Founding VENOM guitarist Jeff "Mantas" Dunn and drummer Anthony "Abaddon" Bray headlined the 2026 Keep It True festival in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany on April 24, celebrating the 45th anniversary of the band's landmark debut album Welcome to Hell (1981) — the record that laid the foundations for black metal and extreme metal worldwide.
Performing under the VENOM banner for this special tribute event, the duo was joined by vocalist Blake "Bulldözer" Arendell and an extraordinary roster of metal legends as special guests: Tom Gabriel Fischer (CELTIC FROST / TRIPTYKON), Thomas "Angelripper" Such (SODOM), Schmier (DESTRUCTION), Piotr "Peter" Wiwczarek (VADER), Attila Csihar (MAYHEM), Dan Lilker (NUCLEAR ASSAULT), and others. The guests rotated through the microphone across a 20-song setlist drawn entirely from the classic VENOM catalog, with the encore culminating in all performers sharing the stage simultaneously.
"This band has had so much influence on the metal scene from day one," Mantas said backstage. "Black metal as a genre is still alive and kicking today."
The concert arrives amid an ongoing legal dispute between the duo and frontman Conrad "Cronos" Lant over band naming rights and merchandise royalties. Mantas and Abaddon recently launched a crowdfunding campaign to fund their legal battle: "If every fan bought us a pint, we could see this through."
Watch the full performance below: