Kino Šiška hadn’t hosted a proper metal package of big-name acts for quite a while — until last Friday, when the Wilderun/Soilwork/Kataklysm trio rolled through and wrapped up the working week in fine style.
First up was arguably the most distinctive act of the evening: Boston’s progressive wizards Wilderun. Why distinctive? Because compared to Soilwork and Kataklysm — whose music is built on short, melodic, uncomplicated, ear-friendly songs with killer hooks — Wilderun are pretty much the polar opposite. These Americans are known for their progressive complexity and ultra-long tracks that weave together a dizzying range of elements, from classic progressive metal to symphonic and folk. Wilderun hit the stage right on schedule and managed to get through a grand total of four songs in three quarters of an hour — but what a musical journey each one was. They shifted effortlessly from dreamy, folky passages that were suddenly shattered by aggressive guitar riffing and blast beats, then swung into pompous symphonic moments and almost operatic choruses. Think Opeth — and Evan Berry’s vocals actually do call Mikael Åkerfeldt to mind, especially when he drops from a soft, clean voice into an ultra-deep growl. Wilderun released their fourth studio album, Epigone, in early last year, and many consider it the crown jewel of their catalogue; it topped countless best-metal-albums-of-2022 lists. After seeing and hearing them, that’s easy to understand. This was a genuinely interesting opening act and a Slovenian debut for the band — though they’d have shone even brighter with a longer slot and perhaps on a bill alongside the likes of Threshold, Riverside, or Opeth.
If the room was still a bit sparse during Wilderun’s set, that changed fast before Swedish melodic death metal veterans Soilwork took the stage — young and old alike filled Kino Šiška’s Cathedral hall nicely. Part of that is surely down to the fact that Soilwork are no strangers to Slovenian stages, though they’ve only played here in festival settings before; this was actually their first standalone concert in Ljubljana (if my fading memory serves). Like their predecessors, Soilwork also dropped a new record last year — their twelfth studio album, Övergivenheten, which translates from Swedish as “abandonment” — though the crowd was having none of that, greeting the Swedes with enormous energy and heat. The band paid it right back with a sharp, high-quality show. Soilwork kicked things off with the title track from the new album, which turned out to be a great call: the song opens with an explosion, blazes along at full speed, and packs an infectious chorus alongside all the melodic passages you’d expect from these guys. The place erupted the moment sole original member Björn “Speed” Strid opened his mouth — he strode onstage in an outfit (a fringed sleeveless jacket with some kind of shoulder wings) that looked more like it belonged in his other band, The Night Flight Orchestra, haha. Anyway, Soilwork commandeered Kino Šiška for a solid hour-and-a-half set of high-octane melodic death metal that hooks you instantly, thanks above all to Speed’s superb vocal performance across both the heavy and clean sections. The whole band on stage operated like a well-oiled machine, and all three guitarists were visibly in great spirits — though there was a bittersweet edge to it all, given the absence of guitarist David Andersson, who passed away last September and would have turned 48 the very day after the show. But life moves on in its own way, and the band leaned heavily into their recent material, playing the lion’s share of tracks from the new album with only a handful of nods to the early days. The furthest back they reached was the crushing stampede of Bastard Chain from A Predator’s Portrait, and surprisingly they skipped early hits like Follow the Hollow or Rejection Role. The set closed out nicely with the earworm Nerve, its frantically catchy chorus, and the slightly melancholic Stålfågel. It was genuinely great to see and hear Soilwork in such strong form, back in a venue setting after all these years — the sound, the beautiful lighting, and an enthusiastic crowd all working in their favour.
The room filled up a little more for the second co-headliner, Canadian veterans Kataklysm — which again comes as no surprise, since they’re one of those bands we used to joke had basically earned Slovenian citizenship through sheer frequency of visits (same went for the likes of Korpiklaani, Amon Amarth, Ektomorf…). All that relentless touring and releasing has paid off for Kataklysm: they’ve long been one of the most popular extreme metal acts around, capable of filling venues and festival stages without much fuss — even if, hand on heart, their creative peak in the studio came a long time ago, somewhere around twenty years back with Shadows & Dust. Live, though, you can’t fault them for a thing: they know their job inside out, you know exactly what you’re getting, and they deliver it. It’s true that they no longer really live up to their old “northern hyperblast” reputation. Like Soilwork, Kataklysm focused heavily on their later output, but they still threw the old faithful some treats with the epic, melodic death metal goodness of Where the Enemy Sleeps, Manipulator of Souls, and the brutal assault of Crippled & Broken. The band may have softened their sound somewhat over the years, but live they still hit like a wrecking ball — Maurizio Iacono still sounds angry and convincing despite the by-now predictably clichéd crowd patter, and guitarist Jean-Francois Dagenais once again proves he can cover the full spectrum of guitar destruction on his own. A fired-up crowd eating out of the band’s hand, crowd surfing and moshing in full effect — Kataklysm sent everyone home happy after a great Friday night.
Photos: Nina Grad
