With Maximalism out now, Amaranthe is celebrating the release of their fourth studio album. I still remember buying their demo back in 2010 after their merch guys pushed it on me when they were opening for Leaves’ Eyes and Kamelot at Nosturi (when Elize Ryd was the latter’s touring guest vocalist), and getting really hyped on them (even if that hype never took off properly once their first few albums were released). And here we are, a few years later, with these guys headlining an even bigger venue! Though I really didn’t like Maximalism, I’ve never seen Amaranthe live outside of festivals, and with two of my new favorites, Blind Channel and Ember Falls opening the show, I really couldn’t pass this one up.
Full gallery HERE!
Or listen to the setlist on Spotify:
With doors at 19:00, I showed up at 19:15 – probably the earliest I’ve been to a show in years. Ember Falls was on stage at 19:30 already, so I was surprised and thrilled to see that there were already plenty of people in the venue. A cool electronic/industrial intro started them off and I was pleased to see that at least One of Haze (synth) and Ace (drums) had come on stage to play the song, as opposed to a lone backing track – not a common occurrence these days.
These guys have suffered from poor sound on a few occasions, so when I saw sound tech Mika Tyni in the booth, I knew it’d be a good night – even if he wasn’t on sound, he might be doing lights, so it was a win-win either way. They opened with “The Cost of Doing Business” and went straight into “Falling Rain”, at which point I had to stop taking notes and immerse myself in the moment, because the latter is still one of my favorite songs.
“The Lamb Lies Down in Sacrifice” was a surprise choice for track three, with Calu (guitar/growls) ditching his instrument to focus on his screaming. That jazz interlude is always a delight – I can imagine that song being a live hit that fades from the sets for a decade after a few more albums, only to become a comeback fan-pleaser in later years. You know what I mean – that song that you haven’t heard live in years and are really excited about.
The “Welcome to Ember Falls” intro played next, introducing “COE.” I’d like to take this moment to express how gorgeous the lights were for this show – with a bit more front lighting, they might have even topped South Park last year (close, but no cigar).
The band was definitely turned on too, visually, and Ace was really doing an amazing job of the drums. I’m not sure if they’ve played at The Circus before or not, but the floor in front of the stage was definitely filling fast for their set, drawing more and more people away from the bar. I was also glad to see the band has been getting more comfortable with both their material and playing live, taking more and more opportunities to stray from the album and improvise on stage. For example, Calu was growling a few of Thomas Grove’s (vocals) parts, and Grove growled or screamed a bit here and there, or changed the octave on at least one occasion. And I mentioned during the Tampere show that Jack the Rooster’s stage is far too small for them, so it was amazing to see what they could do with some room; I’d even go so far as to say that they could use a bit more – maybe the full stage without having Amaranthe’s equipment would’ve been great for them.
“Rising Tide” followed, before Grove quickly introduced “One More Time” – I got the feeling that they were keeping the speeches nonexistent so that they could pack as many songs into their limited time slot as possible. This was a wise move, considering how many potential Amaranthe fans they could pick up. I also think that last song was sped up a fair bit, though it didn’t suffer for it.
And then it was the moment I’ve been waiting for, for about 2-3 months, when they introduced Niko Moilanen of Blind Channel for “Open Your Eyes.” I was delighted that Grove wasn’t staying silent during Moilanen’s parts, harmonizing a bit here and there. Moilanen, incidentally, is a boy band’s dream vocalist. Just sayin’. The kid sings like an angel. I was disappointed in the crowd’s inability to clap along when prompted, but Moilanen did get a scream from a them once or twice.
They then closed out the night with “the one song that started all this jazz” – “Shut Down with Me.” It was a great performance of a great song, with Calu even jumping down into the pit mid-song for a while. Right near the end, the synth got a little too loud, but I have to confess that I kind of liked it. It’s hard to make synth feel heavy, but that did it; if it had gone on longer than the few seconds it had, it would’ve been bad, but as it stands, I didn’t mind. Props to the extended outro as well – nailed it!
So my favorite antidepressant got the night off to a fantastic start, as per usual. There’s not much more to say that I haven’t said already. Go see this band. They’re wonderful!
Setlist:
1. The Cost of Doing Business
2. Falling Rain
3. The Lamb Lies Down in Sacrifice
Track: Welcome to Ember Falls
4. COE
5. Rising Tide
6. One More Time
7. Open Your Eyes (ft. Niko Moilanen)
8. Shut Down with Me
The Facebook event declared that Blind Channel’s set would start a mere 15 minutes after Ember Falls ended theirs. At first I expected the 20:15 start time to be too ambitious, but the speed with which these guys took care of business changed my mind quickly. Knowing each other so well must help these two bands with their flow, as Blind Channel was already ready to rock by 20:12. Their set started at 20:15 exactly, to a track intro I didn’t recognize, and again, I was pleased at how many people were on the floor right away.
“Helsinki! … You won’t break me!” Moilanen shouted as they bounced on stage and started with “Enemy for Me” in true Backstreet Boys fashion: dressed all in white. It’s been just over 6 months since I’ve last seen these boys from Oulu on stage and I very quickly realized that I’ve missed them.
Much like with Ember Falls, it was a joy to see these guys on a bigger stage, and they took every opportunity to make full use of it. Also, to my amusement, the band played my album-favorite track second, just as Ember Falls had done, so I dropped my phone to pay full attention to “My Revolution.”
I also have to give props for how the band has a uniform look (all-white), while they individually have their own style: Joonas Porko (guitar) had the hoodie/jean jacket combo; Moilanen had his trademark hat of late combined with a collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up; Joel Hokka (vocals/guitar) was in an unbuttoned cardigan over a t-shirt; Olli Matela (bass) had a short-sleeved collared shirt buttoned to the top; and Tommi Lalli (drums) sported a simple t-shirt in true drummer fashion. Uniform, yet individual. A weird thing to notice, but I liked it.
“Bullet (with Your Name on It)” followed, a high energy favorite. Asking for “oikea käsi ylös” [right hand up], they got the crowd waving their hands back and forth for “Hold on to Hopeless.” I’m glad that one is still on the set, incidentally. That song also had one of the most beautiful moments of harmonization of the night, as well as particularly gorgeous lighting.
Good old “Deja FU” followed, which was one of the best party songs of the night, again making me largely disappointed in the crowd for not taking more advantage of the moment than they did. There was a lot of movement in the crowd, yet… I don’t know about you, but that song makes me want to really let loose. Cool that Matela got a little love as well, by including a short bass solo in that track. At least the crowd got their hands up and clapping this time!
The stage went dark briefly, as some dancers came out to open up for “Can’t Hold Us”, a cover of the hit by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. Moilanen came on stage to absolutely destroy the rapping parts while donning a balaclava (and holding a hand cam). Hopefully we’ll see that footage sometime in the nearish future. Perhaps in a music video? I’ve been a little on the fence about this cover, but I definitely really enjoyed it a lot live. Once that was wrapped up, they then had the crowd get down on the ground and jump up (and down) for “Unforgiving.”
Hokka brought out a Blind Channel flag – a new addition to the stage show – for the new addition to the live set: “Alone Against All.” While the phantom is waiting to hear this track in the context of an album, I’ve enjoyed it more or less from the first listen; however, like the phantom predicted, in the context of a live show it was even better. The crowd didn’t quite know the lyrics yet, as this new single only came out last Friday, but I think it has good live potential, particularly with the powerful, “we are born to a world that’s falling apart,” lyric.
Some drums and chanting then introduced what could only be “Darker than Black.” The sleepy crowd couldn’t resist the dynamic build-up they pulled off here – I offer a hearty round of applause. And to my pure delight, Thomas Grove appeared on stage in a white blazer to sing along, wonderfully reminiscent of South Park’s singer swap between these two bands last year. Even better, the three singers, bassist, and guitarist had their own little mosh pit on stage, and didn’t fuck up a single thing. What a way to go out!
I’m starting to appreciate this band’s diversity. After a mere 6 months, these guys had two new songs and the live show felt totally fresh. While the crowd was more alive than during Ember Falls, I can’t deny that I was still disappointed in the reception. Both of these bands deserve a lot more love than I saw.
Setlist:
1. Enemy for Me
2. My Revolution
3. Bullet (With Your Name on It)
4. Hold on to Hopeless
5. Deja FU
6. Can’t Hold Us (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis cover)
7. Unforgiving
8. Along Against All
9. Darker than Black (ft. Thomas Grove)
By the time Blind Channel was done, the floor was nearly full, to the point where the venue had opened the back bar and the upper level – I wonder if there were a lot of last minute ticket sales at the door. Amaranthe’s new, poppier sound seems to have attracted a less heavy crowd, as there were clearly some non-heavy fans at The Circus, dressed for a club and ready to dance. For me, however, I can’t say that I expected the headliner to top the openers.
Amaranthe was promised to start at 21:30, though it seemed as though everything was already prepped and ready to go at 21:15. In fact, I’m pretty sure that’s when the intro music started, though the band didn’t take the stage until the designated time. I’d call that overkill, to be honest – no one needs a 15 minute intro.
A single beep at 21:29, followed by a recorded voice, announced that the overlong intro had ended at last. The intro beeping was abrasively loud, but that was quickly remedied. The official intro voice was a bit interesting, making Amaranthe’s history into a bit of a story, of which the fans were a main character. I thought that was a pretty cool idea, and fairly well executed.
They started with “Maximize”, and the growls sounded great, but it was immediately evident that Elize Ryd’s (vocals) microphone was way too loud compared to the rest. She also overdid her vocal parts a bit, but I’ll chalk that up to excitement, as she toned it down after the first chorus for the rest of the song. They followed this with the “Boomerang” single, which is catchy but soulless, even live.
I saw Amaranthe once at Myötätuulirock in 2012 and had thought that three vocalists, plus a backing female vocalist, was just way too much. Now, with Jake E (CyHra, ex-Amaranthe) no longer on clean vocals, I was curious as to how I’d like it with only two vocalists on stage… only, they seem to have replaced Jake E temporarily with Nils Molin (Dynazty) live, which I hadn’t been prepared for. So there were still three (but not four!) vocalists still on stage for this show.
Henrik Wilhelmsson (growling vocals) got the crowd’s hands up for “Hunger”, and I immediately felt nostalgic for their original albums… those drums, the solos, that bass! They can still pull it off, so it makes me sad that their music lacks that aspect now. The vocals were a total mess at the end though, with Ryd experimenting a bit too much with high notes while cranked up too loud and thus the three of them together just sounded clamorous.
Wilhelmsson was by far the band’s shining star for me (sorry, Ryd), doing everything in his power – both vocally and visually – to keep the new music from being nothing more than Swedish pop. I definitely didn’t hate Molin either, who did very nicely in songs like “Invincible.” In fact, he has such a nice voice that I might have to try Dynazty out sometime. I’ll also give them points for pulling off three vocalists much better than they had back in 2012. I might’ve liked to see more movement from the guitars and bass than simply switching spots every now and then though.
“1,000,000 Lightyears” was another highlight, with Molin and Wilhelmsson again doing much to impress. Ryd, I’m sorry to say, wasn’t impressing me vocally – though she is great to watch visually – and even now I’m not sure if the problem was with her specifically, or if it was just the mix – whenever there were long high notes, it kind of just sounded like she was shouting; all the melody vanished from her voice. This was odd, because on other occasions she sounded wonderful, and interestingly, it was almost exclusively in the new material when she didn’t stand out badly in the mix.
Molin greeted the crowd, as it was his first time plying with Finland, and announced “Trinity”, while Ryd got the crowd cheering and waving their hands. My theory that Amaranthe has a system for how many of each type of song and where they belong on an album was possibly proven true (pun intended) in their live shows as well, as the sixth track was none other than a ballad, “True”, as on the album. Molin did a fantastic job, which made it even more disappointing that Ryd’s sound was perhaps the worst of the night in this song, and their harmonization failed as a result. As this is one of my favorite Amaranthe songs, this was a pretty big letdown.
Thankfully, Wilhelmsson and a lot of heavy dance followed with “Fury”, where Ryd sounded much better, though I have to say that I just genuinely don’t like this song very much. My theory about Ryd only sounding good during the new material may have been proved when she took the stage for “Endlessly” – the second ballad of the night and a song that features her alone on vocals – and did a lovely job of it. That song is fairly generic though, so it didn’t really save anything at that point. Likewise, the performance of “On the Rocks” was really great, but I just don’t like that song. It does have one noteworthy solo that was very well executed, so props to Olof Mörck. Also props to Morten Sørensen for the drum solo – looks like there’s a bit of heavy metal in there somewhere buried beneath the surface.
“Automatic” was a step back into heavier days, and some big inflatable balls were thrown into the crowd to bounce around, which was fun; that’s usually more of a festival move. “The Nexus” was also cool to hear and wasn’t too disastrous vocally. One heavily-tattooed guy even got up onto someone’s shoulders halfway through, though that didn’t last long.
Ryd greeted the crowd in really adorable Finnish before asking how many people were at their last club show 2 years ago, and then thanked everyone for coming, old and new fans alike. She said that in the end, 1,352 people had shown up for this show. They then started up “Amaranthine.” I braced for disaster but the song started off at a reasonable 90% quality, and for once I wasn’t sorry when the crowd took over the chorus, knowing what might have happened otherwise. In fact, I really enjoy this one on the whole. As a song that I love as much as “True”, if not more, I was glad that it was well executed, even in the harmonies. Ryd’s sound wasn’t perfect, but neither was it as bad as it had been before. I was kind of amused by Wilhelmsson on stage doing his trademark angry metal horns to this song… you know, considering it’s a beautiful slow ballad.
They then closed out the night with “Call Out My Name”, which was a high-energy disco party, with equal parts heavy and disco drums. However, they did come back for four more songs: “Digital World”, “That Song”, “Dynamite”, and of course, “Drop Dead Cynical.” Bassist Johan Andreassen greeted the crowd with comical anger, and said he had some announcements, muttered something I didn’t catch, cracked open a beer, and said, “We fucking love you. Except for Morten. He doesn’t love anyone.” He went on to talk about shitting in bags for a while, and I’m not really sure what the point of that rant was beyond shock value. It’s cool though – no one minds extensive vulgarity and random speeches at a metal show, right? It went on too long though, let’s not lie. Also, you guys play pop-metal with the metal being only theoretical at times, so I’m not convinced your heart is, “pitch fucking black”… I liked him more later on when he was revving up the crowd and talking about the afterparty at The Riff.
“Digital World” went well, but I really dislike “That Song”, so I’ll just say nothing. “Dynamite” and “Drop Dead Cynical” tickle me in the right places though, so ultimately, the encore was pretty solid. They then received their gold records for “Drop Dead Cynical” in Finland. After expressing their gratitude, that was it for the night!
If I had some complaints about the sound at this show, at least the crowd didn’t seem to notice. On the whole, I was quite happy with the band and the male vocalists in particular, I’ll still say that it was a fun gig and worth attending. But this did nothing to change my 2-star rating of their new album, nor did it make me an official fan at this point. It was a bit of a lose-lose situation for me here though, as the new songs sounded the best, but I don’t enjoy them the way I enjoy the older material. Having the new and old songs juxtaposed against each other live really goes to show how much their sound has changed. Nevertheless, if you don’t have a problem with the way their music has changed these days, I would certainly recommend trying them out in a club sometime.
Setlist:
1. Maximize
2. Boomerang
3. Hunger
4. Invincible
5. 1,000,000 Lightyears
6. Trinity
7. True
8. Fury
9. Endlessly
10. On the Rocks
Drum solo
11. Automatic
12. The Nexus
13. Amaranthine
14. Call Out My Name
Encore:
15. Digital World
16. That Song
17. Dynamite
18. Drop Dead Cynical
Photos: Kirsti Leinonen
The first to take the stage was Canadian ONI, a progressive metal band formed in 2014. Since I’m not really a fan of progressive metal nor am I that familiar with Canadian metal scene, this was the first time I had heard of them. But, I figured that since they were opening for Children of Bodom, they would probably be quite good.
In addition to the band’s great energy on stage, they surprised me with their skill, as well as their choice of instruments. First of all, instead of having keyboards, they had a xylosynth, which is a xylophone gone electric, played by John DeAngelis. I would rank it even cooler than the circular keyboard in Eurovision 2014. Another interesting detail about the band’s instruments was that guitarists Brandon White and Martin Andres, as well as bassist Chase Bryant, preferred their instruments… well… headless. Guitars and basses missing the head stock is probably nothing new, but it was the first time I had witnessed such a sight.
After ONI’s prog-fest, it was time for a bit of a mood change with Forever Still. This Danish rock band was signed by Nuclear Blast in August 2016 and released their debut album, 
If the band had good stage presence during the songs, they unfortunately lacked it in between. Maja Shining did do some speeches but there were times when the audience would just wait, while the band members took a sip of water or adjusted their instruments between the songs. I would have wished for some more interaction from the other band members as well, since now it was all on Maja’s shoulders.
Starting the gig with Something Wild’s opening track “Deadnight Warrior” and “In the Shadows” from the same album, the band gave the audience exactly what they came there for. “Black Widow”, “Lake Bodom”, “Red Light in My Eyes, part 2”…this review could be just me listing the songs on the setlist, because for some that would be enough to tell how great the gig was. However, I feel obliged to write a little more than that.
There were no slumps, no silent moments, not even a thought of checking how much the time remained. With such a hit parade, one could only listen and enjoy – and mosh and sing or scream along. Frontman Alexi Laiho cut the speeches short this time; that night, it was all about music.
Like all good things, also this evening had to come to an end. After playing “Children of Decadence”, the band left back stage to have a small break before they were shouted back for an encore. The band ended the night with “The Nail” and “Towards Dead End”, which was a fitting choice for the last song.
Before letting Lemi’s gift to the world loose, Sakara’s newest addition to the roster, IKINÄ, hit the stage. I got acquainted with IKINÄ last September when the band was opening for Mokoma at Tavastia. At that time I was mostly noting their stage appearance, since I wasn’t familiar with the songs. This time around I already knew what was coming and I was ready to enjoy it to the fullest.
IKINÄ has a good variety of songs, ranging from slightly romantic and more serious, like “Et pelkää”, to just talking about a dreamy guy you’d like to get busy with, such as “Magic Mike.” They’re a nice mix of teenage angst and fear of growing up and finding your place in the world. And… just plain flipping the finger to the rest of the world.
IKINÄ’s setlist:
In Finland we have this band called Eläkeläiset [Eng: the pensioners], who turn famous pop and rock songs into humppa [Finnish polka music] with their own often inappropriate or humorous lyrics. The band has been around since 1994 and there seems to be no end to it – their next album, Humppa of Finland, will be released on April 21st of this year. The audience at The Circus got to experience the first taste of the new songs… or humppa covers, whatever you want to call them. I’ve seen Eläkeläiset a few times before in festivals like Nummirock and Jurassicrock. Since festival gigs tend to differ quite a bit from venue gigs, I was curious about what the atmosphere would be like in a dark concert hall.
Eläkeläiset started their set with an intro, “Humppa hei” [“Hocus Pocus” by Focus], followed by “Tervetuloa mehtään” [“Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns N’ Roses] and “Perjantaina humpassa” [“Friday I’m in Love” by The Cure]. Apart being a humppa band, they differ from usual bands by doing a speech between every song. At first I found it hilarious, but towards the end it started to bother me, mostly because they didn’t always make that much sense. Or maybe I was too sober for it.
Eläkeläiset’s setlist:
After teenage angst and humppa, it was time for Stam1na to take the stage. The venue was already packed by the time Eläkeläiset had started, and there was, if possible, even less space once the headliner started their set with “Pala palalta”, “Elonjäänyt”, and “Maalla, merellä, ilmassa.”
Doing a tour that is not just meant to support the newest album usually means that the setlist holds something special. This was the case with Stam1na at least. Even though Elokuutio did get the most coverage, the band also gave the audience some treats by playing “Yhdeksän tien päät”, which was originally recorded for Raja and published in the Vanhaa paskaa compilation, and “Verisateenkaari”, a bonus track from Elokuutio, which was apparently played live for the first time at The Circus (though feel free to correct me if I’m wrong). Even though the set was missing some of my favorites, like “Lääke” and “Murtumispiste”, we still got to hear “Tuomittu, syyllinen”, “Vapaa maa”, and “Muistipalapelit”, all of which I consider to be old classics.
As the songs kept going and the band reminded people to vote in the ongoing municipal elections, I caught myself wondering what would be up next for this group. Even though they are singing in Finnish, Stam1na has played abroad more than once and they have some foreign shows coming up during this current tour. Elokuutio is their seventh album, and it looks like it’s not going the be their last.
Photos: Janne Puronen
My first impression upon listening to the EP is that I was a tad surprised at how laid-back the music is. It certainly has energy, but I wouldn’t call the songs speedy by any means. The industrial influences are quite evident throughout, while the first track and first single to be released tomorrow (March 31st, 2017), entitled “Melody”, reminded me greatly of 80s new wave music (think Tears for Fears) in the way the vocals in the chorus sound in particular – something that I’m not overly fond of but works quite well in this construction. “Melody” is an interesting track in that it’s a bit different from the rest – it has a bit higher energy and more synth than the rest, and while it has a distinctly industrial sound, it also sounds a bit more poppy and less Goth-oriented. There is definite dance potential in this song for live scenarios.
My heaviest folk phase took place somewhere around 5-7 years ago, and I’ve mostly been into the more subtly folky bands, so I have rather different relationships with all of these acts. Crimfall I’ve been following closely ever since the first time I saw them in 2010, whereas Korpiklaani is reminiscent of my early teenage years, and a band I realized I had only seen at festivals, so I deemed it justified to fix such a statistic. In any case, they have always been essentially a party band for me, something I put on when I listen something very folky in general. Metsatöll is the least familiar out of the three: I have seen them once or twice quite some time ago and never really listened, and I was curious to see if I had missed out big time.
So, against this background, it was definitely in my best interests to see Crimfall, but alas, a hold-up at the doors kept me out for the entirety of their set. Not a good start for any gig experience, but since it had been years since seeing the other two as well, I pushed my annoyance aside right on time when Metsatöll started their set. There were plenty of Metsatöll shirts in the audience, so it was clear even before they hit the stage that the crowd was probably fairly excited about these Estonians. For good reason too – their merry brand of folk metal managed to move the audience from calm chatter to cheering and clapping in a matter of seconds. There weren’t many quiet moments after that; only during “Se on se maa” did things die down a little bit – even as “a song that needs no introduction”, and though I would assume its message about one’s home country would resonate among Finns, it might not be their most popular live track. Luckily, the slight lull was short-lived and the atmosphere perked up again with the next song.
There is something funny in the Estonian language to Finnish ears, how it sounds familiar but not exactly, and gives it a somewhat archaic and slightly fairytale-ish air, which goes with folk metal quite neatly. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons Finnish folk fans seem to be so fond of these guys? Not to forget how much fun – both on purpose and not – the band and their audience had whenever singer/guitarist Markus Teeäär or multi-instrumentalist Lauri Õunapuu did their speeches in Finnish, cracking jokes about how all Estonian love songs talk about brewing beer, urging the crowd to dance, and so on. And hey, you totally got us with that bagpipe and kantele.
The set was loaded with one track after another, and Järvelä spared his speeches for the start of it, his first noting that it was nice to see the place so packed just before the fifth song of the night, “Erämaan ärjyt.” That, of course, is not saying he wasn’t communicating with the audience; his huge grins and little antics on stage were amusing to watch even from afar, with other band members following suit. What with the setlist, it was a fine mix between danceable and slower, heavier songs, emphasis naturally on the danceable side, and the latest album, Noita (2015). It doesn’t happen too often, but I couldn’t find myself bored at any time – the question of whether it was thanks to not having many expectations towards the setlist or if it was simply that good doesn’t really matter in the end if you’ve been thoroughly entertained, right? The club setting and lengthy set also gave the crowd an opportunity to enjoy the slower songs, which don’t always make the cut for festival setlists, and revealed to me a slightly different side of a band that I had before considered only to be a light, jolly, good times drinking song troupe. That they indeed are, but also so, so much more.
Speaking which, I’d like to take some time to express my astonishment at Jonne Järvelä’s range of singing styles and intense stage presence, which for some unknown reason had remained unnoticed before. The dreadlocked frontman is truly like a shaman on stage, belting out trochaic meter rhymes like incantations; for a moment, you’re transferred to a whole another place and time, watching the red-light clad figure muttering archaic words in his gravelly voice. Recorded tracks just lack some of that magic, and I need to watch more closely the next time I catch Korpiklaani at a festival to see if it’s just a matter of outlet.
For “The Predator’s Saliva”, another guest was welcomed on stage, as Joey Severance (who also appeared on the recorded version of the song) of Tampere-based Tornado joined the band to perform his lines. Severance’s visit, donning skull-shaped face paint, was a special addition to start the tour, as was, at least in my opinion, seeing Olli Vänskä playing with them. His presence hit me with an exhilarating rush of nostalgia towards folk metal shows and his unmistakable sound – mixed delightfully clearly, for which I send my thanks to the sound techs – was just the little extra that turned a regular gig into a memorable one. Numerous solos were especially Vänskä’s time to shine, along with Perttula, and never fail to make me wish I still played violin myself. Regarding this, “Kultanainen” deserves a mention of its own; I rarely write a note about loving anything in full caps, but I did have one on the violin and accordion in that song.
Setlist:
During the intermission, the venue started to fill with people, but one couldn’t speak of a rush – where was everybody? As OG’s intro tape began playing at 23:00, the front of the stage was still only halfway full. As with previous shows after the release of their latest record, Grey Heavens, the band kicked things off with “The Pit”, instantly picking the audience up. In a way, I would’ve hoped for something different for the first song, since I knew that the stage sound would be pretty awful for the first 5 minutes – the drums were mushy and Jukka Pelkonen’s microphone was way too quiet. As “Skyline” was played second, the situation was already fixed, and the sound was decent for the remainder of the set.
Speaking of Pelkonen, I’ve probably said this before, but one cannot find a more sympathetic frontman in the Finnish metal scene. The man is always smiling, downright demanding people to mosh along their songs – the shy Finns often get confused as Pelkonen points them out individually, asking them to participate more. As usual, the setlist favored the moshers, since even the songs that could be considered ballads aren’t exactly slow, and Pelkonen didn’t waste time with his speeches, retaining the intensity.
In terms of musicianship, the band doesn’t need any introduction – everyone is, in their trade, top-of-the-line in Finland: Markus Vanhala has been one of our most creative guitarists, and as usual, his cooperation with Joonas Koto (guitar) worked flawlessly. The bassist, Erkki Silvennoinen, played his parts modestly as always, but once again, completely biased as I am, I’ll have to hand out the Virtuoso of the Evening award to the drummer, Tuomo Latvala. Originally loaned from Torture Killer last year, but having been made a full-time member afterwards, Latvala’s beats are always different, as he invents new fills for older songs on the fly, and by the looks of it, both his hands seem to be equally dominant, as he leads with his left hand half the time.
What do you think kept you going with the band throughout all these years? I mean, you’ve had to face plenty of crap, be it disease or half-witted Russian acolytes. Not to count 8 billion hangovers, but that, I assume, is an occupational hazard. Some people would just say “screw this shit, I’m out.” You seem to only grow stronger. How come?
Finally, at the aforementioned time, it was time to get things going. A really cool electronic intro track played and they kicked things off with “The Cost of Doing Business” – maybe they’ve been reading my reviews, because the play order for this show was far superior to the set at Virgin Oil last month, putting songs into optimal positions for the right flow of energy. Already by the first song, the crowd was clapping along and enthusiastic. It lasted beyond the first song as well, as when they went into “The Enemy You Need”, the whole crowd was still dancing and clapping.
Another thing I appreciated about this show was that it was less about performing perfectly and more about having fun with their fans. They’ve done more precise shows while opening for other bands, focusing on showcasing themselves and reeling in new fans. This was clearly a show for the existing fans, centered around fun and energy and good times, rather than precision playing (which I also suspect is tricky on such a tiny stage with so many people). “COE” had Calu in particular really getting into it, as high up and as energetic as can be.
Jake then shouted out, “Kiitos saatana perkele voi vittu!” and then said another stream of Finnish curse words and said that the band had told him that it means “I love you guys.” “Hi, I’m Jake E. I don’t know if you know me butI used to be in a band called Amaranthe from Sweden, but I’m not anymore. I had the great honor to produce these guys’ album, Welcome to Ember Falls. They’re such a fucking amazing band and they will eat all your love, so give them some more!” he continued. He then said that he’d be announcing something on Monday, and would sing two more songs. Grove said the next one was for the ladies, and they went into “Freedom.” They had skipped it at Virgin Oil last month, so I was glad to see that it made a comeback in this show, because it’s a perfect track to slow things down and have a quick breather – perfect placement in this show as well! They then ended Jake’s guest performance with “Falling Rain”, and from what I could barely hear, the harmonization was really cool. I’m glad that track was moved closer to the end of the set, because it remains a personal favorite and I like to have it built up a bit more. Grove then asked the crowd to, “Give your most handsome applause to Jake E,” who then shouted, “Kippis suomi Finland perkele, thank you guys!” before heading down from the stage. The band thanked him again before playing “The Lamb Lies Down in Sacrifice.” Again, love that thrash jazz, but it needs a bigger stage so they can have more fun with the jazz interludes. The sound had also improved a bit by this point, though there was a bit of feedback now and then. The song ended with a wonderful drum-heavy outro.
Photos: Lene L.
The show started quite precisely on time at 21:50 with Draugnim’s long-winded intro track. I’d had the pleasure of seeing them once before some 6 or 7 years ago. They looked pretty much the same as back then, dressed in tattered cloaks and corpse paint stained by fake blood (citation needed on whether it truly was fake blood). The singer had gauntlets on just as he did back then. In fact, at the merch stand they were only selling the first album, Northwind’s Ire, and the corresponding T-shirt just as they did back then. It was as if they’d stepped out of a time-capsule.
I would suggest that the best thing one could do on stage after a massive technical failure occurs would be to thank the fans for their help and appreciation and chalk the whole thing up as a bit of a laugh. These things happen after all. Draugnim’s frontman, Chimedra, however, had a different approach. He stood as silently as he did between all the other songs, only spouting the occasional platitude of “kiitos” [thank you] or simply naming the next song. This made it feel as though they are not a live-oriented band – I would say that the incident could have been handled more gracefully. However, their entire performance that night felt awkward and unprepared. I don’t think I’ll be going out of my way to catch them again. Maybe after another 7 years.
Unlike the first band, they had a great live mix that showcased all the best elements of each instrument. The keyboards perhaps got a bit drowned out by everything else but such is the nature of keyboards in metal. As usual, they had Ville Sorvali on bass and growling vocals with the two guitarists doing backing vocals. During “Kylän Päässä”, guitarist Janne Perttilä took the center mic to do the clean section. His vocals were so ridiculously oversaturated by effects that it was almost impossible to make out his performance or even the lyrics. This was no star-making turn for him.
At this point, it became implicit that they were going to play the entire new album live. Moonsorrow are known for doing long live shows, so this wasn’t any more of an undertaking than any other headlining show from them. Jumalten Aika having been almost universally praised by critics and fans alike, the fans seemed agreeable to the situation. The fans took every opportunity to show their love for the band and the new record. They chanted for every section that allowed for it and even during those 15-20 minute songs, they still managed to pump their fists.
Setlist:
Just to get us started here – the album is out at last. How do you feel about the final product and how has it been received?
For Jake, how did you get involved in the album?
One of my favorite things about the album is the lyrics, because they give it a lot of depth. You’ve got certain themes that are pretty obvious, like in “The Cost of Doing Business”, but what about some of the rest of the songs? Do you have any themes that are being covered, in general?
I thought that might be a stretch, but I had to try. You’ve got Niko Moilanen (Nc Enroe) from Blind Channel as a guest vocalist/rapper on “Open Your Eyes” – how did you arrange that?
A couple of quick non-Ember-Falls-related questions for Jake here. What are you doing these days now that you’ve parted ways with Amaranthe?
Thanks for sharing that. Back to everyone then, what was it like to go to a whole other country (Denmark) to work on the album?
That ties nicely into my next question – I imagine that Amaranthe and Ember Falls will have a great fan crossover. Do you have any hopes or expectations from that tour?
Photos: Lene L.
Disturbed was set to take the stage at 19:45. These guys have really grown on me over the years, as I was one of those teenage snobs who couldn’t admit to liking American numetal until I grew up a bit, but I’ve learned to appreciate David Draiman’s unique vocals in my 20s and their upbeat, catchy sound in my later years. I’ve heard rumor, however, that Disturbed doesn’t actually put on a very good show, which I found hard to imagine considering how good their music can be.
“My brothers and sisters, my blood… SPEAK TO ME!” Drainman shouted, and asked the crowd to put their hands up, and the crowd readily obeyed as they set into “Prayer”, which is maybe not one of the songs I was most longing to hear. Meanwhile, it was a shame that the low end of the vocals on “Liberate” were nearly impossible to hear. This went into “Stupify”, and it was fun to hear such classics live after all these years too, even if I’ve gotten a bit sick of it over the years; this song was a bit… squawky live.
Some soft sirens introduced what could only be “Indestructible”, another Disturbed must-have. This was accompanied by moving arcs of fire on either side of the drum kit, which both looked cool and was pretty unique. “This is the last time I’ll ask you tonight, but I’ll need to see it once more – let me see those hands!” Draiman shouted as the rather appropriate “Ten Thousand Fists” started. This was another rousing success crowd-wise, though again the deeper vocals were nearly unhearable. Of course, the last song had to come, and Draiman asked that the people in the stands get to their feet and that a huge circle pit form on the floor. It did – the 2 meter gap between the crowd and the sound booth vanished and I was instantly squashed by the people backing up to make room. The pit itself was brilliant – perhaps the best I’ve seen since Children of Bodom at 
It was nice that Disturbed was able to get a decent set in, with A7x meant to start at 21:00. However, when Disturbed left the stage at 20:51, I assumed we were going to be in for a long delay; imagine my surprise then when A7x started a paltry 8 or so minutes late! During that time, an eye appeared with the The Stage version of the universe skullbat appeared in a skull or a mask that moved back and forth, watching the crowd from the two screens on the sides of the stage. Just before the show started, I realized that there was now a large cube above center stage, with a few slender screens on each side between it and the larger side screens – these had appeared without my notice somehow. As the intro played, The Stage‘s universe imagery appeared, swirling with bolts of lightning.
Things picked up a bit in “Afterlife” as the band was portrayed on the screens with the universe images replacing videos. These guys really brought the energy levels up after Chevelle and Disturbed too, making good use of the risers on the sides, as well as the catwalk. As well, I noted that I enjoyed Shadows’ voice a lot more in a live context, and the screams were fantastic. “It feels fucking good to be in Finland tonight!” Shadows shouted to the crowd. “Are you guys doing okay? This is supposed to be the greatest city in the world for heavy metal, right? We tried to play “Nightmare” here once and everybody left the building. Then they made us stop. They said, ‘Maybe someday you’ll be a decent band, but tonight you should go home,'” he joked. “This song is for our friends in Finland, to the kings of heavy metal!” Of course, this meant that it was time to play “Hail to the King” and Shadows asked the crowd to scream so loud that Gates wouldn’t be able to hear himself and we’d fuck up his performance.
UFO-type lights began to appear from the bottom of the screen cube over the drum kit as some red planets appeared. The cube began to move toward the crowd to the end of the catwalk, and Shadows came out to the end to lean on the mic (in a very Mikko Kotamäki [Swallow the Sun] manner) as he sang “Angels” under a yellow spotlight. Of course, they really had to kick things into overdrive for “Nightmare” – I don’t think anyone left the arena this time, considering how loudly the crowd screamed, “It’s your fucking nightmare!” At this point in the night, I began to appreciate how often these guys have solos in their music – say what you will about them, but they do at least have that aspect of heavy metal covered. I also appreciate that their guitars always sound distinctly like A7x and no one else.
“I love Finland,” Shadows continued. “Everyone here is so nice.” Someone from the crowd shouted something, which initiated a short conversation that most people could only hear one side of: “You’re not? You look nice. Are you nice? Oh, okay. Fuck you guys.” There was some laughter from the crowd, before he announced that there were many more songs to come, and the next was called “Almost Easy.” Shadows had a huge grin on his face as he got the crowd to sing parts of the chorus for him, while Zacky Vengeance (guitar) and Johnny Christ (bass) had a ‘conversation’ with each other as they played.
The astronaut receded back into the darkness and the band waited a good long couple of minutes while the arena cheered for them, before announcing their return to the stage with the opening riffs from “Bat Country.” “Do you want some more?” Shadows screamed. “I need you to prove to me that you have the energy to take some more!” Naturally, the crowd obliged. This was an overall nice performance of a classic, but I wasn’t sure if he was wimping out on some of the earlier high notes, or if the sound was just a bit quiet and I couldn’t hear them.
Avenged Sevenfold’s setlist:
The show got off to a shaky start with “The Dark Eternal Night”, which didn’t exactly make the audience ecstatic. It’s the lowest point of my least favorite album, Systematic Chaos (2007), because its forced heaviness and endless shredding sums up the most annoying traits of late 00s Dream Theater. Admittedly it sounded better than on the album, but the quality went up immediately when it was followed by “The Bigger Picture”, which is one of the most powerful tunes on the band’s otherwise slightly lukewarm self-titled album from 2013. The crowd was clapping along during the song’s climax, and not even James LaBrie’s struggling with the high notes ate away the impact. The instrumental of the night was the picturesque “Hell’s Kitchen”, which was introduced with a haunting intro. Digging up the song after a 19-year break was more than welcome, although Mike Mangini’s drumming came across as a little stiff compared to Mike Portnoy’s playing on the original. The Astonishing was represented with two singles, but it felt like people didn’t warm up to the new material despite LaBrie and keyboardist Jordan Rudess’s best attempts to pump them up – Dream Theater’s opening acts are always in a tough spot, even when DT themselves are in that role.
Bass solos may be a bit of a joke in rock circles, but John Myung’s Jaco Pastorius tribute, “Portrait of Tracy”, was wonderful with its clever use of harmonics. However, the piece was just the calm before the storm, as it was succeeded by the steamroller that is “As I Am.” Musical tips of the hat continued when the song was combined with the first verse and chorus of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman.” At the end there was also a “One” teaser, and John Petrucci even threw in the “Master of Puppets” main riff. The first set concluded with one of my favorites, “Breaking All Illusions,” which seems to have become a modern classic (deservedly so), as the band has played it on almost every tour since its release. Petrucci’s bluesy solo was once more in a class of its own, as was the song’s culmination.
After the intermission, the time traveling began with a collage of the music released in 1992, which ranged from “Baby Got Back” by Sir Mix-a-Lot(!) to “November Rain” by Guns N’ Roses, and a DJ introduction led to Dream Theater’s ‘new’ hit single, “Pull Me Under.” The people’s reactions immediately gave away what they’d come to the Ice Hall for, as the crowd went bananas, at least as much as a Finnish prog audience can. Although the Images songs were performed in the correct order, the band didn’t follow the album versions slavishly, instead extending them with additional solos. At the end of “Another Day”, Rudess played a keyboard solo, while an excerpt of John Petrucci’s “Glasgow Kiss” was incorporated into “Take the Time.” Mike Mangini, on the other hand, got to play a drum solo in the middle of “Metropolis Pt. 1,” and the moody ballad “Wait for Sleep” was introduced with some piano improv by Rudess, which according to LaBrie sounded different every night. Furthermore, Rush fans’ hearts were warmed with little teasers of “Xanadu” and “Cygnus X-1.”
The instrumentation was handled gracefully, although Mangini messed up the beat at the end of “Pull Me Under” and Rudess brutally slaughtered one of Kevin Moore’s best keyboard solos in “Take the Time.” However, the guitar bear Petrucci was the shining star of the night, and the legendary solos of “Another Day” and “Under a Glass Moon” were pure ear candy. During the intermission I’d wondered how James LaBrie could pull of the Images and Words material, as during the first set his cold had been made perfectly clear by the hoarseness of his upper register and the constant lowering of vocal melodies. Apparently the constant sips of water (or some other voice-aiding liquid) during the instrumental breaks, downtuning the songs, and the additional breathing spaces given by the extra solos helped, because apart from occasional off-key moments and his voice breaking during the second verse of “Take the Time”, the classics sounded alright coming from a 53-year-old. The concert atmosphere was upbeat and the instrumentation a well-oiled machine, so even LaBrie’s weakest moments didn’t dim the glow of the music. Although you could sense a little bit of frustration in his demeanor when he couldn’t nail some parts, LaBrie didn’t let it take over, handling his duties professionally. During his speeches he was much more talkative than at my previous DT shows: he was astonished by the number of female fans in attendance (“where the hell were you 25 years ago?”) and later recalled the champagne-fueled listening session of the final mixes of Images and Words.
The visual side of the show was a little modest compared to the previous tours, as this time there was no video screen, most likely due to the short break between The Astonishing tour and the anniversary gigs that also included the holidays. Fortunately, the backdrop looked cool when it was colored by the lights, and the stripped-down production was appropriate for the nostalgia theme, as were the cover snippets and little jams, which DT hasn’t played much of since Mike Portnoy’s departure. At least I couldn’t sense any notable tiredness in the band, as the five-piece seemed to be in a good mood: Rudess and Mangini were making faces and gestures at each other, and even the typically cool-as-a-cucumber Myung rose onto the drum riser a couple of times.
Photos: Charlotta Rajala
Vincent: Having only fairly recently stepped out of the great Ihsahn’s shadow, Leprous ascended the stage to greet an anxious crowd. It was clear that a good portion of the audience had intentionally showed up early in order to see all of the bands. To me this was a bit surprising, as I had understood that Leprous only has a very modest following. That being said, the atmosphere in the hall was absolutely electric as the first notes of “Foe” sounded. Acquired taste or no, on that night they were more than welcome.
Leprous’ setlist:
Between the Buried and Me’s setlist:
Devin announced their arrival to the stage by telling us how awkward the night would be and, “Let’s make some bad life decisions!” as they kicked things off with “Rejoice”, which I’m glad they’ve still kept on the set. Anneke van Giersbergen’s voice was present in the backing vocals alone (sadly), as Townsend promised a night full of awkward heavy metal for us and our kin. They then continued with Ocean Machine’s “Night” – a song that I clearly need to familiarize myself with better, because I’ve heard it live a few times now and it always sounds so cool.
By the time they started “Hyperdrive!” (which is fortunately back on the set after its absence in 2015) I had gotten really impressed with the flow of the songs, as they were all moving incredibly smoothly from one to the other. It was only after this (five songs!) that they finally had a little pause, as Townsend declared that he liked the way his voice sounded in The Circus, like an announcer, and that he was going to use that voice all night because it sounded cool. He then proceeded to tell a story about swimming in a pool that day with 60-year-old men whose balls floated some horrifyingly great distance behind them. He then went on to discuss their thirty records of shit, varying degrees of musical shit, and that it was time for some 80s-style shit, with “Where We Belong.” Perfect timing for a bit of a slower song, and this one in particular is always a lovely choice, with this occasion featuring a pretty cool solo-y outro.
“Hi! I’m just trying to get on your wavelength,” Townsend said, wondering what persona he should take on, such as the jackass, which comes so naturally; he was looking at who was in the crowd to get a feel for us – there were people in paper crowns, some wearing bowties, and so many Ziltoids! He then went on to talk about how he had been having a great day – he did cool things (“Don’t applaud!”), and got some new underpants. Well, not new. He had flipped them inside out. He also found stray underpants on the tour bus and gave them the sniff test; they definitely smelled of piss, but it wasn’t his! He then explained that when he’s uncomfortable he defaults to shit talk and by the end of the show he wouldn’t be talking about poopoo and peepee and that, “We will rock like in your dreams!” This led into “Ziltoid Goes Home.”
Then afterward it was time for a song about Poozers. Townsend told us that, in fact, Ziltoid was born and raised in Helsinki, “though you’d never know it to look at him… ball balls balls shit piss!” Because why not, right? “March of the Poozers”, incidentally, had disappointed me a bit last time with a lack of energy (Townsend was getting a bit sick, if I recall correctly), and this year it was completely remedied, with all the heavy energy and glorious moshy goodness I had hoped for in 2015. He then announced that it was time for the last track (though not really): a Canadian love song from the depths of his mother’s uterus straight to our ear pussies, which was of course “Kingdom” – a sort of DTP requirement song that I could actually do without one of these days (though I’m betting most people at that show would disagree, based on their reaction to it).
Text: Vincent Parkkonen, Amy W | Photos: Jana Blomqvist
Fear of Domination started their set a fashionable 15 minutes late to the thunderous sound of young ladies’ screams. Their stage-attire was note-worthy as usual – the leather-clad crew sported their signature corpse paint with splotches of UV face-paint which lit up on stage in bright neon colors. It gave off the impression that these were Goth versions of the lost boys from Peter Pan if they found a few cans of paint. To allow for mobility, keyboardist Lasse Raelahti had a keytar, which is an unusual sight among metal bands and never fails to get a chuckle out of yours truly.
No matter what she was singing, however, Strömmer herself was consistently a vision. A vocal coach by trade, she was on point at all times and always seemed to know exactly what she wanted out of her performance. “Needle” came near the end of the set as a highlight; since the female vocals in the song already had a strong melody to them, she took every opportunity to jazz it up and make it her own. If by then everyone wasn’t convinced that she was a real find, they were afterwards. It was fortunate then that she stayed for the remainder of the set. Her charisma and chemistry with lead vocalist Saku Solin truly elevated the whole show.
The band’s overall demeanor on stage was obviously more tailored to larger venues. They even exited the stage mid-set to allow for a drum solo, to return accompanied by a backing track. I’ve also never seen a band take a picture from the stage of such a humble venue. Singer Chris Harms played rhythm guitar on half the songs, and they had a crew-member walk on and off stage to accommodate their needs for each song. I took note that on the wall just left of the stage, he had written printed-out instructions (very German). Said crew-member also had to fix the cymbals during some of the first songs, after which it was admittedly gratifying to see drummer Tobias Mertens let loose.
Though right off the bat they played surefire hits, such as “Fists up in the Air” and “Drag Me to Hell”, it was the more ballad-like songs, “Dry the Rain” and “Blood for Blood”, that seemed to get the biggest reaction from the fans. Looking back, the whole set was filled to the brim with hits. Every song seemed to start with a classic melody. Songs like “La Bomba”, “Full Metal Whore”, and “Black Lolita” made for excellent party tracks. The true highlight of the show was the finale, “Raining Stars”, to which the band insisted the crowd sing along.
We arrived at Jäähalli at 19:30 and it was nicely packed. Unfortunately, as I showed up a bit late, I missed Twilight Force’s set, but our new journalist, Hiski, was at the venue in good time, and here’s what he had to say about them:
As a big fan of the band and cheesy power metal in general, the band did not disappoint me with their set. Although their play-time of only about half an hour was without a doubt short, they managed to offer the audience a nice selection of songs from both of their albums. Interestingly enough though, Twilight Force found time for little intros for most of the songs. Maybe they could have fit one more song into their limited support set instead of those? Unlike other Swedish bands on Finnish soil, vocalist Christian “Chrileon” Eriksson decided to make use of the bilingualism of Finland and held his speeches both in Swedish and in English – resulting in a funny mash-up of both languages.
Twilight Force’s setlist:
I don’t know much (or anything really) about Accept, but I was still looking forward to their set because I saw them once before at 
Of course, Wolf Hoffman’s guitarwork continues to show why he is so beloved. Even from way up in the stands, he was clear as day and sounded pretty great. Tornillo let out a bit gravelly welcome before they started my personal favorite, “London Leatherboys”! I was grateful for the incredible lighting, because I could see the stage beautifully, even from a distance. These guys put on a nice performance – their music doesn’t have the sort of energy that requires them to fly around, so their presence nicely matches the music. They are active and lively, but not too much so, sticking closer to the in-sync rocking out and a strong focus on soloing with style. The crowd was willing to shout out the lyrics when prompted in a few songs, like “Princess of the Dawn”, which also included a pretty nice chant-along.
Of course I recognized the iconic intro to “Metal Heart”, and at last there was some proper enthusiasm from the crowd. And of course they closed out the night, after “Teutonic Terror”, with good old “Balls to the Wall”, which was opened with a single horizontal spotlight on Hoffman as he played. As their set concluded, I also noted Uwe Lulis (guitar) making sure some of the front-rowers got some guitar picks, which was awfully nice of him. Overall, in spite of me still not knowing the band very well, I really enjoyed their set. Jäähalli was pretty packed, so you have to assume these guys have a lot of local fans, yet it was a shame that only the standard big-hype moments got a real reaction from the floor, like the chant-along in the final track. Still, they did give them a loud cheer in the end as the fog cannons blasted, so maybe they were just saving their energy for Sabaton?
Accept’s setlist:
And then, after the stage changeover was complete, it was time for the Swedish lords of war metal! Sabaton’s performance was introduced with two intros, as seems to be the norm with them. The first of these was “In the Army Now”, a song by Bolland and Bolland. I was glad to see that they’ve dropped “The Final Countdown”, as that song is more than a little overplayed. This was followed by “The March to War”, featuring some videos of tanks and molten metal on the back screen, and the show started with – you guessed it – “Ghost Division.” Why these guys never change their de facto starting track is beyond me, because their shows have become a little predictable over the years as a result. “Night Witches” and even the second track from this show, “Sparta”, all have the potential to be great starters, but due to their unyielding desire to never change the opening track, I feel as though opportunities have been missed. Bonus points for the wicked pyros though.
Now I have to say, Sabaton is kind of amazing right now. The last few times I saw them, they were still playing The Circus, and then suddenly they played at Espoo Metro Areena, and now Jäähalli? When did these guys hit stadium-level popularity without my notice? I think it’s great – these guys have so much energy that it’s no issue for them to fill a much bigger stage. Plus, the extra budget into making the stage performance better was put to excellent use with the screen (though I have to say, for the most of the show I was so compelled by the band that I didn’t even glance at the screen – a problem relating to watching a show from the side and not the crowd, I suppose).
Brodén greeted and thanked the crowd, mentioning a few changes, such as Tommy Johansson who replaced Thobbe Englund on guitars. The crowd absolutely roared for him, and he got the crowd all hyped up for “Swedish Pagans”, by playing its riff. They then had a discussion about what mulkku [motherfucker] means before the rest of the band joined for the song and the crowd was clapping pretty much from start to finish. Johansson, incidentally, proved to be an incredible addition to the band throughout the night, having no trouble with the material, nor keeping up with the band’s energy. “No surprise there, with him being the guitar god and mastermind of power metal band ReinXeed,” Hiski noted.
“The Last Stand”, even if it kind of sounds like a Christmas carol, though I hope it doesn’t stick to the set, as some of the other new songs work better live, like “Sparta” and, 
The tape then played “The Diary of an Unknown Soldier” to the sound of loud gunfire from the guns on stage, before they got the crowd’s hands up and clapping to “The Lost Battalion.” Brodén went on to discuss their setlists, and discussed “White Death”, and 
There was more fire from the guns for “The Lion from the North”, and then the roadies brought out a keyboard and some acoustic guitars for “The Final Solution” – Brodén said that everything would be acoustic for now on, though he was only teasing. Johansson took over the keyboard and plays beautifully no less, incidentally. This song had incredible ambience with all the lighters/cell phones up and some lines of fire on the edge of the stage. Van Dahl took a little break before joining them in the chorus on the cajón. Actually, this was a highlight of the night for me – the song sounded great, hasn’t been played here in ages, and had a hint of a Blind Guardian vibe (and I adore Blind Guardian).
Again, while I like the Finnish-based songs as much as the next person, but I can’t believe they left out “Resist and Bite” in favor of “Soldier of 3 Armies.” I’m not the only one who feels this way either, as I heard some murmurs from the crowd as the stadium emptied later on – the Finns clearly appreciate it, as these songs always get huge cheers, but fans who have seen them repeatedly are starting to feel as though it’s time for a change, time to hear some different songs (like “Union”). They did follow it up with “Night Witches” though, which is a great live song, and had big explodey red blasts from the stage guns. Oh yes! And lots of fire. “Winged Hussars” then closed out the main set, with its oh-so Sabaton riffs, fist-pump-worthy beat, beams of light, and crisscrossing blasts of fire.
There didn’t even appear to be much of a stream of people leaving as the crowd begged for more. “Primo Victoria” kicked off the encore to more blasts from the stage guns, as well as fire. Brodén thanked the crowd again before announcing “Shiroyama”, which I won’t deny I was hyped for. And not just me, based on the magnitude of fists in the air. So stupid, yet so epic… that song is clearly my favorite guilty pleasure. It was a lot of fun live. All it was lacking was a faux samurai battle on stage. They then stuck an extra song into their set, the again unfortunate Finland-based “Talvisota”, while blowing some sort of fake snow on the crowd (that or someone opened a window on the roof). I was worried that they had replaced “To Hell and Back” with this song, but fortunately they had one more song in them and closed out the night with it.
Text: Hiski H, Amy W | Photos: Kirsti Leinonen
Because of Saturday disco – Tavastia’s every-Saturday teenager-hell concept – the doors opened as early as 19:00. As I arrived at the venue 15 minutes later, there was a nice bunch of people smoking cigarettes outside, and the ticket queue spanned almost to the front door. A pleasant surprise presented itself at the bar, as Diablo’s own Corium Black stout was priced at 6€, instantly heightening Tavastia’s price-to-quality ratio considerably. The actual band space was still pretty empty, but once KYPCK began their set with “Ya Svoboden”, the opening track of their latest album, Zero, the hall filled up pretty quickly.
I’ve always liked KYPCK; the band’s concept is simply brilliant. If Seppänen didn’t do his speeches in Finnish, one would totally mistake him as Russian, that’s how fluent his pronunciation is. Sami Lopakka’s and Sami Kukkohovi’s impact in Sentenced (RIP) cannot be undermined, but personally I’ve always preferred KYPCK’s leaden doom metal over Sentenced’s angsty rock. The band’s visual appearance is also thought-through; why does a bass guitar even have four strings, if J.T. Ylä-Rautio does well with only one? Lopakka’s custom-built AK-47 guitar and A.K. Karihtala’s Tsar Bomba drum kit are always impressive to see live, and the cherry on top was the Soviet era pictures and videos projected on the band’s backdrop.
At 20:30, Tavastia’s stage lit up again as the dark blue lights were turned on, and Diablo’s grin-inducing intro tape began playing. Expressing the visual appearance of their latest album, the members Rainer Nygård [vocals, guitar], Aadolf Virtanen [bass], Marko Utriainen [guitar], and Heikki Malmberg [drums] climbed on stage wearing identical worker shirts and began their set with the album’s opening track, “The Call”, and from Nygård’s first “Hiiop!” scream onwards, the audience was fully committed to the show. Things continued on with “Isolation” and “The Serpent Holder”, and considering the band’s outfits, things started to incline towards playing the album from start to finish. This eventually happened, as all ten of Silvër Horizon’s tracks were played back-to-back, with only the album’s ambient interludes in between. A pretty bold move to pull off at an anniversary show, I thought, but the concept turned out to be excellent – since Silvër Horizon is a concept album, the story was conveyed to its full extent, and at some point I suddenly became aware of the amount of kick-ass choruses; the chorus in “The Serpent Holder” is insane! After the album’s closer, “Voyage to Eternity”, the band suddenly left the stage, and a midtro tape, spoken in Finnish and Russian, announced a 10-minute intermission. Quite something at a venue of this size!
The second half of the show started out with a bang, as Diablo played Mimic47’s closing track, ”D.O.A” – I doubt that the song has been played too many times since the album’s release tour. After the song, the show had finally progressed to one of its most essential elements: Nygård’s shamelessly Finnish speeches. It turned out that there was a bunch of first-timers in the audience, so it seemed only appropriate to play “The Preacher”, since that’s what Diablo’s known for, at least according to Nygård. You can probably guess that he had to shout “PERKELE!” at all in the beginning. The set seemed to be full of more peculiar choices, since the band threw in their legendary ABBA cover of ”Dancing Queen” before playing ”Read My Scars.” I took a trip to the bar during “Resign From Life”, but I almost left my Visa to the card machine as I had to hurry back to the audience afterwards – the guys decided to play ”Crystal Mountain” by the legendary Death, and boy, did they do a fantastic job!
The fans of the old Diablo were spoiled with “Icon of Flesh” from the Renaissance album, after which the set seemed to near its end. The band concluded their set on a high note with “Icaros” and “Into the Sea” – I haven’t heard the latter since the Icaros album’s release tour in 2008. A truly great song! The band asked people to pose for a group photo, after which a good deal of people with some shit-eating grins started to make their way towards the coatroom. In that moment, the second half of the show seemed awfully short, but afterwards I realized that it was only one song shorter than all of Silvër Horizon.
Although I can’t say that I’ve ever listened to Diablo at home or attended many of their shows, I cannot deny their significance in the Finnish metal scene, and I know people who place the band as high as first place in their domestic ranking. Diablo manages to entertain thoroughly every time, and as a drumming enthusiast I cannot help but emphasize Heikki Malmberg’s role behind the kit. The man is undoubtedly one of the best drummers in Finland, and he’s clearly grasped something very essential on constructing a drum set; one simply cannot have too many chinas – I think I counted ten. The sounds were brilliant, not to mention the lights. I decided to attend the show on a whim, but afterwards I’ve found myself already waiting for the next shows. Thank you, Diablo!
Photos: Janne Puronen | Ed: Amy W
