Traitor: Exiled to Tokyo
German thrash metal band Traitor put on a fast, furious and sweaty thrash metal performance in Tokyo.
Traitor at Earthdom, Shin-Okubo, Tokyo, Japan on 13th February 2026
On their way to play at the True Thrash festival in Osaka, German thrash metal band Traitor performed a warm-up gig at Earthdom in Shin-Okubo, Tokyo, together with Machete Law from Spain and Japanese bands Straenge and Confused Mind.
Being the drummer and lead vocalist in a thrash metal band requires energy, skill and dedication. Traitor’s Andreas Mozer clearly knew what he was in for as he walked onto the stage in a classic German gym outfit – sleeveless tank top, cycling shorts, white tube socks and athletic shoes. The rest of the band – bassist Lorenz Kandolf and guitarists Gerd Hery and Matthias Koch – performed in t-shirts and cargo pants.
They opened the set in style with “Mad Dictator” from the “Knee-Deep in the Dead” album. It was a flying start to what would become a great thrash metal show. In around 45 minutes, they managed to perform no fewer than 14 songs. They played songs from all four of their full-length studio albums: “Thrash Command” (2012), “Venomizer” (2015), “Knee-Deep in the Dead” (2018) and “Exiled to the Surface” (2022). The Japanese fans sang along to many of the band’s songs, something which pleasantly surprised the band.
In the cult classic “F.U.A.D.”, the audience went berserk. Other standout moments included “Toxic Death”, “Raising Hell”, “Brutal Exorcism”, “Zordrak” and “Total Thrash”. This band really has a treasure trove of excellent thrash metal songs to pick from. They finished off a fast, furious and sweaty gig with a fun cover of Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop”. It was the perfect finale to an excellent gig by an entertaining band.
