KORPIKLAANI, BATTLELORE, KIVIMETSAN DRUIDI & FALCHION
LEEDS RIOS – 05/12/08
With a slew of gigs all crammed into the space of a few weeks, there was always the question of whether this abundance of choice would affect tonight’s attendance. Having attended two sold out Korpiklaani concerts already, I should’ve guessed that of all gigs, tonight would be one that wouldn’t suffer a poor turnout, although admittedly things do seem slightly more comfortable tonight, especially at the start of the evening.
With drinking horns and Finnish flags, the crowd is already in the party spirit and ready for a night of fun filled Finnish folk festivities, which all kicks off with Falchion. This lot are fronted by Korpiklaani accordionist Juho, although strike a far more sober note and as competent as they may be, I can’t help but feel slightly put off by the fact they appear to take themselves so seriously. Tracks like ‘Primitive Again’ are delivered with the kind of crunch the album had lead me to expect; the only difference is that there is more excitement to be found in watching the flashing lights on my stereo than in the stage presence of this lot. There are plenty of opportunities for the guitarist to rip out some of the lightning fast fretwork that plays such a big part in their technical melo-death style, not least on the instrumental ‘Mayhem Machine’. Clearly the crowd is reserving their enthusiasm for the headliners; myself included, as while they pick up the pace in their last couple of numbers, I walk away from this feeling rather cold.
In contrast, from the moment Kivimetsan Druidi step out onto the stage it is clear this band have upped their game substantially since last time they were over in the UK. This horde of druidic warmongers unleashes a vicious attack upon the crowd with a succession of fierce, storming riffs and drums that are equally as formidable. In her flowing white dress, Leeni-Maria drifts licentiously in a manner as beguiling as her vocals. Her gentle mien proves incredibly misleading as she can really work the crowd when she wants to. Even as she thrashes her locks about to ‘The Tyrant’ she manages to do so with swan-like grace, while the crowd formulate a circle pit in a far less poised fashion. Her saccharine soprano intermingles eloquently with the callous rasps of her male counterpart on the ferocious ‘Blacksmith’, as they battle it out over a layer of buzzsaw guitars that keep raging on through a histrionic chorus. This fiery performance certainly warms me after the previous set, and leaves me feeling ready for things to come.
With the standards for the night now set, Battlelore sadly don’t match up to expectations and lack much of the vitality of the druids. After prancing out onto the stage to an epic backdrop of what sounds like the missing theme tune to LOTR, they charge in with ‘Third Immortal’ with its steady swagger that takes us marching into the thick of the battlefield. There is a real dreaminess to this song with the dejected vocal tones of Kaisa Joukhi wailing out through the fog-like ambience, which is broken up by Tomi’s deathly growls. This sextet alliance appears totally cramped on the modest sized stage and the sound is as muddy as a trail through the marshes of Middle Earth. A succession of storming drums lead us up to the ‘Moontower’ as the twinkly keyboard melodies add a projection of doom within metallic bursts of guitars. Tonight being the last night of the tour, it appears that all of the bands are in party mode as Battlelore are joined by a crowd of dancing Playboy bunnies and Druidi’s. While I make a conscious effort to enjoy their set, I soon tire of the poor sound and wander off in search of beer.
Antlers out on the stage? No mistaking that it’s time for Korpiklaani, and the minute the opening violin melody breaks out to ‘Happy Little Boozer’ in all its jovial glory, I find myself surrounded by a mass of people pogoing in unison which is impossible not to join in with thanks to the vibrating of the floor beneath. With this band, you know what you are going to get and they never fail to deliver. If you want to stand around being miserable and trying your best to look serious then chances are you’d have been better off at Gorgoroth the week before. Tonight it’s all about dancing about in merriment to songs about politics and Satan and…yea right! This is a Korpiklaani show - therefore it is mandatory to slam back as many ‘Wooden Pints’ as humanly possible and get silly in the mosh pit – and if you run out then the nice forest dwelling guys are always on hand to spray the boozy stuff on you anyway!
Indigenous yodelling is emitted above the tribal drum beat that transports one to the bucolic settings of a place where there is no such thing as the internet and certainly no factories polluting the air, and the accordion frantically dances about amidst the rhythmical backbone. After downing my ‘Beer Beer’, I push my way into the pit for literal beer-soaked madness with the other ‘Happy Little Boozer’s, making it well worth the £35 taxi-ride home (thanks to the 12:30 finish!)
Luci Herbert
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