Leprous, Mother of Million, SixForNine // An Club, Athens, Greece // 21.09.2015
Since their last visit here in 2011 Leprous went through a season of artistic creativity, and through an unstoppable live activity, playing gigs all over the world. This fact made them more experienced and of course gave them the confident to carve out their own unique musical identity. They are going through one of their best moments as a band and for sure we are lucky to see them. What was about to happen is difficult to explain. The show started with a 20 minute delay from schedule and two supporting acts had the role to warm up the audience.
The first was SixForNine and for the next half hour they played songs from their debut self-titled album. Unfortunately the sound was very bad, the volume level was too high, except the vocals which we barely hear. SixForNine define their musical style as alternative metal, a genre which is difficult to explain correctly. What I listened was certainly groovy but, too predictable, mainstream and perhaps little pretentious. Nevertheless the band showed rectitude, professionalism and combined with the excellent rhythm section they managed to warm up the audience.
The second supporting act was Mother of millions. It was my first time seeing them on stage, and certainly they made a very good impression! Very tight and flawless performance consisting in well-orchestrated songs. Groovy riffs, impressive drumming parts, minimalist use of keyboards and of course the dynamic vocals of George Prokopiou who is also the front-man of Poem, a prog band which I’m a huge fan. On the negative aspect I found many similarities between those two bands and Inevitably there been made comparisons. After 45 minutes of performance Mother of millions left the stage and certainly many of us there will search for their music.
Leprous took the stage with “The flood” which was an unexpected opener. From the first note the crowd gone crazy and that’s how it went until the end! It was unbelievable how easily the band were able to transfer it’s energy and vibe to the audience. They performed for almost two hours playing their new album “The Congregation” almost at its entirety and two songs each from albums “Coal” and “Bilateral”.
From the start the band showed how they intend to continue by delivering a powerful and impactful evening. “Foe”, “Third law” and “Chronic” to follow, and then “Rewind” where I think the band reached its peak performance.Staccato riffs, multiple dynamics, odd time signatures, dynamic and polyphonic vocal lines, impressive breaks, spectacular rhythm and drumming parts a real prog orgy. After that there were songs like “Slave”, “Moon” and “The Cloak” which represent the darker and more melancholic aspect of their music.
Einar Solber was incredible considering the intricate vocal acrobatics that are laced throughout Leprous music. His vocals kept intact although sometimes he seemed to struggle in high pitched notes. From an aural perspective, he managed to deliver on some of the more extreme emotional content. The rest of the band were also good. In fact, there was not a single dud performance in sight. Special praise goes to drummer Baard Kolstadwho like his predecessor Tobias Andersen performed mind blowingly well!
All in all, Leprous put on a dazzling show, showcasing one of the very best albums of 2015. Constantly expanding their fan base, showing passion and intensity that few bands can. If they continue with the level of growth they have exhibited over the last years it is certain that they will go very far indeed.
[page_title text=”SET LIST”]
01. The Flood
02. Foe
03. Third Law
04. Chronic
05. Rewind
06. The Cloak
07. Acquired Taste
08. Red
09. Slave
10. Moon
11. The Price
12. Down
13. The Valley
14. Forced Entry
[page_title text=”GALLERY”]
Check C.Alossi Photography for more photos.