Author: Rok Klemše
Photos: Nina Grad
Venue: Gromka, Metelkova, Ljubljana
Concert date: 11.04.2013
Judging by the cheesy poster with Mexican mariachis that the promoter used to hype this gig, you’d expect something totally different if you didn’t know the bands beforehand. But no, there was no Antonio Banderas on stage, and even less so the unforgettable trio from the cult Beastie Boys video Hey Ladies. As part of the Fire Walk With Me tour, three Norwegian acts stopped by Gromka last Thursday, two of them making their debut here, while tour headliners Vreid are by now good, always welcome acquaintances of our stages.
At an academic quarter past ten, In Vain were the first to step on stage, and to my great delight they had finally dragged their lazy asses out on a proper European tour. I just haven’t been able to get this Norwegian progressive black/death metal outfit out of my head and ears since their phenomenal debut The Latter Rain (2007). It set the bar high for the band, but with the follow-up Mantra (2010) it seemed the debut had been nothing more than beginner’s luck. The recently released Aenigma turned the quality curve back upward and brought the Norwegian seven-piece to our parts for the first time. In Vain delivered the majestic, epic sound of all three albums, proving their masterful feel for songwriting. The epic-length tracks, over the course of which In Vain effortlessly strung together a whole palette of emotions and musical genres, easily sucked in the crowd, small as it was. Special praise goes to Sindre Nedland, who made a genuine connection with the audience and delivered a varied, top-notch vocal performance, with equally infectious clean vocals and brutal, raw ones. If Sindre had real charisma, the same is hard to say of the band’s mastermind Andreas Frigstad, despite his solid black metal screaming. Lazily strolling around the stage and shooting quasi-evil looks, he came off even worse than Tim »Ripper« Owens’s boxing. Still, In Vain nailed their forty minutes, the Aenigma tracks already sound crushing and convincing live, and I was especially blown away by the complex, dynamic epics from the debut, Det Rakner, October’s Monody (with its unforgettable »Nick Cave« bit) and the titanic closer, The Titan.
The real disappointment came next, courtesy of Solefald, or rather a »tribute to« band. The only two permanent members of Solefald, Cornelius and Lazare, stayed home (Lazare) or reportedly got food poisoning (Cornelius). Sadly, the two are accompanied on tour by In Vain as a session band, who played a shorter set anyway, which was certainly a nice gesture, but it would have been better had they refrained. The artfag avant-garde black metal was pure torture for the ears, and a few more things made the whole thing even worse: the bassist’s wishy-washy dancing, which I’d sooner expect in bands like Coldplay, and lyrics that would probably be labeled genius in some circles at the humanities faculty, the kind lads and lasses with slicked-down hair and the obligatory thick black-framed glasses would doodle in their notebooks. Let me demonstrate a few examples of this idiocy: »Coco Chanel – welcome to hell/Let me out of my prison cell«, »The truth as it was told to me by Calvin Klein«, »« The USA don’t exist/Again I’m pissed.« I’ll allow for the possibility that a »tribute« band without its real leaders just sounded bad, but I’m not exactly itching to try my luck again.
The bad taste of »Solefald« horror was fixed by the Norwegians Vreid, who rose from the ashes of the cult Norwegian band Windir after the tragic death of its frontman Valfar. But over the years Vreid have become much more than a Windir »spin-off«, turning into a great band with an identity of its own. Recently the band released its sixth album, Welcome Farewell, which only confirms their move away from their black metal roots and the rich evolution of their already rich music. Vreid marched onto the effectively dressed stage, decorated with vignettes from the new album’s cover, to the epic sounds of the single The Ramble, which painted a picture of Norwegian folklore right from the start. The charismatic frontman Sture stepped to the front with ease and, in the obligatory uniform with the Norwegian flag on it, commanded his Vreid army with force and efficiency. The newer Vreid have a strongly emphasized melodic component, which colors their take on black metal with heavy rock influences, further deepened by almost folkloric, »polka« moments that even the Oompa Loompas would dance to. A fine example came right after with the superb The Reap, with its infectious riffs and chilling solos. Vreid’s lyrics touch on themes that can be roughly split into three parts – the first records deal with evil and darkness, close to classic black metal themes, the band’s middle period is heavily marked by lyrics about Norwegian folklore, and even more by lyrics about World War II and the fight against the occupier, while on Welcome Farewell Vreid again turn to more fantastical, mystical elements. That’s exactly the picture Vreid painted for us, as with The Reap and Welcome Farewell they took us into the dark Norwegian forests, with Songen at Fangen and Raped By Light into black metal riffing of epic proportions, and with Alarm among the Norwegians who rose up against the German occupation during World War II. The Norwegians have found an excellent niche of black metal mixed with rock ‘n roll rhythms and the occasional thrash metal influence, one that’s unique and at the same time damn infectious! On stage, led by guitarist and vocalist Sture, Vreid were the very definition of their name, which translates as wrath, and despite an excellent performance (or precisely because of it) I really missed a few more songs. Jarnbyrd or Under Isen from the album I Krig, which Vreid completely skipped this time, would have fit nicely. Still, the Norwegian Furious Ones easily washed away the taste of the dismal middle of the night, and at the same time played one of the best gigs of this year to hit us so far.
Setlist
VREID:
1. The Ramble
2. The Reap
3. Songen at fangen
4. Welcome Farewell
5. Arche
6. Alarm
7. Sights of Old
8. Raped By Light
9. At the Brook
10. Pitch Black
Photo gallery
