“THIS SONG IS ABOUT THE DARKNESS, AND FIXATING ON IT”

Some time ago I found this live video of Killswitch Engage performing “Fixation on the Darkness” live in Brooklyn in 2002. Jesse Leach is on vocals, Adam D. still has blonde hair, and the rest of the dudes lack their bushy hair / beards of today. This is right before the band’s popularity exploded; Alive or Just Breathing had just been released, and you can feel the excitement emanating from the band… the performance sounds fucking vicious and passionate.

What I’ve always liked about Killswitch is their every-dude-ness; even though they’re now one of the biggest metal bands in the world, they still seem like normal, chill dudes you’d sit down with for a beer and some fart jokes. Nowhere is that more evident than from this humble performance in a small Brooklyn club. Minus the farts.

-VN