Last weekend, Zappa was the epicenter for an epic journey through the realms of progressive death metal.
The comeback of legends
After a 13-year hiatus DAATH is back with a new album The Deceivers.
They opened this evening of progressive metal with a powerful set. The band exhibited impressive technical skills mixing fast guitar riffs, pounding drums and growls all through their set.
The crowd that gathered early in Zappa got treated with 2 songs of the new album: ‘No Rest No End‘ and ‘Hex Unending‘. Both songs were proof enough that the progressive death metal band possessed some amazing music skills.
Moving on with some old songs such as ‘Sharpen The Blades‘ and ‘Subterfuge‘, taking us back more than 15 years – before their hiatus.
Many horns were raised, many fists were slammed in the air and lots of heads were banging all through their set. They concluded with the fast-paced ‘Day of Endless Light‘.
It is only fair to say that DAATH did a great job kicking the night off with pure technical precision, which made them a perfect opener for The Aggressive Progressive Tour.
Setlist: No Rest No End – Hex Unending – Sharpen The Blades – Subterfuge – Unwelcome Return – Purified by Vengeance – Day of Endless Light
Canadian force of nature
Canadian metal band Beyond Creation delivered in quality instead of quantity with only 4 songs on their setlist. But for the people who know this band it should not come as a surprise as they are known for songs lasting over 5 minutes. Which they showed on the first song ‘Algorythm‘, being a perfect mix of brutal mind-bending music combined with melancholic melodic parts.
After no less then 7 minutes the song ended with solid fast paced guitar riffs.
The next song called ‘Earthborn Evolution‘ started with Simon Girard and Kevin Chartré showcasing once again how skilled they are on their guitars! After this masterpiece the drummer, Clement Denys, joined with rapid-fire drum lines which was especially impressive considering it was only his second performance with the band.
This primarily instrumental piece was punctuated by well-placed lyrics.
Their third song ‘Coexistence‘ ignited a circle pit, standing as their heaviest song of the set, ultimately ending on a purely instrumental note, which made for a beautiful contrast.
They concluded their set with one of their most popular songs called ‘Omnipresent Perception‘ which got fans really headbanging.
Setlist: Algorythm – Earthborn Evolution – Coexistence – Omnipresent Perception
Pioneers of progressive metal
Cynic is an American metal band known as the pioneers of progressive metal. Their unique legendary blend of technical mastery and spiritual exploration left many people mesmerized.
They started their set with an instrumental intro creating the perfect spiritual atmosphere for ‘Nunc Fluens‘.
After some minor technical issues they continued with the next song ‘Evolutionary Sleeper‘ which was the perfect title for a dreamy song.
‘In a Multiverse Where Atoms Sing‘ was a great opportunity for Paul Masvidal to showcase his exceptional dreamy vocals – as he previously said himself his vocoder-drenched vocals were used to embody the voice of a sad alien.
Down to the last song ‘The Space for This‘ after which the band left the stage without saying anything which was kind of odd.
Setlist: Nunc Fluens – Evolutionary Sleeper – In a Multiverse Where Atoms Sing – Infinite Shapes – Integral Birth – Textures – 6th Dimensional Archetype – Humanoid – The Space for This
Crushing heaviness and atmospheric depth
Rivers of Nihil wasted no time setting the stage ablaze with their first song ‘The Sub-Orbital Blues‘.
For this song main vocalist Adam Biggs took charge of unleashing raw, guttural screams while guitarist Andy Thomas and drummer Jared Klein specialized in sharp clean vocals.
Without hesitation, they launched into their second song ‘The Silent Life‘ ,its rapid-fire riff instantly igniting the first mosh pit of their set. Midway through the song, they were joined on stage by Patrick Corona – guest musician for the band since 2019 – and his saxophone. This extra element added another dimension to their dynamic sound.
‘The Void From Which No Sound Escapes‘ was a true surprise as it was the first time Adam replaced his growls with clean vocals.
The fans went wild when the band announced they were about to play their latest song ‘House of Light‘ from their upcoming album. This song featured the typical Rivers of Nihil sound filled with growls, smooth guitar riffs, clean vocals, and as cherry on top captivating saxophone melodies.
The energy intensified with the next song ‘Death Is Real‘ inciting a mosh pit which led to a wall of death.
The band then made a good decision to let everyone breath for a second with ‘Where Owls Know My Name‘ , a song on which Adam once more showcased his vocal versatility!
Time flew by and we came to the end of the set, fortunately the band had one extra song to give us a ‘Clean‘ send-off.
Setlist: The Sub‐Orbital Blues – The Silent Life – Hellbirds – A Home – The Void From Which No Sound Escapes – Criminals – House of Light – Death Is Real – Episode – Where Owls Know My Name – Clean
This night definitely was a big treat to progressive metal fans. It showed once again how technical metal can get and proved that even a classical instrument such as a saxophone can bring a surprisingly beautiful extra dimension to live music.