pounding sound that is a massive part of the over Metal Thrash sound.
Chaz Leon provided both the rhythm guitar work but also the vocals. I was impressed by how he held the crowd in his hands. With his guitar work along with Jeff, they gave us a master class on what Metal Thrash music should sound like.
If you love either Metallica or Megadeth, then you really need to go see Kings Of Thrash. I strongly recommend them as one of the premiere Metal Thrash bands touring today. You can see if they are coming to a city near you from their website.
Leading up to Kings of Thrash, we got to see 5 Arizona local bands. First up was Internal Descent followed by Sindicate. Both were very heavy Thrash style bands. Then came The Agoreez. For me they were the standout Arizona band of the night. They were not as heavy as the first 2 bands, but I really enjoyed their music. Next was a 44 favorite band, I Don’t Konform. I really like them, but for some reason tonight they just seemed a little off. These first 4 bands all performed their own music. Finally Hard and Heavy took the stage. They were a cover band that played the greatest hits of a number of metal bands. They really got the crowd jazzed up which is what opening bands should do. I really like them and they were very good, but they only played covers. So, I can recommend seeing both The Agoreez and Hard and Heavy.
I will come back to one of my favorite rants. For about $35 dollars you can see a number of shows like this instead of 1 expensive show. Granted it might be as big a star as the expensive concert, but I believe you get more for your money from these smaller concerts. Also if you can, purchase items from their merch table. These sales allow the bands to keep producing music and touring.
Now for those that don’t know about the 44 Sports Grill and Nightlife, it is a small bar on the west side of the valley. It is located just 3 miles off I-17 at 44th Ave and Peoria Ave. It has a really nice stage for a bar and the lighting and sound system are great. But the best part is the food. They have amazing food for a bar at very reasonable prices. Personally, I love the Southwest salad, Nachos and the Chicken wings. I have never had a bad meal there. And the nice thing is they serve throughout the concert. So, if you get a chance to see a show here, I bet you too will become a fan. Check out their website for upcoming shows.
Kings Of Thrash Social Media sites:
Website: https://www.kingsofthrash.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kingsofthrash
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidellefsonbass/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@kingsofthrash8356
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
Hard & Heavy Social Media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HardandHeavyAZ/
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
I Don’t Konform Social Media sites:
Website: https://www.idontkonform.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/idontkonform/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/idontkonformofficial/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/IDONTKONFORMBAND
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@idontkonform
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
The Agoreez Social Media sites:
Website: https://theagoreez.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheAgoreez
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_agoreez_band/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAgoreezBand
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
Sindicate Social Media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TucsonSindicate/
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
Internal Descent Social Media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Internaldescent/
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
Kings Of Thrash Setlist:
Into The Lungs of Hell
Looking Down the Cross
Hook in Mouth
Train of Consequences
Victory
Skull Beneath the Skin
502 (Drum Solo)
In My Darkest Hour
Bad Omen
Cold Sweat
Good Mourning / Black Friday
Dawn Patrol
Tornado of Souls
Encore:
Lockdown
Wake Up Dead
Peace Sells
Hard And Heavy Setlist:
Ace of Spades
Mob Rules
Over the Mountain
Neon Knights
Screaming in the Night
Heading Out to the Highway
Burn
Seasons in the Abyss
Seek and Destroy
Sindicate Setlist:
Payback
I Was Trippin
Justified
Outta My Head
38
New Song
Split Decision
Do Or Die
Psycho Punk
Smash Hi Face
Internal Descent Setlist:
Nine
Plow Through the Mirror
Narcissistic Plague
Vain Glory
Treachery
Thy Vail
Drown Into The Sand
