Location: Ljubljana / Orto bar / Slovenia
Date: Tuesday, January 23, 2018
It’s been almost six years since the American prog heavyweights first set foot on Slovenian soil, and it still feels like it happened yesterday. That show etched itself into memory as one of the best Orto bar has ever seen, and Fates Warning proved they’re a band held in high esteem, counting even names like Chuck Schuldiner and Mike Portnoy among their admirers. Although you could tell from the band members’ faces that they’re not exactly used to playing small rooms like Orto bar, Fates Warning have clearly won over the Ljubljana crowd, since this was already their third visit to our capital. Despite a relatively small turnout, at least for a band of Fates Warning’s caliber, made up mostly of 30-plus geriatrics, it was yet another wonderful night of the kind only these cult Americans know how to put on.
This time the prestigious opening slot for Fates Warning went to Italian progressive metallers Methodica. We’re not usually used to Italian support acts delivering anything outstanding, so in that respect Methodica actually did pretty well. In a good half hour, the Verona foursome presented their vision of progressive metal, which draws (too) heavily from the roots of Dream Theater in places, from modern prog metal/rock bands like Soen in others, and mostly from neo-prog outfits like Marillion and the like, only with a somewhat “heavier” sound. There aren’t any major complaints about the band’s performance, but the Italians got boring pretty quickly, which comes down to an approach to music that’s just not original or distinctive enough. Methodica sound way too much like their idols and way too little like themselves. Then again, we’ve heard plenty far worse from our western neighbors.
And it’s also true that on that Tuesday it didn’t matter one bit who was on stage before ten in the evening, when the legendary Fates Warning were announced to return to our stages. When the band last visited, they were presenting the album Darkness In a Different Light, while this time Fates Warning came with the still-current Theories of Flight, released two years ago. They greeted the Ljubljana crowd with that album’s opening track, From the Rooftops, and with the very first notes made it clear that nothing but sonic and musical perfection awaited us. The sound was set up absolutely superbly this time too, with every single instrument mixed excellently and crystal clear. Although the first few verses gave vocalist Ray Alder a bit of trouble, the chorus already sounded wonderful. And even though a few purists still pine for the band’s early days, when they were quite similar to other American prog/power bands à la Crimson Glory, Queensryche and Sanctuary, Fates Warning with Alder front and center are still one awe-inspiring band.
The band’s commander and only original member Jim Matheos knows this very well. An exceptional guitarist, he once again stood completely stoically on the left side of the stage, melting into his instrument, which he played with feather-light ease all night. The same goes for the other members, flawless instrumental perfectionists who leave no room for mistakes yet still sound wonderfully natural and organic live. From the beastly drumming octopus Bobby Jarzombek, through the thumping rumble of Joey Vera’s bass, to young guitarist Mike Abdow, who stands in for the absent Frank Aresti, everything in this band sounds on stage like an alloy of pure, perfect, spotless metal. And the band couldn’t pull that off without the exceptional Alder on vocals, who lets the emotional charge of the music come alive in the right light. Even though Ray can no longer reach the higher registers and actually avoids them altogether, he remains a unique vocal interpreter and charismatic frontman who doesn’t need to spout nonsense to the crowd and still has them eating out of his hand. Fates Warning set out on a short European tour this time, and they recorded every single show on it, with the recordings to be used on a new live album that’s supposed to come out this year. So the Americans gave us a solid two-hour set, with no shortage of either fan favorites or treats for the connoisseurs. Right at the start, an above-par Life in Still Water delighted, Pale Fire from the overlooked Inside Out thrilled, and the new material Seven Stars and SOS convinced as well. Since the band carved out a hefty chunk of time, they could afford detours they probably wouldn’t otherwise take. So we got two epic-length tracks, first the ten-minute morsel The Light and Shade of Things, and later the sixteen-minute behemoth Still Remains, in which the guitar duo cast a spell with a simple yet very effective guitar brilliance. At the end of the main set, the Paralles double The Eleventh Hour/Point of View raised goosebumps, and after almost two hours of pure musical ecstasy, Fates Warning said their goodbyes, as expected but no less thrillingly, with Eye to Eye. If I may close with a bit of basketball lingo; this was at least a triple-double with a 63 efficiency rating, and quite possibly one of the top contenders for gig of the year.
author: Rok Klemše
photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Setlist:
1. From the Rooftops
2. Life in Still Water
3. One
4. Pale Fire
5. Seven Stars
6. SOS
7. One Thousand Fires
8. Firefly
9. The Light and Shade of Things
10. Wish
11. Another Perfect Day
12. The Ivory Gate of Dreams: IV. Quietus
13. Still Remains
14. A Pleasant Shade of Gray, Part IX
15. Nothing Left to Say
16. The Ivory Gate of Dreams: VII. Acquiescence
17. The Eleventh Hour
18. Point of View
— encore —
19. Throught Different Eyes
20. Monument
21. Eye to Eye
