Ghostlands & Ravenlands, episode two. Last year’s version could not take place but the festival that The Silent Rage organize and wish to establish on an annual basis, returned with five different bands at the historic Kyttaro. A great way to spend a Sunday night listening to new music and of course that’s what we did.
Element Zero had the difficult task of warming up the audience. The band from Athens opened this year’s festival. In front of a lot of people, despite the bitter cold and the difficult day for a concert, several friends were present, presenting the EP they now have in their quiver after five singles. Their music may not be exactly to my taste, a mixture of alternative metal and rock, but the quintet came out well-established on stage and got the applause. I’m keeping the very interesting cover of Delerium’s “Silence” which is a great song anyway. I think we have a lot more to see from this band in the near future.
Setlist: Last Warble, Paradigm Shift, Matter Of Light, FIRE!, When Everything Is Lost, Silence (Delerium cover), Outcast
It was Mystfall’s turn with their first appearance on stage. Mystfall play this symphonic metal that I have had a love-hate relationship with for many years. And I can explain. I consider this subgenre of our beloved music quite special with a lot of emphasis to be placed on the grand theme. So Mystfall having a pretty good sound on their side presented their material for the first time live. Yes, they were well put together and well thought out but I will say that the material didn’t seem all that tight to me. Maybe the fact that we are talking about their first show played a role in that. They have a quite experienced singer in their ranks, Marialena Trikoglou, but to tell you the truth it was only in their last song that I can say that they won me over. And I won’t say that the rest of the compositions were bad. But they didn’t have that something that I personally look for in this sound. But they are a band in their infancy and they definitely showed the necessary professionalism on stage. I definitely want to see them live again in the near future when they will most likely have their engines on full throttle.
Michael Ntalakos
Setlist: Celestial Vision, Centuries, Endless, Kings Of Utopia, Moral Compass, Freedom Path
Then on to I Abyssick, who I was very curious to see how they would do on stage. Their only album so far, the wonderful “Ashes Enthroned” from 2021, is a very interesting heavy/doom record, a different proposal in the Greek scene. Given that these guys don’t play that often, it was a first-class opportunity to see them for those of us who attended and I can say that they didn’t disappoint at all. Fronted by Constantine Maris (Forbidden Seed, Starve The Hydra) on vocals, i.e. one of the two founders (the other, Angelos Seaito, was sitting behind the drum kit) they gave a very strong and convincing performance full of appetite, passion and energy. Their special material sounds flawless live and it seems that they have worked hard to present this result. The only downside was that the time went by too quickly and I would have liked to see more of them. Hopefully next time.
George Terzakis
Setlist: Mankind?, Truth, New Breed Of Slaves, Swept Away, At The Edge Of Life, Epiphany
Dragony is a band that I have listened to a lot in the past but for some reason I always had their releases in the background. This year they celebrate fifteen years of existence and last year they released the very good “Hic Svnt Dracones”. So, the announcement about their participation in the festival immediately caught my attention. They got on stage on time but some technical problem delayed them quite a bit. I don’t know if that’s why they had to cut a song from their setlist. Also, counting them I found that they were minus one bassist. Anyway, all this spoiled the atmosphere a little bit as the band took the rest of the time they had and nailed it! With five albums under their belt, Dragony play symphonic power metal which, when played properly, is enjoyable on stage. With lots of sing along parts, beautiful melodies and fast solos they won the crowd over throughout. Some of the songs they played were “Magic”, “Twilight Of The Gods”, “If It Bleeds We Can Kill It”, a set that honored their entire discography. Siegfried Samer gave his best, although he had issues with the sound as well with his performance, while the rest of the band showed that they have logged a lot of miles on stage. The applause they received was more than fair at the end and they promised to see us again sooner this time.
Michael Ntalakos
Setlist: Twilight Of The Gods, Gods Of War, Lords Of The Hunt, Magic, If It Bleeds We Can Kill It, Dragon Of The Sea (Sic Parvis Magna), The Einherjar (What Dreams May Come), Beyond The Rainbow Bridge
And closing with The Silent Rage, who came out with a take-no-prisoners attitude. I must have not seen them for a while, I think since the release show of their excellent second album “Nuances Of Life”, but it was obvious the eagerness and appetite they had for this show. If I’m not mistaken, they even played some songs at a faster tempo than the studio versions and generally they must have been better than any other time I’ve caught them in a concert (open-air or venue). This was helped by the excellent sound, which I have to say was the same for all the bands. Also, in a very nice moment, the singer of the first album “The Deadliest Scourge”, Steve Venardo, took the stage for a duet with Michalis Rinakakis on “Between Harmony And Sorrow”. A very pleasant surprise and the inclusion of the beloved “Harvester Of Souls” in the set, which is not something they are used to. I believe that the performance levels they caught that night should be a guide for the continuation of their course. They deserve a lot of credit for all of this.
Setlist: The Serpent Lord, Code Of Destruction, Nuances Of Life, Crows Fly Back, Sin Of A Pilgrim, Exhaling Fear, Carve Your Rage, Harvester Of Souls, My Race Won’t Last, The Deadliest Scourge, Stormwarrior, Between Harmony And Sorrow, Leading The Legions, Ghost Of A Wayward God, A Piece Of Eden
In conclusion, this year’s Ghostlands & Ravenlands was a success. All of the bands didn’t let the opportunity go to waste honoring their time on stage, regardless of each one’s personal taste in the style of music they play. Even at the level of organization there was no complaint, as everything ran smoothly and the only slight fault was that the night went back just ten minutes from the scheduled time. I hope the guys keep it up and next year we’ll be here for the next one.
George Terzakis
Photos: Peter Papapetros
