At Gazi Music Hall for two nights straight, from Dream Theater’s finesse to Lamb of God’s wrath.
After the tragic conditions suffered from a large portion of the crowd during Dream Fest, and because news travel fast, people approached this event with caution (although organized by a different company). In the end, things were much better (single ticket, no bar in the middle, free staircases), but, this particular venue in the summer is far from ideal for any concert.
As far as the music goes, Athenian band Aetherian left great impressions. It is obvious that their influences are not limited to a single genre, and besides the heavy nature of their music, it’s the melodies that steal the show. The crowd seemed to be really into them, appreciating the effort.
The fact that the lights went out was enough for the paranoia to start, before Lamb of God ever played a single note. When ‘Omerta’ began, all hell broke loose. The first four songs included ‘Ruin’, ‘Walk with me in Hell’ and ‘Now You’ve Got Something to Die for’ and the energy never dropped one bit. Randy Blythe never stops moving, he’s one of the iconic frontmen in the scene, the guitar duo is money in the bank, and I did pay extra attention to Art Cruz, the man charged with the difficult task of replacing Chris Adler. Of course his doesn’t have Adler’s presence on stage, but played the songs perfectly.
The latest record, ‘VII: Sturm und Drang’ was represented with ‘512’, ‘Engage the Fear Machine’ and ‘Still Echoes’, just before the biggest pit of the night for ‘Laid to Rest’ and of course ‘Redneck’.
I believe the setlist could be a couple of songs longer, and maybe include one of their more experimental songs, such as ‘Overlord’, to make the experience more complete. Other than that, Lamb of God deserve to take pride in the fact that few bands can light up a crowd like they do.
Setlist: Omerta, Ruin, Walk with me in Hell, Now You’ve Got Something to Die for, As the Palaces Burn, 512, Engage the Fear Machine, Blacken the Cursed Sun, Hourglass, Descending, Still Echoes, Laid to Rest, Redneck
Romanos Terzis
Photos: Chris Kissadjekian, Haris Sfakianakis
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