Although i have seen all of these bands before, having them all on one ticket made for one great show. Some have nitpicked at the Arch Enemy setlist, and perhaps there were one or two songs i might have liked to see, and certainly i am dying to see Firewind live where they get more than a 30 minute set, minor gripes aside, this was a great night of concerting.
First up was Firewind. They never fail to rock. Last time i saw them, Henning Basse had filled the touring vocal duties. This time? Regular group vocalist Apollo Papathanasio was there, and although i think Basse is a fine vocalist and enjoyed their set with him, having Apollo there just took it to another level. There were plenty of kids there for Firewind, but even those who weren't, obviously were getting into it, if the crowd reaction is any indication. They know good music and jaw dropping guitar work when they see it. My memory kind of sucks these days, and there were no printed set lists, so all i can remember of what they played was (and in no order): Insanity, Head Up High, and Till The End of Time. I THINK they may have also done Remembered, and Into The Fire, but i can't be sure on those. What i did remember however, was all of the words to Insanity, something Apollo noticed and gave me the nod for. I love seeing Firewind, i only hope that these recent opening tours will lead up to a headliner.
Second to play was Divine Heresy. I'm not really a fan of their thrashcore/metalcore tinged death metal. The overall sound and especially the screamo style vocalist sounds far too American for my taste. I'll give Dino Cazares a lot of credit for heart, and he is a veteran that has paid his dues, but eh, his one attempt at a solo, barely qualified. Still, there were plenty of core kids in attendance who loved them (and i believe Headbangers Ball was also there to cover the bands that fit their image like Divine Heresy.. or so that is what i was told about the camera crew that was floating around). So if you like their brand of metal, it seems to have gone over well (especially considering as how the lead vocalist was rowdier than most of the fans heh.. and spent a large portion of the set mixed in with the crowd). Here is what they played:
Bleed The Fifth
Impossible is Nothing
Saviour Self
False Gospel
The Threat Is Real
And one more song that i do not know the name of.
There was no question that *everyone* loved the next band to play. After all, Dark Tranquillity are true masters of their craft. From my own experience, and talking with kids after the show, i would have to say that they were the clear highlight. Not to be outdone, Mikael Stanne would repeatedly come to the crowd, even after the show he came out and shook the hand of virtually everyone in the front row, letting us get in a few words. All of that however takes second fiddle to their amazing set. They had no list printed, but here is what was played:
Terminus (Where Death Is Most Alive)
The Lesser Faith
The Treason Wall
The Wonders At Your Feet
Focus Shift
Misery's Crown
Punish My Heaven
My Negation
Final Resistance
A great mix of new and old. After the show, i found out that they hadn't played My Negation on the last two shows. So it was great that we got it.
Last up was of course Arch Enemy. Personally, i thought their set from the last tour when they were at the Nokia Theatre was a bit better and that they had more fun there. Still, Arch Enemy live is always a good time. I have a picture of this set list, so you'll see that in the pictures.
My battery was getting a bit low, so i was slightly conservative with pictures. This means that because i wasn't really into Divine Heresy, there are no pictures of them. Also bear in mind that Arch Enemy/DT concerts aren't exactly conducive to taking great pictures. You try to get in some decent shots, and you hope for the best.
Firewind Pictures!
Apollo Papathanasio
Gus G.
Bob Katsionis
Gus & Bob
Apollo & Bob
Petros Christo, Gus, & Bob.
One more of Apollo.
One more of Gus.
Dark Tranquillity pictures!
Mikael Stanne
Martin Henriksson and Michael Nicklasson.
Mikael Stanne & Niklas Sundin with Anders Jivarp in the background.
Martin Brändström, Mikael Stanne & Martin Henriksson
Arch Enemy Pictures will be in the follow up post.
First up was Firewind. They never fail to rock. Last time i saw them, Henning Basse had filled the touring vocal duties. This time? Regular group vocalist Apollo Papathanasio was there, and although i think Basse is a fine vocalist and enjoyed their set with him, having Apollo there just took it to another level. There were plenty of kids there for Firewind, but even those who weren't, obviously were getting into it, if the crowd reaction is any indication. They know good music and jaw dropping guitar work when they see it. My memory kind of sucks these days, and there were no printed set lists, so all i can remember of what they played was (and in no order): Insanity, Head Up High, and Till The End of Time. I THINK they may have also done Remembered, and Into The Fire, but i can't be sure on those. What i did remember however, was all of the words to Insanity, something Apollo noticed and gave me the nod for. I love seeing Firewind, i only hope that these recent opening tours will lead up to a headliner.
Second to play was Divine Heresy. I'm not really a fan of their thrashcore/metalcore tinged death metal. The overall sound and especially the screamo style vocalist sounds far too American for my taste. I'll give Dino Cazares a lot of credit for heart, and he is a veteran that has paid his dues, but eh, his one attempt at a solo, barely qualified. Still, there were plenty of core kids in attendance who loved them (and i believe Headbangers Ball was also there to cover the bands that fit their image like Divine Heresy.. or so that is what i was told about the camera crew that was floating around). So if you like their brand of metal, it seems to have gone over well (especially considering as how the lead vocalist was rowdier than most of the fans heh.. and spent a large portion of the set mixed in with the crowd). Here is what they played:
Bleed The Fifth
Impossible is Nothing
Saviour Self
False Gospel
The Threat Is Real
And one more song that i do not know the name of.
There was no question that *everyone* loved the next band to play. After all, Dark Tranquillity are true masters of their craft. From my own experience, and talking with kids after the show, i would have to say that they were the clear highlight. Not to be outdone, Mikael Stanne would repeatedly come to the crowd, even after the show he came out and shook the hand of virtually everyone in the front row, letting us get in a few words. All of that however takes second fiddle to their amazing set. They had no list printed, but here is what was played:
Terminus (Where Death Is Most Alive)
The Lesser Faith
The Treason Wall
The Wonders At Your Feet
Focus Shift
Misery's Crown
Punish My Heaven
My Negation
Final Resistance
A great mix of new and old. After the show, i found out that they hadn't played My Negation on the last two shows. So it was great that we got it.
Last up was of course Arch Enemy. Personally, i thought their set from the last tour when they were at the Nokia Theatre was a bit better and that they had more fun there. Still, Arch Enemy live is always a good time. I have a picture of this set list, so you'll see that in the pictures.
My battery was getting a bit low, so i was slightly conservative with pictures. This means that because i wasn't really into Divine Heresy, there are no pictures of them. Also bear in mind that Arch Enemy/DT concerts aren't exactly conducive to taking great pictures. You try to get in some decent shots, and you hope for the best.
Firewind Pictures!
Apollo Papathanasio
Gus G.
Bob Katsionis
Gus & Bob
Apollo & Bob
Petros Christo, Gus, & Bob.
One more of Apollo.
One more of Gus.
Dark Tranquillity pictures!
Mikael Stanne
Martin Henriksson and Michael Nicklasson.
Mikael Stanne & Niklas Sundin with Anders Jivarp in the background.
Martin Brändström, Mikael Stanne & Martin Henriksson
Arch Enemy Pictures will be in the follow up post.
