date: 31.10.2018
location: Ljubljana, CUK Kino Šiška, Slovenia
performers: HammerFall, Armored Dawn
October 31 – Halloween night. Yet another imported holiday pushed on us by Western consumer culture, though luckily it doesn’t catch on here as much as some others. At least judging by the number of people in costume at Wednesday’s show, it doesn’t. But no matter; this October 31 will be remembered by about a thousand young and young-at-heart fans for one hell of a concert, conjured up by Swedish power metal legends HammerFall, who paid our little homeland a visit after way too long a break.
Picking a support act can be a double-edged sword for the headliner. Back in 2009, for example, when HammerFall also played Štuk in Maribor, they brought Sabaton along. Sabaton had just released the excellent album Art of War and were storming up the ranks of heavy and power metal, steep and uncompromising. And they completely steamrolled HammerFall that night. This time, luckily for the Swedes, that didn’t happen. Armored Dawn come from faraway Brazil. The young band, only active for a few years, is made up entirely of seasoned musicians and has already put out two full-length albums and an EP in the past three years. As expected, they built their set around tracks from this year’s album Barbarians in Black. It was recorded under the baton of Seeb Levermann (Orden Ogan) and got huge praise from critics when it dropped, and many rank it among the best power metal albums of the year. The interesting thing about their music is that the most criticized part is Eduardo Parasso’s vocals, which really don’t stand out and don’t sound much like the mighty voices of their European peers. The band clearly knows it, too, because bassist Fernando Giovanetti helps out with a grittier voice most of the time, which means the guitars take center stage! At times even three of them, since in some parts Rafael Agostino, normally the keyboardist, also grabbed a guitar and built a mighty wall of sound together with Tiago de Mouro and Tim Kaarkoski. Catchy and fun in front of a relatively full hall, Armored Dawn surely won themselves some new fans with their first show on our soil.
It’s been a good 7 years since HammerFall last played here. In that time, the band, led by singer Joacim Cans and guitarist Oscar Dronjak, has made two new albums; (r)Evolution came out in 2014, and Built to Last followed two years later, which they were also promoting on this two-year tour that’s just winding down. There was a lineup change along the way, too – after almost two decades behind the kit, Anders Johansson was replaced on drums by David Wallin. The jam-packed, sold-out hall of Kino Šiška exploded at the first notes of Hector’s Hymn. The crowd was hungry for a good, quality heavy power metal show, and HammerFall, despite probably being worn out from all that touring, served up exactly that, as befits their long career! The atmosphere was incredible, and the interaction between Joacim, the rest of the band and the crowd matched the long absence from Slovenian stages – like old friends reuniting. The positive vibes carried the international crowd (you could hear quite a few Croatians, Austrians and Italians in the hall) through the rich discography of the Swedish power metallers, who somehow managed to wriggle out of the grip of their melodeath colleagues in their native Göteborg (let’s not forget that In Flames founder Jesper Strömblad originally drummed in HammerFall, and before that he and Dronjak played together in Ceremonial Oaths) and become one of the pillars of power metal. After a quarter of a century, the band still sits at the very top of the popularity ladder. Despite promoting the new album, the Swedes didn’t overdo it with new songs and instead took us on a trip through their history, and one of the warmest receptions went to a string of hits from the album Legacy of the Kings. Add Cans’ comic interludes and the signature stage choreography led by Dronjak, and a great show is guaranteed. Wednesday’s concert proves that interest in heavy metal is far from fading and that its future is secure.
Let the hammer fall!
author: Sebastijan Videc
photos: Sebastijan Videc
ARMORED DAWN:
1. Bloodstone
2. Chance to Live Again
3. Eyes Behind the Crow
4. Men od Odin
5. Sail Away
6. Gods of Metal
7. Barbarians in Black
8. Beware of the Dragon
HAMMERFALL:
1. Hector’s Hymn
2. Riders of the Storm
3. Renegade
4. Dethrone and Defy
5. Blood Bound
6. Any Means Necessary
7. B.Y.H.
8. Crimson Thunder
9. Threshold
10. Built to Last
11. Last Man Standing
12. Guitar Solo – Pontus Norgren
13. Legacy of Kings Medley
14. Heeding the Call
15. Let the Hammer Fall
—encore—
16. Hammer High
17. Bushido
18. Hearts on Fire
