Live Reports

Last year Stu Hamm put out a new album, »The Book of Lies«, and that's also what the tour was called, with the highly virtuosic trio, officially billed as Stu Hamm Band feat. Greg Howe, hitting club stages all over Europe.

Few bands have written their names into the archive of Slovenian music in capital letters without any needless pomp. Lačni Franz are definitely one of them. Formed back in 1979 in the Styrian capital at the initiative of Zoran Predin and…

The band had already played their hometown Maribor a few days earlier, officially celebrating the new album's release for the first time. Now, as part of the promo run, they swung by Ljubljana's Orto bar too.

Some eighty Bluesiana-goers were thrilled this time to welcome one of the most interesting and most distinctive standard-bearers of true-blue jazz-rock fusion, tuned to the six-string doctrine inherited from the days of the great pioneers…

The old school of punk woven into a wild stampede of a primordially furious strain of rock'n'roll is what Rodoljubac's new studio release delivers to the scene. It cements the unique musical charisma of these first-rate heralds of…

You could say Avtomobili have truly come a long way. After all these years, with their evergreen songs that remain our everyday companions. They've made it to their tenth album, »Daleč«. Backed by serious promo activity (promo videos,…

"The sad thing with Bobby is that nobody knows how much longer he'll be shambling around stages in anything resembling 'good health', so Pentagram are a band every fan of the genre has to see live at least once in their life."

The organizers of the two-day festival Scena se pedena reminded everyone just how rich and strong the Slovenian underground is, with representatives of homegrown punk, metal, hardcore and a few other genres trading places on two stages.

Vinnie Moore is another guitar ace who burst onto the scene in the mid-eighties and, with his persona of a wunderkind guitar virtuoso, radically shaped the popularization of guitar rock. Right alongside the other aces (and there weren't…

We've stepped deep into a concert season that's already almost ridiculously packed, kicked off with doom sounds from the fathers of the genre, Pentagram!

Moonspell remain the very definition of a huge live attraction. If it's not outright spectacle, it's at the very least a convincing picture of a predatory show and the creation of a unique world of gothic gloom, dosed with brutal madness,…

A year has flown by and it's time for another Metal Witch, with Marko Brecelj, Inmate, Necrotik, Pyroxene, Warm Up Bones and Metropolis taking the stage (in that order).

"Miha Kralj, whom some call the Yugoslav / Slovenian Jean-Michel Jarre (though he himself shies away from the nickname), reminded everyone in the Katedrala, the big hall of Kino Šiška, of his musical greatness, which even after all these…

The Yob and Black Cobra show at a more-than-decently-packed Gromka club proved that this year's gig season is definitely a varied one. Fans of the less commercial genres and obscure bands get their fix too, bands you'd never have imagined…

Miha Kralj, the Yugoslav and later Slovenian keyboardist, composer, singer and sonic pioneer of electronic and ambient music, played one of the rare solo shows of his colorful career in the big hall of Kino Šiška. We'll remember it above…

Ladies and gentlemen! The one and only jazz-rock sorcerer from Scandinavia. Bassist Jonas Hellborg, in the setting of an unforgettable three-way power play between bass guitar, keyboards and drums. The other two thirds of this special…

Prismojeni profesorji Bluesa at Ljubljana's Križanke. A top-shelf lineup of Slovenian musicians plus a great setting: the posters around Ljubljana promised a hefty dose of quality blues. This time the Prismojenci really put on some big…

We waited long, way too long, but the chance for a close encounter with King Crimson finally came, and they rewarded us with a spectacular show that glided between hell and heaven with utterly convincing ambient mastery, all while casually…

"Marillion surprised us way more with a performance of the more than fifteen-minute title masterpiece, that is "This Strange Engine", with which they closed their fantastic show in Verona in epic fashion."

Verona, one of Italy's most picturesque cities, with an incredibly rich history and a beautifully preserved old town that still draws crowds of tourists from all over the world, welcomed the legendary English band Marillion into the heart…

Laibach and a symphony orchestra performing Krst pri Savici is something that should find its way into every Slovenian home instead of the accordion, and we want more »An Evening With Laibach«, please!

Taking a musical 'stroll' through the magnificent New Trolls legacy at their show in Lignano was a one-of-a-kind experience, and it surely made every fan of the Italian prog rock scene in the crowd happy.

The sextet Panda is the very definition of artistic perfection. Thirty years in, with a freshly released studio album in their pocket, "Stoletni ples", and a dozen radio hits that have become beloved evergreens over the years, they're once…

Quiet, humble, free, and heartfelt! At ten in the evening. At Grad Zaprce. In Kamnik. As part of this year's Kamfest. The right music for just the right ambiance. In front of a gathered audience of twenty listeners. Dre, together with Domen…

Kamfest, Kamnik's long-running traditional festival, is on right now, and it's already the 13th edition. As part of the main daytime program at Mali grad in Kamnik, day three of Kamfest 2016 featured Prismojeni profesorji bluesa. The…

The last day of the festival was reserved for one final explore of the Josefov fortress and gathering memories from the 21st edition of Brutal Assault.

The weather was kind to us on the third day of the festival too, even though it got properly chilly in the evening. Budvar and an already almost-too-stacked Friday lineup made sure we didn't freeze.

The second day of the festival was just as genre-hopping as the first. On Thursday, Brutal Assault served up everything from death metal to electronic music.

"Day three of the legendary Bang Your Head festival 2016, closed out by Iced Earth!"

Three years have passed since our last visit to the Czech Republic's biggest metal festival, Brutal Assault, and its 21st edition was the perfect excuse to head back into the embrace of the former Josefov military fortress.

Location: Seebronn (Rottenburg am Neckar) / Festplatz / Germany Date: Sunday, July 31, 2016 The last day had arrived, day three of the 11th Rock of Ages festival. It was Sunday, and it kicked off in truly miserable fashion. The…

Despite the shaky weather, Animals as Leaders, Intervals and Plini delivered an unforgettable gig for anyone who's into innovative instrumental music that doesn't stick to just one style.

Location: Seebronn (Rottenburg am Neckar) / Festplatz / Germany Date: Saturday, July 30, 2016 Day two of the German festival of rock pioneers and "legends" that is Rock of Ages was billed as the centerpiece of this year's edition. The…

Location: Seebronn (Rottenburg am Neckar) / Festplatz / Germany Date: Friday, July 29, 2016 Up next was the eleventh edition of the Rock of Ages festival, put on by the crew behind the German music magazine “Heavy, Oder Was?”. That same…

"An unforgettable concert spectacle with Iron Maiden in Split, then. And the impatient wait for the band's next tour began right away."

The final day of ROA 2016 kicked off at 3:30 in the afternoon. Five acts were on the bill, but only four actually played: Barclay James Harvest feat. Les Holroyd, Slade, Erste Allgemeine Verunsicherung and Fargo. The headliner, eighties pop…

The second day of the German festival of rock pioneering and "legendariness" known as Rock of Ages was billed as the centerpiece of this year's edition. The night ended with the super rock and metal project and rock opera Avantasia, and the…

The eleventh Rock of Ages festival served up a varied lineup on day one. Four acts, Graham Bonnet, Saga, Axel Rudi Pell and, as a spectacular crowning finish to the day, In Extremo, all did their jobs brilliantly. UFO cancelled their show!

Friday came quicker than we expected, and the festival wrapped up in the most metal way possible. Let's hope the wait for the next edition flies by just as fast.

Thursday swung from one extreme to the other, and for plenty of people it ended up being the festival's peak.

"The Iron Maiden crew breathes with one set of enormous lungs, powered by the indestructible Harris, the contagiously grinning Murray, the masterfully solemn Smith, the prankster duo Gers and McBrain, and the superb Dickinson, so the fact…

"A little after three, the main stage kicked off a lineup that wasn't exactly a hit with the supporters of the children-and-family movement, since Aborted and Dying Fetus were up next." - Wednesday served us a hefty helping of blast beats.

What could be better? Dalmatia, summer, the sea, ice cream and, to cap off the day, an Iron Maiden show. It reads like a fairy tale, but luckily some fairy tales do come true.

Iron Maiden went at promoting their new album with an even more massive and megalomaniacal tour than before. The Book of Souls World Tour will span 72 shows, taking Iron Maiden to China, El Salvador and Lithuania for the very first time, Ed…

Day two served up a ton of different acts across a very wide range of genres. From Vikings and Sumerians, past reggae and Slavic folklore, all the way to the horrors of the Second World War front.

For the fourteenth year in a row, black has flooded Tolmin and dark clouds have blotted out the sky, because it's Metaldays time again.

"The setlist was interesting and nicely varied, with just the right mix of long-standing classics, rarely played pieces and fresh material, so there wasn't a single truly predictable moment."

No more, no less. After a somewhat lukewarm experience in Zagreb, where lousy sound dictated how things went, the band's show in Majano delivered exactly what we came for. An excellent gig, we can safely say, and the crowd got the thrash…

Location: Balingen / Messegelände / Germany Date: 15.07.2016 And so the second day of the 21st edition of the legendary Bang Your Head!! festival in Balingen, Germany, rolled around. The night was fresh and the morning properly cold,…

Performing: Stallion, Babylon A.D., Candlemass, Carcass, Dare, The Dead Daisies, Dragonforce, Equilibrium, Ektomorf, Slayer, Leartherwolf, Battle Beast, Debauchery vs. Blood God, Voodoo XLocation: Balingen / Messegelände / Germany Date:…

Steve's acoustic show by the sea was a true balm for body and soul, just what you'd expect from a guitar grandmaster we're used to for pure ambient perfection.

Performing: Death Angel, Angel Dust, Stormwarrior, Sanctuary, BloodboundDate: Wednesday, 12.07.2017Location: Balingen, Volksbankmesse (Messegelände), Germany As it does every year, this year's Bang Your Head!!! 2017 got its warm-up…

"If this was one of Whitesnake's last shows in Coverdale's mighty career, you could say the still-vital frontman is saying goodbye to his fans in more than a dignified way."

The third and final day of the 21st Bang Your Head!!! festival in the German town of Balingen finally brought a completely dry, sunny day. Iced Earth headlined, followed by Dirkschneider, Uriah Heep, Grave Digger, Great White, Tankard,…

Another outstanding lineup of top-tier bands, each with a unique artistic character, all belonging to the realms of metal and hard rock, with day two's program happily centered on thrash metal.

With their butchery mission, Carcass gave Slayer a proper warm-up, so the day-one headliner had no trouble burning the venue to the ground. Standout sets from Leatherwolf, Babylon A.D., Dare, Voodoo X

Despite quite a few skeptics who feared the show might not even happen, the concert by the hard rock legends turned out really nicely as a whole, even though attendance was far from ideal. If this was one of the last Whitesnake shows in…

"The regular part of the show flew by in a flash. Vai came back out for the obligatory encore and "modestly" asked the audience: "Can we play one more song?" The band then launched into the sorely missed Firegarden Suite, or rather the…

This time the legendary guitar wizard stopped right at the castle in Udine and staged a brand-new concert fairy tale, built around playing the entire "Passion And Warfare" album.

With their longer-than-average set, Brkovi showed they enjoy playing smaller stages too. And they're definitely a pretty original band, considering that you can hardly invent anything all that new in punk.

Chihuahuas, tortillas, burritos and chimichangas are Mexican stereotypes, and on Tuesday Kranj got them in a somewhat more sinister form, courtesy of the Mexican death/grind narco-satanist collective Brujeria.

Day two of Live After Death 2016 was every bit as warm and homey as the first, which is the festival's greatest strength.

Metal Mania is no more, but Live After Death is faithfully carrying on its legacy!

At the fifth edition of the Mosh Beach party, the crowd got a dose of tenderness from The Amity Affliction and a dose of brutality from Thy Art Is Murder.

"The old rock tomcat, with his crew behind him, threw an unforgettable rock party and took plenty of people back to the good old days, when rock was still fun to listen to and not the draining ordeal it all too often turns into these days"

Dropkick Murphys, the hugely successful Boston Celtic punk rockers, have become a true »adopted« fixture of Slovenian concert venues over the years. Another totally crazy party!

Kino Šiška finally got a great metalcore show after a long drought, with Killswitch Engage, Atreyu, August Burns Red and Bury Tomorrow showing just how diverse metalcore can be these days.

The show by the shock rock veteran at Hala Tivoli was a hugely entertaining experience that delighted plenty of Slovenian classic rock fans, young and old. With his crew behind him, the old rock tomcat threw an unforgettable rock party and…

For months before that fateful Friday, flies had been buzzing around Channel Zero, nasty smells of rotting meat had been drifting out from inside, and moaning and groaning had been echoing down the corridors. No, Metelkova doesn't need pest…

Scottish trio Biffy Clyro haven't been unknowns in alternative rock circles for a long time now. With six studio albums under their belts and a seventh on the way, the band is right now a hot story of commercial success that has managed to…

Not many bands got the kind of favor from MTV, back when it was still a proper music TV channel, that American alt-rock outfit Garbage got. In the nineties, their self-titled debut made Garbage a symbol of resistance to the pop boy/girl…

Nobody would have expected Gojira to play to a small crowd today with the same energy and confidence as in front of a huge festival audience. Definitely a band that doesn't hold anything back and shows up in the best possible light.

Performers: Megadeth, Gamma RayLocation: Bologna / Estragon / ItalyConcert date: Friday, 03.06.2016 The day after the notorious Gods of Metal festival, Bologna, Italy, got a mini reprise of it. Megadeth and Gamma Ray, who had shared…

With this show, Zakk Wylde revealed his softer, mellow side, once again proving he's a world-class guitarist who's willing to try something different.

The day after the infamous Gods of Metal festival, a mini-reprise of it went down in Bologna, Italy. Megadeth and Gamma Ray, who had shared part of the bill the day before at the legendary Italian rock and metal festival, teamed up again…

On Thursday, June 2, 2016, Ljubljana's Hostel Celica hosted two acts blended from completely different musical backgrounds: Elabanda, the folk rockers from Ajdovščina, who put out their new studio album »Facka« last year, and Zamee, a…

Location: Cerkno / Stari plac / SloveniaDate: Saturday, 05/21/2016 The third and final day of the traditional 21st jazz festival in Cerkno was a lively one from the morning on. The side program kicked off with a hike for the…

Slayer probably only satisfied the die-hard fans with their routine performance. Sadly, the band can't muster even an average show, while Anthrax, with their energy (the years clearly aren't such an obstacle after all), proved they're not…

Simply put, it doesn't get much better than this. And every show you catch with Simon Phillips and his Protocol feels like the best one you've ever seen. In a word: magical.

With this show, Screaming Headless Torsos proved they're one hell of a stage attraction, where performance dynamite never runs out. They ride a rare middle line between musical experiment and catchy listenability, thanks to their artistic…

A celebration for all fans of the legendary and sadly departed Death, probably the most important musical phenomenon of all, the band that founded and cemented the death metal genre and hinted at where the extreme branches of metal could…

All things considered, »Skalp« may have been off the stage for a while, but they still sound tight and professional, and in my view they're one of the more »refreshing« rock bands on the Slovenian scene.

As always, and by tradition. Jazz Cerkno remains the meeting point for the most unusual jazz performers, literally "wacked" in their visions, who stir up our imagination and fill our wandering souls and hearts with bubbling artistic…

"Nick Barrett and his unruly Pendragon crew spoiled us for almost three hours with the sonic perfection of wide-open ambient landscapes."

Day two served up, just like the first, three performances — three completely different stories from the world of jazz — and dished out a heaping helping of sensual musical experiences. Marko Črnčec Trio, Pourtant Les Cimes and the duo…

Kranj's annual youth week, held every May, traditionally looks after the heavy metal crowd too. This time Mist, Dekadent and The Canyon Observer took the stage in front of Down Town.

Day one of the traditional, and altogether twenty-first, Jazz Cerkno festival!

Nick Barrett and his unruly Pendragon crew spoiled us for almost three hours with the sonic perfection of broad-minded ambient expanses. Nothing was left to chance in creating flawless sound, while all the members of this cult band once…

Deck Janiels and Kariot are two Slovenian bands that may be younger in terms of tenure but live life at breakneck speed. Despite the sorry turnout, it was a great gig night full of positive, eruptive energy and top-notch guitar riffs forged…

The Tiger Lilies simply never disappoint, whether they play livelier or more laid-back, like this time. Their tales are still best heard live. In any other format we lose Martyn Jacques's facial expressions on stage, which are key to…

Location: Ljubljana / SiTi Teater / SloveniaDate: Thursday, May 12, 2016 Katalena, probably the go-to band in Slovenia when the talk turns to reworking Slovenian folk music (on a thousand and one tunes), is marking 15 years of…

What's better than hitting the road on Friday the 13th for a heavy metal expedition, four hundred kilometers away in Brescia? To see Riot, now Riot V.

Katalena, probably the go-to band here when the talk turns to playing Slovenian folk music (a thousand and one tunes' worth), is marking 15 years of existence this year. They walked into SiTi Teater with the premiere show of a revision of…

Two hugely experienced musicians with layered, multi-genre chops (really, the word "genre" is an outright limitation for them) found a shared creative language, teamed up as a duo and made their studio debut

On May 9, Cankarjev dom hosted the closing show of Laibach, Slovenia's best-known band, who wrapped up their European tour "Sound of Music" (or "Our Songs, Your Dreams") in the Gallusova dvorana.

Motorpsycho and their new album »Here Be Monsters«. The promo run through the old European continent made its stop closest to Slovenian soil in Pordenone, Italy. It was even their only show in the northeastern part of the Apennine…

Location: Trieste / Teatro Politeama Rossetti / Italy Date: 26.04.2016 So much ink has been spilled over the past ten years on the English multi-instrumentalist, singer, composer, producer, computer wizard and sound engineer Steven…

If Krisiun and Hideous Divinity impressed, Cannibal Corpse let everyone down with a routine performance, which was the last thing you'd expect from such a celebrated, legendary band. All that's left is hope that they'll make up for it next…

"Steven Wilson made sure that anyone at Graz's Orpheum came away remembering his show for a long time. With outstanding musicians, projections, great stage lighting, and varied, epic songs, his concert was a real little spectacle."

The prog rock visionary made our night in Trieste with a fantastic show, treating us to a generous helping of choice standards from different chapters of his magnificent musical career.