SkyEye Give Birth to a Digital God (2018)

date: Friday, 9. 11. 2018
location: Orto Bar, Ljubljana

Heavy metal lives! The proof isn’t just the packed halls and sold-out stadiums of giants like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, but also the many young bands carrying on the legacy of the genre’s forefathers, most of them gathered under the N.W.O.T.H.M. banner. Anyone who says bands like Striker, Skull Fist, Evil Invaders, Elm Street, Holy Grail, Unleash the Archers, Eternal Champion, Visigoth and plenty of others don’t get their pulse up and their blood pumping is lying. Just like SkyEye pulled it off with no trouble a little over a week ago, launching their long-awaited debut Digital God in a sold-out Orto Bar. But first, let’s take it from the top.

For their guests, SkyEye kindly invited the band of their former guitarist Uroš Kušar, Sketne, who were playing their very first gig ever. In a good half hour, the five-piece presented their genre-blending mix of rock and metal and, for a first time on stage, came across as very confident and self-assured, mostly thanks to the energetic vocalist Nastja. She also showed quite a bit of vocal chameleon talent, sounding like Nina from Mist one moment and like Sandra from Guano Apes the next, which didn’t always work all that well. Instrumentally the band showed they’re well rehearsed, but the arrangements could have used a bit more punch. Still, a very decent first show.

Things started smelling a bit more of kerosene and gasoline when Hangar 55, from Medvode and Kamnik, took the stage and floored the pedal with a loud, potent mix of heavy metal and hard rock. They heated up an already well-warmed crowd even more and greeted it with Revelation of Sensation from their debut First Aid, from which they then played most of the songs, adding some new stuff that will land on the upcoming album Asylum, already in the works. The crowd at Orto took to the guys quickly, which isn’t hard, since they win you over with hard-hitting songs, catchy refrains and a likable frontman. His voice might give some people pause, though, as it’s totally untypical for heavy metal. Franci doesn’t go for high vocals and a clean voice, but sounds like a slightly rougher Chris Boltendahl (Grave Digger), which makes him one of those singers you either really like or don’t like at all. Either way, Hangar 55 properly warmed up Orto for the arrival of the digital god.

The eye in the sky opened four years ago, and if at first it only blinked a little shyly, this year it threw its lids wide open and showed itself in all its power, and under its gaze a digital god was born. The debut from Ljubljana heavy metal outfit SkyEye was without a doubt the most eagerly awaited release the local metal scene has seen, after the guys put themselves on the map with the excellent EP Run For Yor Life (2017) and a string of great gigs. A little over a week ago they crowned it all with a “release party” for the debut Digital God, and managed something few have before: the home-grown heavy metal band sold out the upstairs room at Orto Bar! The guys played one of their best shows, to everyone’s delight, and ran through their debut in full, from A to Z. SkyEye blew everyone away with their superb tightness and a hell of a performance that won the crowd over instantly, and the packed room sang the catchy refrains right along with them. Once again the bombastic rhythm section of Jurij Nograšek and Primož Lušin delivered, as did the melodic riffing and polished solos of the guitar duo Grega Stalowsky and Marko Kavčnik, but the show was stolen by the phenomenal Jan Leščanec, who once again stunned with an unbelievable vocal performance that probably has no equal right now on home soil, and maybe beyond. After a good hour, the closing epic Galactic Wind, with its gentle lines of “We are, running out of time…”, announced the all-too-soon end of the worship of the digital god, which was a success in every respect.

Photos: Nina Grad