IN
FLAMES - SOILWORK - PAIN
LA2
- 13th October 2002
|
In
Flames may look scary, but their Grandmas love them... |
I'm in need of a
tonic tonight. It is a miserable Sunday with a greyness more in
keeping with Birmingham than London. I am currently in a fit of
depression. I am studying for exams I do not want to be sitting, my
love life is a shambles and to cap it all off it looks as if I'm
getting piles! All I need now is for my Grandma to move in and that
will top it off! Consequently In Flames and their guests have got
their work cut out tonight to lift me out of my self-inflicted coma.
The queue outside confirms my fears that they should have played a
bigger venue. Around 100 are milling outside without any tickets. |
Thanks to a kind
young lady with a leopard skin umbrella I manage to remain dry when
the heavens open whilst in the queue (Thank you - sorry if I seemed
such a miserable g!t!) but when I finally get in Pain are already a
good twenty minutes into their set.
Pain are Hypocrisy
frontman Peter Tagtgren's electronic metal side project and pretty
decent they are too. Their last two albums have not had an official
release over here (now there's a surprise) but I still have their
1997 debut tucked away somewhere and remember the likes of
"Breathe" scorching paint off the walls. Peter has given
more to metal than anyone in this building as a musician and producer
of all things underground and the audience give him and his act the
respect it deserves. A rather bizarre cover of The Beatles
"Eleanor Rigby" and current single "Shut your
Mouth" are the most entertaining of a catchy heavy set. Lets
hope that there is a release this side of the Channel soon.
Soilwork are very
much the standard bearers of the second wave of melodic death metal
coming from Sweden (if In Flames are that of the first). Their
current release "Natural Born Chaos" is a pretty much
awesome collection of Rammstein riffs, big choruses, diverse vocals
and technical nous that I bought after hearing 90 seconds at a HMV
listening post. Soilwork are an interesting mix of complexity and
straightforward songwriting and I am curious to see how it translates
live. Initially things don't look too promising as a dire sound mix
somehow suffocates "Follow The Hollow" - a damn near
impossible task. Things only pick up for "As We Speak" when
someone decides it might be a good idea to plug the bass in and the
band then become visibly more confident with the backing vocalists
suddenly becoming audible. Speed is an excellent frontman capable of
delivering the coarse and clear vocals to equal effect and the act
behind him musically hit all the right notes. A storming set
but one that would be bettered straight after!
The anticipation
for In Flames that has been reaching fever pitch throughout the
evening explodes when they appear on the stage and rip into
"System". Honestly the last time I saw a crowd wanting a
band so much was a loooonnnng time ago. I can't help but feeling a
tad cynical in that many here have been converted as a result of
their support to Slipknot 12 months ago. Sure, there will be a few
long term supporters and those who first witnessed them at the Metal
Odessey show on April Fools Day 2001, and whilst I'm delighted that
the appeal of this band is now becoming greater there are numerous
times tonight when I feel like waving a banner in the air saying
"I brought their third album Whoracle back in 1996 when no one
gave a toss - look at me you bastards". I guess that's what you
get for supporting the underground though.
All clad in white
army shirts, In Flames quite simply do not put a foot wrong tonight
and surprisingly old favourites like "Ordinary Story",
"Jotun" and "Food For The Gods" get receptions as
good as anything off the new Reroute To Remain platter. While there
is a liberal helping from that said masterwork ("Drifter",
"Black and White", "Cloud Connected"), the band
remain true to their past giving a set that sprinkles over their
entire career. They would get lynched by their hardcore fraternity if
they didn't play "Behind Space" (by my own hands if
necessary) and the closing "Colony" is the best song of the
evening, although "Only For the Weak" pushes it all the
way. Anders communicates freely with the crowd and what's more
guitarist Bjorn seems to have finally found sense and grown out his
brillo pad haircut out.
No encore, and no
f**king about but In Flames deliver an hour and a half of music that
you would be hard pressed to beat. Tonight they make life, with all
it's problems, seem like something worth living and there surely
cannot be a greater accolade. It is an exhilarating ride and I forget
everything that was bubbling on the surface in my admittedly
disorganised, dark and disturbed mind prior to walking in.
Thanks chaps...
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