Coal Chamber, P.O.D, and Cradle of Filth Concert Review and Photos
Coal Chamber and P.O.D – House of Blues Anaheim – October 31, 2026
On a rainy Halloween night one block from Disneyland, Coal Chamber launched their “A Halloween Night of Darkness and Light” with P.O.D. and Cradle of Filth - the House of Blues Anaheim might never be the same.
Coal Chamber
Coal Chamber formed in 1992, and has experienced a career marked by incredible highs and devastating lows, with the last two years being perhaps the hardest any band has had to endure in recent memory. In 2024, vocalist Dez Fafara experienced vertigo and blackouts, leading to the discovery of a benign brain tumor and causing the band to bow out of a previously scheduled tour. Just when things seemed to be getting back on track in 2025, drummer Mikey Cox was diagnosed with cancer, leading to more downtime to allow him to undergo treatment. A full year later, Coal Chamber lined up spots on several festivals including Aftershock and Sick New World Texas. Days prior to playing in front of 80,000 fans, Mikey shattered his femur playing basketball, leaving the band to wonder what the future held and scrambling to find a solution.
Not wanting to disappoint fans, Coal Chamber enlisted the services of DevilDriver drummer, Davier Pérez, and put him through hard-core rehearsals to get him up to speed on the setlist and show. At the end of their set at Sick New World Texas, the band posed for a group photo with 80,000 fans in the background, while holding a sign that said “Get Well Soon – We Miss You Mikey”. An amazing gesture of love and support, showcasing what a real band with real history together will go through to support each other and their diehard fans.
Metal fans customarily wear black shirts emblazoned with the names of their favorite bands to concerts. That was also true on Saturday, but since it was Halloween, people went through security dressed as a hot dog, a pimp, Scoobie Doo, a breathalyzer, a taco, and Freddy Kruger, among many other things - seeing Waldo crash into a pirate in the mosh pit was definitely something that will be etched in my mind for a long time.
When it was finally Coal Chamber’s time to hit the stage, the electricity in the air was palpable. Fans had obviously been aware of the band’s health issues and many assumed after hearing the news of Mikey’s accident that the Halloween show wasn’t a guarantee. To finally be standing there in the dark awaiting Coal Chamber’s triumphant SoCal return was a victory – both for band and fans alike. Many had been waiting since the cancelled tour of 2024 to see them, and there was no assurance in the interim that it would happen.
When the lights came up in the darkened room, and the 1700+ in attendance finally saw their heroes in the flesh for the first time in years, a huge roar echoed throughout the room. Dez’s first words to the crowd were “Happy Halloween motherfuckers! Open that pit – let’s get down!”, before launching into “Loco”. Meegs Rascon on guitar had half of his face painted as a skeleton and spent the show running from side to side of the stage, stopping only to strike rock star poses, while Nadja Peulen on bass jumped and banged her head, all while holding down the low-end and looking cool as shit and full of attitude. Dez was a ball of energy and consummate frontman, and was in constant motion, making eye contact with every member of the audience and making everyone feel included. It was obvious from his frequent smile that he was stoked to be up on stage for a local show after everything the band had been through.
Mikey’s absence from the stage was tangible, though you only had to look towards the drum riser to feel his presence. Davier was playing Mikey’s kit, complete with a custom bass drum head painted in a Halloween theme featuring a full moon, bats, a graveyard, and the label “Mikey “Bug” Cox”. Videos were posted online during the week leading up to the Halloween show with him working with Davier in the band’s rehearsal space, and Davier proved the perfect man for the job. Nothing however replaces Mikey Cox - he’s the heartbeat of the band, and nobody in the business hits the drums harder or with more flair. He’s truly a force of nature behind the kit, somehow managing to keep perfect time while providing both sonic and visual bombast.
It turned out that Mikey was at the House of Blues after all – tucked safely in front of the soundboard behind a barricade watching the night play out from the floor, in what had to be a first. Before the band kicked into “Dark Days”, Dez took a minute to talk about Mikey, “You didn’t need to show up, but you came. That’s what life is about – showing the fuck up.” One song later, Dez said “On the count of three, everyone say “Get well Mike!”” That request was carried out enthusiastically by the audience, and led to an impromptu and seemingly never-ending cheer of “Mikey, Mikey, Mikey”. After the lights came up at the end of the perfect night, he was swamped by well-wishers and people wanting to take selfies and share tales of their own health scares and struggles.
The night was a massive success, and being there to witness it was pure bliss. Hopefully Mikey will be back in the saddle whenever it is that Coal Chamber suites up again for their next tour. This band has been one of the most important and vital on the scene since their inception almost 35 years ago, and having the opportunity to witness them in a live setting, where their music was made to be seen, heard, and felt, was a true gift.
Coal Chamber are:
- Dez Fafara: Vocals
- Meegs Rascon: Guitar
- Mikey Cox: Drums
- Nadja Peulen: Bass
Setlist:
1) Loco
2) Fiend
3) Big Truck
4) I.O.U. Nothing
5) Not Living
6) Rowboat
7) Drove
8) Something Told Me
9) I
10) Dark Days
11) Oddity
12) Sway
P.O.D.
San Diego standouts P.O.D. are known for many things including great music capable of reaching the masses, and intense live performances. Their name stands for Payable On Death, which vocalist Sonny Sandoval described in an interview with V13 Media as “When we started Payable On Death, we were young kids. It’s a religious term, y’know, when someone passes on, what they leave behind – we’ve always related that to our faith in Christ. We believe in faith in the ultimate sacrifice for sin and doing that, we have redemption. So that’s the pathway to our music.” While not a religious band per se, band members have been vocal about their faith, and Sonny stated on the Punk Rock MBA Podcast ““I came to God and music so that I’m not gonna die in the streets”.
When the lights came up and the first notes of “Outbreak” erupted from the PA system, it was apparent that not only were they there to put on an amazing show, but have a great time doing it. All had attempted some form of costume – guitarist Marcos Curiel wore a straw hat, mirrored sunglasses, with bloody makeup streaked down his face while he announced that he was “Jose Dirt”. Sonny stated that his costume “...was supposed to be a zombie, but…it’s more Comanche warrior.” Both drummer Zachary Christopherr and bassist Traa Daniels kept their look simpler and let the music do the talking with only a little blood added to their faces.
Just before “Murdered Love”, Sonny announced that there was a surprise guest – Kurt Cobain! He requested that Kurt join them on stage, and someone dressed as Kurt reluctantly stepped on stage and threw candy into the crowd – something that repeated several more times during their set. While “Kurt” was on the stage, Sonny said “Kurt was saying that we were his favorite band.”, with Marcos adding, “He came back just to tell us that.” During a break between songs, Sonny commented on the costumes in the audience as well as the mosh pit, signaling out someone wearing a banana suit. “How come the dude dressed up as a banana is the hardest dude in here?”.
The mosh pit was in full swing during their set, and as song after song blasted from the stage, the reaction from the crowd got more and more fevered. P.O.D. had perfectly curated their setlist and performance, and the audience went along for the ride, growing in intensity and anticipation. The set built up to an incredible crescendo – the last songs of the set were “Satellite”, “Southtown”, and “Youth of the Nation”. Having both heard and actively participated in their favorite songs, the audience could finally wind down and take a breather before Coal Chamber…and then the first notes kicked in to 2001’s massive hit “Alive”, and the room utterly exploded.
P.O.D. is:
- Sonny Sandoval – Vocals
- Traa Daniels – Bass
- Marcos Curiel – Guitar
- Zachary Christopherr – Drums
Setlist:
1) Outbreak
2) Set it Off
3) Boom
4) Rock the Party (Off the Hook)
5) Murdered Love
6) Drop
7) I GOT THAT
8) Soundboy Killa
9) Satellite
10) Southtown
11) Youth of the Nation
12) Alive
Cradle of Filth
This was my first time seeing Cradle of Filth, and I didn’t know what to expect. Dani Filth described their show on Jai That Aussie Metal Guy’s show this way: “It’s fast, it’s ornate, it’s cinematic, it’s theatrical, it’s soundtrack-ish. It might be violent musically, and might appear overbearing and raucous, but it’s always very eclectic, and a way to expend energy and passion and drama, you know, it’s what metal’s about really.”
The stage was bathed in theatrical blue light with just enough illumination to make out the six members of Cradle of Filth. Dani took center stage behind a demented mic stand in the shape of a statue – bare chested, with both arms seemingly ripped off and the face frozen in an endless silent scream…and then the music began.
The English language doesn’t have words adequate enough to describe Dani’s voice in a way an uninitiated listener would understand, but it fits perfectly with the music. His theatrical performance both delivered the goods vocally, while also serving as the main focus of the band on stage – it’s hard to take your eyes off him. Joff Bailey paced the stage and struck iconic poses to punctuate his playing, while fellow guitarist Donny Burbage showcased his musical chops on stage left. Bassist Daniel Firth and keyboardist/backing vocalist Kelsey Peters were slightly more subtle on stage, but no less interesting to watch and listen to. Drummer Martin "Marthus" Škaroupka was unintentionally hidden behind his kit – partially due to the darkened stage and usual rack toms and cymbal obscurity, but mostly due to the plexiglass sound baffles that surrounded the drum set and served to reflect front light back towards the audience, rendering him almost invisible.
Seven songs doesn’t sound like a lot, but Cradle of Filth made the most of their early time slot and bludgeoned the audience with wave after wave of a sonic tsunami that wouldn’t relent. Almost half of the songs came from 2025’s The Screaming of the Valkyries, which Kerrang! described as, “It’s impossible not to be reminded of why Cradle have always been such an acquired taste: the maximalist combination of extremist bombast, offbeat atmosphere and operatic shrieking simply too much for many listeners. For those accustomed to Cradle’s brand of blood and cheese, mind, this’ll go down a treat.”
Cradle of Filth is:
- Dani Filth – Vocals
- Martin "Marthus" Škaroupka – Drums
- Daniel Firth – Bass
- Donny Burbage – Guitar
- Joff Bailey - Guitar
- Kelsey Peters – Keyboards
Setlist:
1) To Live Deliciously
2) Malignant Perfection
3) Dusk and Her Embrace
4) Nymphetamine (Fix)
5) White Hellebore
6) Cruelty Brought Thee Orchids
7) Her Ghost in the Fog
