HELLHOUNDS FEST FEATURING TIAMAT, 69 EYES AND AVA INFERI
LONDON ELECTRIC BALLROOM - 02/03/09
This was the last date of a 20 show tour which had taken in places such as Poland, Czech Republic, Italy, Germany and Hungary ending up at The Ballroom on a Monday night. It’s a big old venue and despite there being a large queue of assorted looking tribes the place was nowhere near full as the event started. It should be mentioned that a couple of bands, Scream Silence and Novembre had been cut from the tour making the fest moniker of these shows a bit of a misnomer.
I was mainly here for Ava Inferi and had been lucky enough to hear some new songs from forthcoming album ‘Blood Of Bacchus’ with them prior to the show. Still this left me ill prepared for the live experience as it was quickly evident from the start that the sound was mighty and powerful for a first band on the bill. After the group came on led by Carmen Simões swinging a censor of incense we were quickly thrust into a heady musical realm and one that smelled damn nice too. Carmen was very much the centre of attention but thick bass and jagged guitars rocked out even if the players kept back leaving her to dominate. In case you were not aware one of these players Rune Erikson may well be known to you as Blasphemer ex Mayhem and seemed very content as he is now fully settled into this new role. With only 30 minutes and lengthy songs we only were able to get four from the group and the one that really hit the spot was the new one ‘Tempestade’ sung in Portuguese with traditional guitar accompaniment. The album should hopefully really put the group on the map and what I heard sounded really deep with a lot of dimensions to it. Those with last album ‘The Silhouette’ were not to be left disappointed by ‘Pulse Of The Air’ either and it seemed as though the band had gone down well with everyone here.
However one got the impression that for many it was Finns 69 Eyes who were the main event. I knew the chances were that they were not likely to be my thing and had apart from a brief trek though MySpace not even heard them before. It seemed like many had and they were mainly young ladies clinging to the barrier and screaming like they were at a boy band show, which in effect I guess they were. Considering song number two was called ‘Never Say Die’ they certainly said it a lot and whilst I was snapping away at these glam metal posers in the photo pit it was difficult not to admire their dynamic performance. The group acted like they were the biggest rock stars in the world with singer Jyrki69 even dedicating one number ‘The Rocker’ to himself. I would say you had to laugh but after 20 minutes or so the joke just wasn’t funny anymore. I was forced toward the bar as it was not so much calling but screaming for me but still with pint firmly grasped gave the group my full attention. The biggest problem with this excessively long set was that so many songs reminded of other bands. Billy Idol was one obvious inspiration and when they laid of the glam and went for the Goth a bit I was reminded of The Cult, one number sounded like it was going to be a cover of ‘Rain’ and had me choking on my beer. The crowd wanted an encore and got one which was apparently ‘Lost Boys’ yep I wished they would get lost. Finally a Doors medley put pay to their set and I have to be honest but I wished they had headlined, so I could have gone home.
In their defence, they were good at what they did and had my feet involuntarily tapping at times whether I liked it or not.
It has been quite some time since I last caught Tiamat and it appears I missed their last album ‘Amanethes’ too. Never mind, there were bound to be some numbers I was likely to recognise from their extensive career. Luckily there had not been too much of a mass exodus vacating the premises after the 69 Eyes and it was obvious from those singing along at the front that Tiamat had some fans in the audience. Benny hats seemed to be the height of fashion within the band and what with all the dry ice and frosty guitar chords one could not help but shiver as it started ‘Raining Dead Angels.’ It was not long until ‘Cain’ a number I knew well came out the speakers and it was by this point that I began to realise that Tiamat were going to play upbeat numbers followed by slower doom laden ones like this. Johan Edlund’s vocals sounded excellent and despite the fact that they are not the most exciting spectacle to watch in the world they were in fact conveying quite an atmosphere as they were bathed in a cold blue light.
The depressive ‘Do You Dream Of Me’ was one that I really liked as it cast an entrancing shroud upon us and offered a bleak doomed lovelorn serenade. As for the upbeat moments ‘Vote For Love’ was always likely to be a highlight and it was the number that got everyone bouncing about like they were at a disco. ‘Brighter Than The Sun’ saw the group lit up in tangerine almost as though they were being scorched by the rays but it was the ultimate stomp of ‘Cold Seed’ that many had been waiting for and actually got a pit stoked up on the dance-floor. After this proclamation an encore seemed pretty much surplus to requirements especially with a new song I did not know ‘Via Dolorosa’ which did nothing really for me. As they announced members of 69 Eyes back onto stage for ‘Sleeping Beauty’ I decided that was indeed the best option and to take to my heels and hopefully not fall asleep on the way home. Good to see Tiamat can still deliver and I was pleased to catch them as it’s not like they play here very often.
Pete Woods
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