Symphony x in London last night - review

[Rward46and2]

I saw the x men along with stratovarious and thunderstone last night in London, what can I say, they blew my face off.

I wasn't sure what to expect with thunderstone cuz I've never heard them play before but wow, they are really good. Much like symphony x but I don't really remember a great deal of there songs because i wasn't familiar with there stuff. The reception for them wasn't that great, but they started while most people were queuing to get in.

Then came on Symphony x and the crowd suddenly livened up, cheers and shouts all round. The energy just rose. The set went something like this:

Inferno
Wicked
Evolution
Communion and the Oracle
Accolade 2
Out of the ashes (!!!)
Behind smoke and Mirrors
Of Sins and Shadows

Brilliant set, I was buzzing throughout the whole thing. They were extremely tight and i didn't have any complaints about the sound levels. Russells vocals seemed to be a bit off, failing to reach the high note on the whail in wicked. It was funny to see them actually take a break at this point in the song while Russell casually drunk a bottle of water and entertaining the crowd for a moment. Then it kicked back in with Russells second successful attempt.

"One more song" said Russell, causing the crowd to chant "Odyssey, Odyssey", which was funny, though nobody actually expected them to play it.

Inferno is absolutely the best opening track for a gig I have ever heard. Is there a better way of firing up the crowd?

Afterwards my face looked something like this

Then there was Stratovarious, who were also rock solid as well. I can't provide a track list cuz i had to leave half way through there set and wasn't as familiar with there material as I was with Symphonies. However what i did see i can only describe as thunderous, I love the beefed up sound they got live, though a lot of people i talked to disagreed that this was good.

I enjoyed Strato, but I heard that there set was to be around 2 hours long! I think this is a massive injustice to Symphony X, who only got 45 minutes and needed that extra time and deserve it, imo more than Stratovarious. After about an hour and a half of watching Stratovarious, it did seem to go on a bit, but maybe that was because i wasn't actually there to see them.

The lighting effects and pyro were uite cool, but it still didn't bring the performance as a whole up to X level.

Overall, the metal gods were overseeing the precedings of this gig, thoroughly enjoyable.

Btw did anybody else see this gig?

 

[DoktorShred]

Yeah it was bloody awesome, I was there too

I thought there were too many effects on Russels voice. I mean the guy from stratovarius works with the delay and stuff, but Russel has such a pure voice it doesnt need all that echo crap on it. He started off kind of shakey, but by Evolution he was kicking ass long with the rest of the band.

By the way when he goes "and heres a song off the new record.................evolution!" Do you think was intended to surprise the crowd, or a mistake??

lol it was sooooo funny it out of the ashes when he goes "man" and flexes his muscles haha. And in the choir part of sins and shadows Lepond did the most hilarious raised eyebrow ever. (that part is so blatantly sampled)

 

[Suicide]

I was supposed to go, but work meant I couldn't ... wahhhhh sob sob ...

 

[Ibanez]

Oh man! It was the best gig I have ever been to by far!! Some might have seen me, I was near the front and nearly always had my arms in the air I am glad that there where no crappy slam pits till strat came on, I prefer just rockin without getting thrown around And they couln't have finished it better! Of Sins And Shadows!!! My fav song by far!! I was a bit dissapointed that they only got 45 mins and strato got like 2 hours!!

And after they had finished, I looked forward to seeing stratovarious (although I was knakerd!!)... they came out alright (although they seemed to have there heads stuck up there own asses!). Played the first song, which I liked (was one of the strato songs I had and liked ). Then they started playing more, and all the other songs that I hadnt heard where just the bloody same! The only songs which I thought sounded good where Speed of Light and Kiss of Judas. But I suppose its all opinion, no offence to strato fans intended.

PS. The first band rocked aswell! (should have been strato supporting symph tho! )

 

[Hexxan]

hell yea!

they were so good, i wished they had played Odyssey at the end, would have been the best way to end a set ever....
anyway, they said they definatly coming back soon so i gotta catch em then.

strato, wernt too bad i do like some of their stuff, ok no where as near as good as SymX, but then again not many bands are

oh, did anyone hear me shouting "Fat boy Romeo rules!!"? its become the new thing to say whenever me and my mates start listenin to Sym... hehe

 

[karelrulez]

Russells vocals seemed to be a bit off, failing to reach the high note on the whail in wicked. It was funny to see them actually take a break at this point in the song while Russell casually drunk a bottle of water and entertaining the crowd for a moment. Then it kicked back in with Russells second successful attempt.

Dude they do that on purpose..(do I type that correctly?). Russell is the best singer I've seen in years he f*ckin' owns~!! Also, he's not only a damn good singer, but also a very good entertainer. He's REAL good at getting the crowd insane (on Live on TEOF, Evolution: "yeah come on come on~!" and the crowd goes totally insane!)

 

[chazzyf]

hmmm, I missed Thunderstone because I didn't get to Camden till 7:30 or so, SX rocked, despite the slightly muddy sound [haven't heard a Strato support band get great sound yet], but Strato bored my ass off.

In fact If I hadn't been waiting for a few people I wanted to speak to, I'd have quite happily walked out after 30 mins or so. I was very disappointed, but at the same time I recognise that I was in a minority.
A number of people left during the set - but this was mainly in order to catch trains etc and most of the folks I spoke to after the set seem to have thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind to enjoy it. :bash:

Anyway, I was really pleased to see Symphony X get such a good reaction from the crowd. The Greek Metal brotherhood down at the front made lots of noise as usual and sung along in places. I'd have liked to have heard The Accolade, but at least we got The Accolade II and a bunch of their more rocking tunes. By time Jason Rullo's kit was placed in front of Jorg's kit, there wasn't much room for Russ, Romeo and Lepond to stand never mind move around, so the performance was a bit static, but what the hell, I know that they can do better, but I still had a good time. Russ did a great job, but from my position behind the sounddesk, I couldn't see much of the others. Romeo was nice and clear in the mix, but I couldn't hear Pinella all that well, unfortunately.

Setlist
Inferno (The Odyssey)
Wicked (The Odyssey)
Evolution (V)
Communion & The Oracle (V)
Accolade II (The Odyssey)
Out of the Ashes (Divine Wings of Tragedy)
Smoke and Mirrors (Twilight in Olympus)
Of Sins & Shadows (Divine Wings of Tragedy)

Cool to see that all the CDs (save The Odyssey) were available at just £10. Shame that (once again on this tour) they sold out of SX T-shirts - someone hasn't ordered enough merchandise methinks!!!!. Russ promised that they'd be back, but I guess we'll see - after this showing they could certainly sell out one of the smaller halls here.

As for Strato, well ... great stage show despite the conditions. They had all the lights, back projections etc which they normally have and there were even some pyros. The playing was fine, with Jorg (drum machine) Michael nice and crisp in the mix, but I really don't like Koltpelto's singing on Elements part I and he carried this over to the live show. I may be in a minority on this, but its the first of 6 times I've seen the band and been disappointed .

Eagleheart made a great opener and I was flabbergasted that they played Kiss of Judas just 3 songs in, even though they had slightly changed the arrangement (to the songs detriment IMHO). There were a lot of songs from Episode and even a medley of songs from the first 4 albums (none of which I own). Destiny isn't one of the best songs from that disk (surely they should have played SOS?) and as for Stratofortress and Fantasia - well IMHO they are amongst the weakest tunes the band have produced in years. Elements isn't a patch on Infinity as the major blockbuster of the set.

The encores were good (what I remember of them), but by then I'd collected my coat and was chatting to people in the bar area. I will now be staying home rather than popping over to Paris on the 19th for the big show at le Zenith.

Setlist
Eagleheart (Elements Pt I)
Soul of A Vagabond? (Elements Part I)
Kiss of Judas (Visions)
Speed of Light (Episode)
Learning To Fly?, Find Your Own Voice? (Elements Pt I)
Destiny (Destiny)
Fantasia (Elements Pt I) <-- The cheesiest piece of shit they've ever written
Father Time (Episode)
MEDLEY: Fright night/Hands of time/We are the future/Tears of ice/Eyes of the world/Dreamspace/We hold the key
Forever (Episode)
Stratofortress (Elements Pt I) - Including Dancing Elks with beer
Elements (Elements Pt I)
Will the Sun Rise (Episode)
-----
Season of change (Episode)
Paradise (Visions)
Hunting Hi and Low (Infinite)
-----
Black Diamond (Visions)
[Not sure about some of those new tunes)

I guess that the setlist will have pleased some of the older fans, but it didn't click with me.

 

[underullospell]

hell yea!

they were so good, i wished they had played Odyssey at the end, would have been the best way to end a set ever....
anyway, they said they definatly coming back soon so i gotta catch em then.

strato, wernt too bad i do like some of their stuff, ok no where as near as good as SymX, but then again not many bands are

oh, did anyone hear me shouting "Fat boy Romeo rules!!"? its become the new thing to say whenever me and my mates start listenin to Sym... hehe

Not intending to start anything, and I know you probably don't mean any harm, but the whole" fat boy" shit is just so rude,man!!
You really don't know how that would make him feel,,I know I wouldn't want to be the one he hears say that, and maybe hurting his feelings. people can be very sensitive, and he is no exception, just becuz he is the greatest guitar player in the world, doesn't mean he won't be affected by what some one will call him... please have alittle more respect.. remember we are the ones that are there for them, WE(fans) keep them goin'.. So they can keep goin' for us..
Please don't take this wrong...God knows I hate starting shit, but I WILL stick up for the guys..
Us SymX fans have to stick 2gether..

 

[Fee]

WoWoWoW!!!!!!
SyX totally rocked the place last night! It was great to see the guys get so involved with the crowd. I think Russell was totally gobsmacked at the response they got even before they set foot on the stage! They looked like they were having so much fun up there too. Russ was off his trolley!! He was totally shaking b00ty! Was really great when he couldnt reach the high part in Wicked and had to stop everyone to take a quick swig and regain his composure. He's a fantastic entertainer. And i just couldnt get enough of Romeo's "dancing" either heehee! He totally captured the whole crowd everytime he attacked those solos....was freaking awesome!!

*sigh* i cant believe it was over so quickly tho, they shoulda been headlining this tour strato weren't nearly half as good and thunderpants kinda sucked too, but mebbe that was because i was so excited to be seeing SyX...

p.s must say a big "gawn yerselll big mannnn!" to the folk flying the Scottish flag there!! woohoo! \m/

 

[The Yngster]

Yeah, Hexxan dude, that was plain not cool.

 

[Hexxan]

heh, sorry guys. its just that the term 'fat boy' is used sooo much by my social group that its lost all its meaning basically we all call each other fat boy even the really thin guys get called fat.

anyway, i can see what u guys mean, u dont know my 'in' jokes and neither does he, haha. aw well, twas a good night anyways

p.s. its Hexxan

 

[The Yngster]

Thats what I said

 

[Hexxan]

haha, sneaky edit! i'll let u off this time

 

[Str|der]

Ok so I was not in London, but I noticed there was no thread for the Oslo show, so I post here instead.

Damn I had fun. It was my first concert ever and I don't regret travelling across half the country for it one bit. Originally, the main reason I went was because a friend of mine convinced me to go sometime last year when I was drunk and carefree. He is a die hard Stratovarius fan (and was at the time trying to get me addicted as well). When I later heard that Symphony X was playing, I cried out in joy.

My diehardStratovariusfanfriend insisted we show up really early to wait in line so that we would get to stand all the way in the front. So we did. Of course.... When I arrived, I discovered that I had forgotten my ticket and had to go back to the hotel to get it. Fair enough. When I got back there was already quite a line forming, so I gave up any hope of getting to stand in the front. As I went to show my tickets to the people at the entrance, they bloody did not want to let me enter! They said the ticket had been stamped incorrectly or something. I said I had bought it at the post office (which was the truth... I mean seriously. If some idiot at the post office had destroyed my ticket so that I would have thrown away hundreds of euro (to use your currency, or do you still use pounds?) to travel to Oslo only to NOT see the concert!!!*rage*) and luckily they finally let me in. By now, I had given up all hope of even seeing the stage (ok so that was an exagguration, but you get the point), so I went and bought a Symphony X shirt and bought a beer, when suddenly I noticed my two friends all the way in the front in the middle. Somehow they managed to squeeze me in there, so by the time Thunderstone was done, we were all as near to the stage as you can get.

Thunderstone was surprisingly good by the way.

Symphony X ruled that show. I wish they had been given more time than they did. My personal favourite moment was when they played Accolade II (my favorite song from Odyssey and the one song I had hoped they would play) and when one of my friends lifted me up on his shoulders so that I towered above everyone else, receiveing approving nods from the people in the band (by that time, I was really glad I had decided to by that Symphony X shirt )

Stratovarius was a disappointment... By the time they started their seemingly endless medley, I was more or less bored and tired (I have a bad back) I had positioned myself behind my friends so I could hang on their shoulders for support and was seriously considering going to one of the bars to get a beer. I managed to hang in there though, and was finally rewarded when they played Hunting High and Low! Still, I could have managed with Symphony X as the MAIN band and either Stratovarius OR Thunderstone as warm up bands... Not both of them.

There was some problems with the sound though... People were running around on stage from time to time checking cables and stuff and During the first Symphony X song, the sound in the wireless mic was out, so he had to use one with a wire instead...

Oh and I noticed Timo (The vocalist in Stratovarius) almost managed to duplicate his "let me walk into our own pyrotechnics and burn half my arm to mangled shreds" trick. (He did that on a concert in 2000 (I think it was then) ) . Luckily this time, the bassist was perceptive and managed to pull him back in time.

Anders

 

[The Yngster]

Oh and I noticed Timo (The vocalist in Stratovarius) almost managed to duplicate his "let me walk into our own pyrotechnics and burn half my arm to mangled shreds" trick. (He did that on a concert in 2000 (I think it was then) ) . Luckily this time, the bassist was perceptive and managed to pull him back in time.

Anders

Thats what you get for using pyro. Is it really necessary? It makes the show brighter, yes, but not better imo.

 

[Krizz]

Damn right!!!!!!

 

[Skitz]

I was there at the Electric Ballroom. Missed Thunderstone, but arrived with time to spare for Symphony X. What can I say? That was easily the best gig I have ever been too by a billion miles. I don't think I've ever seen so many people look so happy because they're hearing such amazing music.

When they came on and started playing Inferno, I almost cried - it was that good. Evolution and Communion & the Oracle had me stunned - New Myth Suite is so damn good, but live... I can't express how good it was in words. The response to Accolade II was just plain awesome too. Overall, they got a good mix of new and older tracks, and their performance was so perfect.

I can't wait till they come back, and they damn well better have a longer set next time.

As regards Stratovarius, well they were a bit boring. My friends and I left after Destiny. I'd heard some of Stratovarius' stuff before the gig, and they sound a little too repetative for my liking. SX make really interesting and intelligent progressive, rather than Stratovarius' seemingly formulaic power metal. And the pyrotechnics in the first song were pretty cool, but to be honest, I found the light show distracting.

 

[TheFunkyGibbons]

Boo hoo

At 4pm, I had to pull out as my son was very ill (luckily he now on the mend) so my mates had to go on the train instrad of me giving them a lift. (Sorry guys).

I hope they will be back soon, perhaps as a headlining set.

I understand they were amazed how big they are in the UK, and lots of people I know would travel to see them, but did not this time because they were the support act. Hopefully they have got this message and will come back.

 

[Rward46and2]

Dude they do that on purpose..(do I type that correctly?). Russell is the best singer I've seen in years he f*ckin' owns~!! Also, he's not only a damn good singer, but also a very good entertainer. He's REAL good at getting the crowd insane (on Live on TEOF, Evolution: "yeah come on come on~!" and the crowd goes totally insane!)

I'm not sure he did. When he said "Man, I'm getting to old for this" it gave me the impression that something was up at that moment. Plus actually stopping the song to have a second attempt to get it right, do they normally stop the song twice?

I actually quite like the way Strato turned fantasia into an ending for destiny, it worked well imo. Fantasia wouldn't stand as a decent live song by itself. It was just after they played forever that i started to feel tired and as if it the set was dragging on, too damn long!

 

[karelrulez]

I'm not sure he did. When he said "Man, I'm getting to old for this" it gave me the impression that something was up at that moment. Plus actually stopping the song to have a second attempt to get it right, do they normally stop the song twice?

I actually quite like the way Strato turned fantasia into an ending for destiny, it worked well imo. Fantasia wouldn't stand as a decent live song by itself. It was just after they played forever that i started to feel tired and as if it the set was dragging on, too damn long!

They do that wicked trick at almost all gigs. It's something for the fans. Didn't you hear they extended Wicked a bit, they really did something great with it live.