Venue: Ljubljana / Orto Bar / Slovenia
Date: Sunday, 13 Oct 2019
Finnish melodic death metallers Omnium Gatherum have always seemed to get less attention than they deserve, overshadowed by some of their more established compatriots. They hadn’t been making it to Slovenia much either. They did play here once, years ago, as a support act for Dark Tranquillity in Ljubljana, but a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then. In the meantime, Omnium Gatherum kept steadily putting out albums and slowly building their fanbase. They’ve gathered enough supporters across Europe to finally head out on a tour as the headliner. Promoting last year’s The Burning Cold, Omnium Gatherum took Swedish In Mourning and Danish Heidra along for the ride.
The show was opened by Denmark’s Heidra, who — defying the usual fate of support acts — didn’t play to an empty room. Heidra managed to pull in a decent crowd through solid stage communication and, above all, infectious music. The band served up a mix of power and folk metal, with black metal elements also creeping in here and there. Most of all, their melodic passages brought Ensiferum to mind. The band leans on a fairly straightforward, time-tested sound, which can put people off if it feels too derivative — but with Heidra you got the sense they were genuinely pushing toward something of their own. On top of that, the performance was seriously energetic, which was yet another reason the band got such a warm reception.
Swedish outfit In Mourning were a highly anticipated act. Despite having five albums under their belt, the band had barely toured up to this point — in fact, this was their first proper European tour. They seemed genuinely surprised by the response, with nearly everyone in the room glued to the stage. But In Mourning are no flash in the pan. The band can boast a progressive sound that initially recalls Opeth before they turned toward more retro territory — but to make clear they’re no pale imitation, they’ve folded in melodic death metal and doom/death metal as well. With cleverly structured songs, strong melodic sensibility, and a dynamic rhythm section, In Mourning ended up being the highlight of the night for more than a few people in the crowd.
In Mourning don’t have a huge amount of stage mileage behind them, but their set came across as genuine and energetic. The band members are brilliantly locked in with each other, and with three guitars in the mix the sound was impressively rich. As a unit, In Mourning work really well together. It’s a shame they couldn’t fit all the standout tracks from their career into the set, but they managed to capture the essence of what they’re about. They played a good number of newer tracks, and from the older catalog: The Smoke, then from their third album A Vow to Conquer the Ocean and the epic Colossus, which also closed the set. Skipping their excellent debut was a missed opportunity, but that’ll take a longer setlist — and a return visit. Either way, what In Mourning delivered here made a pretty strong case for getting them back as soon as possible.
Finnish melodic death metallers Omnium Gatherum finally stepped up as the well-deserved headliner. The Finnish sextet has eight studio albums behind them, the latest being The Burning Cold, released last year — and the promotional cycle was naturally still in full swing. That said, the band naturally threw in some older tracks too. For years it felt like Omnium Gatherum were living in the shadow of the better-known Insomnium. And there’s a further connection: Markus Vanhala is in the band, who also plays guitar in Insomnium.
The similarities with Insomnium are there, but Omnium Gatherum don’t come across as nearly as melancholic. They also have keyboards in the mix, which makes for quite a different picture — and they’re used with restraint, not overdone. The vocals are melodic too, which is pretty standard practice in melodic death metal. Omnium Gatherum try to keep things as varied as possible, even if the resemblances are obvious. A solid chunk of the setlist was devoted to The Burning Cold, while tracks from Beyond, Grey Heavens and New World Shadows were naturally present as well. Sure, a few more older cuts wouldn’t have hurt, but the band is now best known for their recent studio output. And they delivered on the night — tight, well-drilled, and with plenty of energy to spare.
Omnium Gatherum, In Mourning and Heidra made sure this Sunday evening went by in fine style — a strong combination of melodic death metal, progressive doom/death metal, and power and folk metal.
Author: Primož Novak
Photos: Sebastijan Videc
Heidra
In Mourning
Omnium Gatherum
