SoulSteal - 29 Dec 2010 (Tepee - Limassol, CY)

UNSIGNED BAND

It's funny how sometimes other bands introduce you to other bands in the most unusual ways. Well this time thanks to Amorphis I got introduced to this Doom/Death Metal band from Cyprus. I am aware that Cyprus is not really famous for its metal bands but bear with me for a second. Having an important experience on everything that has to do with Cypriot culture and its people I can tell you that, when one of them decides to do something, he will do it in the best possible way. This is the case for Socrates Ioannou(Guitar&Vocals) who drove this band from its creation in 2001 to being one of the most respected bands in the Cypriot Metal scene. With one album in their catalogue Soulsteal got on stage at what is, to me at least, one of the best metal venues in Cyprus. The set-list included a mixture of covers and originals which honestly blended really well between them. The compositions of the band really manage to give out a dark and gloomy feeling that every doom metal fan will enjoy while the influences from bands such as Katatonia, Anathema and My Dying Bride are quite strong, but still there is this little touch by these guys that makes it different and unique. The vocals of Socrates are amazingly powerful on the dark parts and really stand out with their clarity on the clean parts. Despite the line up troubles that the band went through during this past week the gig was well executed and the crowd seemed to enjoy the totality of the set. The crowd here in Cyprus is quite different that the crowd in the UK but the intensity and the love for metal is still well felt in the atmosphere. To sum it up: a very good gig from Soulsteal and a very good atmosphere in general. The ball-grabbing factor was lacking a little bit but I'm sure it will come with bigger crowds and more on-stage confidence. If you are a fan of Katatonia and such bands you should definitely check out Soulsteal's myspace page and judge for yourself and who knows maybe one day we will have them over in the UK. 

SoulSteal: 8/10

Posted by Nick

101% Pantera - 5 Dec 2010 (Purple Turtle)

COVER BAND

I was, unfortunately, born in this world too late. Too late to witness the amazing band that Pantera has been, live. Growing up as a teenager Pantera and Dimebag Darrell were a huge inspiration for me and I soon came to realise that this was the case for so many others within the metal community and not only. Generally cover bands don’t really get me excited and I have to admit that I’m guilty of not really attending any of these shows. However last night was different. I can openly say that 101% Pantera is the closest thing to Pantera you can get at the moment within the UK. This band is made up by an impressive selection of musicians including Chris Jones from Voodoo Six, which was absent last night due to the Voodoo Six tour and replaced by Aaron Waddingham from Man of Kin, Boris Le Gal, current drummer for London’s power metallers NeonFly, Dylan Cooper on bass and Patrick Reily on vocals.  Quite impressive don’t you think? Of course with a line up like this the result can only be extremely good. Well, it was unbelievably good. The band came up on stage and delivered a set, that lasted for a bit more than an hour, including a vast majority of songs from all of the Pantera albums. The band kicked in with an aggressive 5 Minutes Alone and despite the sound issues that came up, especially with Patrick’s microphone, the band kept the crowd and the venue in general, under their control. This cover band is really bringing out all the energy and raw power that any Pantera song carries within it and that energy is directly transmitted to the crowd which was just ecstatic during the totality of the set. In general the band is really giving out everything they have and trust me they have a lot to give so if you are wondering on what to do during the next few days you might want to check out the tour dates of the band since they are actually touring the UK in commemoration of Dimebag’s death.

Also don’t forget that tomorrow (Wednesday 8th of December) is the 6^th year anniversary of Dimebag’s death so make sure to wear your Pantera t-shirt and to start your day with Cowboys from Hell!

101% Pantera: 10/10 

Posted by Nick 

Soilwork - All that Remains - 30 Nov 2010 (Electric Ballroom)

I haven’t attended a gig at the Electric Ballroom in about 3 years now and the memory that I had of that venue wasn’t the best, so I was kind of worried about tonight’s gig. I stepped in the venue as soon as Caliban started their set and my fears were instantly gone. The sound wasn’t as bad as I remembered and the venue looked much bigger as well. As for Caliban: last time I saw this band was in 2006 and I have to say that, back then, I left the gig very impressed by the atmosphere and the energy of the band. Well all I have to say is: it got even better! The band was dominating the stage tonight and was very confident during the whole set. They even performed a cover of Sonne by Rammstein, that is due to be released on a compilation album very soon as Andreas Dörner(Vocals) explained. Caliban also performed various tracks from their older albums as well as tracks from their latest album Say Hello to Tragedy, such as 24 Years which concluded the set for this German band. Next on stage were Soilwork. The band started off with the opening track on their latest album The Panic Broadcast, Late for the Kill, Early for the Slaughter, and just took the whole venue with them. The public responded very positively to the energy that the band was giving out and the pit got aggressive at certain points, and especially when Nerve came on. The relatively new "recruit" of Soilwork Sylvain Coudret(Guitar) blew me away since he was amazing during his lead parts showcasing a huge technical ability and an amazing sound and tone. On the other end of the stage Peter Wichers(Guitar), who re-joined the band some time between 2008 and 2009, really brought in some very melodic and perfectly executed solos. The tracks from the new album really seemed to drive the public into some sort of "mayhem constructed by people running in a formation that took a somehow cylindrical shape" commonly known as Circle Pits. Songs such as Two Lives Worth of Reckoning or Stabbing the Drama, which also concluded the set, really made the crowd go crazy. Stabbing the Drama was also the perfect occasion for a sing along between Bjorn “Speed” Strid(Vocals) and the crowd! Last on stage, but not least, the all mighty American metallers All That Remains. This band has a very unique energy that is present every time they play live. The band is in Europe to promote their new album For We Are Many and a few songs were performed tonight from this album such as Hold On and Some of the People, All of the Time. Classic songs such as The Air That I Breath and This Calling where also included in the set list with This Calling creating a big wave of excitement among the crowd and a very loud sing along. Oli Herbert(Guitar) really impressed me too since by seeing him live I realised that he is an amazing shredder and the solos he delivered during the gig were just mind-blowing. It is very clear to me that All that Remains is a very tight band and that they have worked very hard to get where they are and I think that this time they are on their way to the top.

All that Remains: 18/20

Soilwork: 18/20

Caliban: 17/20

Posted by Nick

A New Tomorrow - 27 Nov 2010 (Water Rats)

UNSIGNED BAND

I was really unhappy when I found out that I couldnt attend the first ever gig of A New Tomorrow, so when I heard that they were playing again I just had to go. The history and the line up for this band is just so interesting that it makes it a top priority to go and see them. So, second gig ever for this, relatively, new band from London and God I wished the second gigs of all new bands sounded just like that! The energy and confidence that the band had and was giving out was huge and it really reached the crowd which responded in the appropriate way.  The band performed a short 35-40 minutes set and despite the bad sound during the first song things improved dramatically as the songs were coming in and eventually turned out to an amazing sound for such a small venue. The sound of the band was “enormous”, as someone from the crowd described it to me during the set, and really filled the venue.  Alessio Garavello(Vocals-Guitar)’s voice is extremely powerful and he can reach notes that are “over the rainbow” so easily that it seems as if it is a game for a 3-year-old. To accompany Alessio’s voice you had the beautiful guitar licks from Edward Cooper(Guitar). Edward manages to get out of his guitar a great tone and his timing on when to kick in with the solo parts was just perfect! The solos came in just at the right moment to lift up the songs into that next level of greatness that is needed for any good song to leave an impact on the public. The rhythm section of the band, Andrea on bass and JD on drums, was excellent and was really going for it with an amazing willingness to reach the crowd. Many times when performing, people get the feeling that they can reach the sky and the stars... well I’m pretty sure that A New Tomorrow did that tonight and I’m certain that they took many people from the public with them. Check out their Myspace here!

 A New Tomorrow: 9/10

Posted by Nick 

Exodus - 23 Nov 2010 (Islington Academy)

Well tonight I left the academy and all I could hear buzzing in my ears was: E-XO-DUS, E-XO-DUS, E-XO-DUS... My god(if you exist) what a gig!!! There are some bands out there that provide some kind of safety when it comes to gig. Of course I don’t mean personal safety, I mean Heavy Fucking Metal safety, where bands such as: Machine Head, Lamb of God, Iron Maiden etc just give you one hell of a good time. Well in this list, that I have just developed before you, make sure not to miss EXODUS. You can’t really miss it now that it is in capitals and bold! The academy was packed tonight! Not a full house but not far at all, which gave the necessary space for this gig to become a mosh-pitting paradise. Exodus came on stage with a very strong and aggressive set and that was just the beginning of a great night. Rob Duke(Vocals) created a special connection with the crowd and just made everybody go crazy, especially on songs such as The Toxic Waltz, War Is My Shepherd and Children of a Worthless God. At some point Duke wasn’t completely happy with how the crowd was mosh-pitting so he just jumped down and showed everybody how it’s done. The energy that these Californian thrashers were giving out was immense and the solos of Gary Holt(Guitar) were ripping through all night long. Holt is a great shredder and has an amazing technique on the guitar reaching the elite status that only a very few players have in the metal scene. As the set was coming to an end the pit was getting bigger and bigger and more and more people were getting involved. The crowd surfers had some fun as well and gave a very hard time to the security guys since a few of them even made it to the stage to say “Hi” to the band. Overall a great gig, and I can support this by giving you some "after-the-gig" stats:

-Two persons knocked out in the middle of the pit

-One person with a broken leg

-One person with a broken nose

-About six hundred and sixty six bruises...and thats only on me!

Exodus: 19/20

Posted by Nick 

Minkus - 18 Nov 2010 (Buzz - Lausanne, CH)

 

It is quite a shame that some bands that deserve to get out of their country and present themselves to the world don’t, while others that should had stayed in their rooms do. This time I had to travel to Switzerland to discover this band. Minkus is a band founded in Lausanne, Switzerland 9 years ago and today they are just on the world’s doorstep waiting to step in. This is also why although this band is signed to a label I will assess it as an unsigned band. So here I am at the Buzz Club in Lausanne and Minkus is up next. Despite the awful sound of the venue, Minkus came up aggressively and with a nicely built atmosphere the band provided a well balanced set.  Despite the short length of the set the crowd seemed to enjoy the songs and in particular the cover that Minkus did of last year’s UK Christmas number one: “Killing in the Name”. Just so that you understand what Minkus sounds like it is a mixture between Rage against the Machine and Hatebreed but not quite that. They have something unique in their song-writing and in their performance that without a doubt makes them one of the best metal bands in Switzerland. The new album is coming out in March and you should definitely give it a try. Along with the new album there is also a video clip coming out, featuring one of the songs on the new album: “Shout”. I had the chance to attend the shootings of the video and will post a small review on it as soon as it comes out early next year. Until then you can check out their Myspace here.

Minkus: 8/10

Posted by Nick

Nick Harper - 14 Nov 2010 (The Social)

I first heard about Nick Harper two or three years ago when I got in London, and I only got to properly hear and see him tonight, and I have to say I was mesmerized by this guy. As some have already called him Nick Harper is the unsung hero of English music, and I have to say that it is probably true. You hear very little of this man while you should hear a hell lot about him instead. Not only he is amazingly good at guitar he also has a very powerful voice and a very good sense of humour. The whole gig was just an amazing trip to the Harper world just like his dad, that probably a few of you already know, used to do. Yes, Nick is the son of guitar legend Roy Harper but please, don’t let that cloud your mind. Nick is on a league of his own. The guitar playing and the voice are just amazing and the best of it is that he does everything on his own, just him and his guitars. For this gig I was joined by one of my very good friends and when we entered this small London venue I knew that the night would be very interesting. First up we had a duet that sang and played guitar with some nice tunes but I’m afraid to say not very captivating. Mancub Babywoman, as they are called, gave a nice performance but the low self esteem of Charlotte King(Vocals) was something that somehow ruined their stage presence and set. However I do believe that everybody enjoyed the set and didn’t find it annoying. Nick Harper came on stage next and with a mind blowing, ball-grabbing solo he just got everybody’s attention before he started to sing. I have to admit that this guy plays the guitar like most of the guitar heroes out there, and I wonder if he doesn’t play better than some of them too. During the set he delivered a variety of his compositions which are absolutely beautiful and feel as if they have a soul of their own when he sings them. Nick has an amazing range in his voice and can reach notes that most of the singers can’t even reach in their dreams. The interaction with the public was amazing and the use of environment was perfect. Nick didn't miss any opportunities to make a joke or point out something funny. Also one of the things that you have to witness at a Nick Harper gig is the re-stringing of the guitar when he breaks a string. All those who play guitar know what a pain it is to re-string a guitar and personally I've never seen anybody re-stringing a guitar on stage. Nick on the other hand does it while playing and singing. How? You’ll have to go to his gig and find out on your own...or you could Youtube it! For the encore Nick delivered two songs on the 12string guitar and exited the building in a very cheerful and interesting way. To sum this up I can only recommend that you go to a Nick Harper gig whenever you get the chance. It is an amazing experience. Make sure to take somebody with you though because it is definitely an experience that needs sharing!

Nick Harper: 20/20

Mancub Babywoman: 14/20

Posted by Nick