Cloven Hoof, Thelemite, Heart Attack Live @ 7sins, 01/06/2012

Cloven Hoof, Thelemite, Heart Attack Live @ 7sins, 01/06/2012

After a couple of times in the past where I’ve missed the chance to see them, it was finally time to witness Cloven Hoof, the legendary metal band from the U.K. in a very special show. The band was about to rerelease their classic record “A Sultan’s Ransom”, which also happens to be one of my favorite Heavy Metal records, and they were going to present it in its entirety!

I arrived only to find out that despite the cheap ticket price (17 euro), the venue was almost empty. I must admit that this isn’t the best venue in Athens and many people are unemployed, but it seems like less and less people are going to see a gig nowadays. The first band on stage was Thelemite, a very fresh Greek band that sadly played in front of nearly 30-40 people. Their sound is a mixture of good old Rainbow and Black Sabbath with some melodic elements. They played some of their songs along with some covers. Their performance was good, although I have seen them once in the past and they’ve played much better. The second band was Heart Attack, another very fresh and melodic Greek band. They had several lineup changes but they sounded very tight. Their songs are very good although the sound in the club could be a little better. Some more people kept coming in, but still not too many.

There were also two benches with merch at the gig with lots of records and t-shirts for anyone to buy, and most band members stayed until the end of the gig. It was time for Cloven Hoof to hit the stage and I really had high hopes regarding the fact that Russ North was back in the band. I stepped outside to breath some fresh air after Heart Attack finished their set and it was just in time to hear an EXCELLENT A Capella performance from Russ North who was backstage, in a couple of Cloven Hoof classics! What an extraordinary vocal range this man still has…

I rushed down again to witness the greatness. The band was on stage and seemed way too excited to visit Greece once more. The welcome was very warm but the lack of crowd was more than obvious. They started playing the “A Sultan’s Ransom” record and they actually nailed all the songs in the record, along some songs from previous records, in a very unique and magical way.  I really didn’t expect their performance to be at such high standards. They were communicating at all times with each other and with the crowd and the results were more than obvious. Even though I was standing in the front row, the sound was very clear and you could hear even the slightest changes. The performances from all the band members were great and they actually sounded better than the record! My only complaint is I wanted them to play a little more… oh well, maybe next time. The band stayed in the club after the gig for signings, photos and meeting with the fans. Truly a memorable night…

Cloven Hoof setlist:

Astral Rider

Forgotten Heroes

D.V.R.

Jekyll and Hyde

1001 Nights

Silver Surfer

Notre Dame

Mad, Mad World

Highlander

Mistress of the Forest

The Gates of Gehenna

Inquisitor

Reach for the Sky

Nova Battlestar

Laying down the Law


Also on Burst.gr - http://burst.gr/live/reports/item/1223-live-report-cloven-hoof-heart-attack-thelemite-1/6/2012-7sins

HELLENIC METAL LIVE IN THESSALONIKI

HELLENIC METAL LIVE IN THESSALONIKI

Date: Saturday, June 16, 2012
Place: EIGHTBALL club, Thessaloniki
Time: 6:15am
Price: 8 euro

Eat Metal Records proudly presents:

RELEASED ANGER , WRATHBLADE, DREAM WEAVER, STRIKELIGHT, ABSTRACT VIOLENCE, RIFFOBIA

Metal festival with Greek bands in Thessaloniki.

Schedule:
ABSTRACT VIOLENCE 18:35 - 19:10
RIFFOBIA 19:20 - 20:00
STRIKELIGHT 20:10 - 21:00
WRATHBLADE 21:10 - 22:00
DREAM WEAVER 22:10 - 23:00
RELEASED ANGER 23:10 - 24:00



6 bands, 6.5 hours of live undergournd Heavy Metal.

After show Heavy Metal party at Eightball Club with DJ Greg "Heavy Load".

A tour will be organised from Athens with a bus, departing at 7:00 in the morning on June 16th, and returning in Athens on June 17th, at 12:00 noon.
The price will be 25 euro, for bookings send a mail here: info@eatmetalrecords.com

There will also be a CD/LP-bench at the gig, with stuff from the bands, as well as eat metal records stuff, best prices as always...

Ticket presale since May 10th at Eightball, Nefilim & Steel Gallery...

Support this gig, especially all those who live nearby...

LINKS:
Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/269728019777405/
EAT METAL RECORDS: https://www.facebook.com/pages/EAT-METAL-RECORDS/192301724138260
Released Anger: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Released-Anger/43116959320
Dream Weaver: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dream-Weaver/316319698392659
Wrathblade: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wrathblade/258689974181692
Strikelight: https://www.facebook.com/StrikelightOfficial?ref=ts
Riffobia: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Riffobia/322878057731243?ref=ts
Abstract Violence: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Abstract-Violence/217203018300980

Benediction, Decomposed Existence LIVE @ AN Club, Athens, Greece, 18/05/2012

Benediction, Decomposed Existence LIVE @ AN Club, Athens, Greece, 18/05/2012

It was finally time to see the old-school deathsters from the U.K. , I’ve it was definitely one of the bands that I was really looking forward to see.  I’ve also had quite a while since the last time that I went to a death metal gig, so it was really something to spice up the night.

The first band to appear on stage was Decomposed Existence, a very fresh young death metal band from Greece. Their performance was very good, despite the lack of cheering from the crowd, actually, there was no crowd to cheer. I think I counted about 30 people when I entered the venue and it really was a sad thing to see. Almost half of the concerts nowadays are like this due to the economic crisis and political turmoil.  Anyway, the band played some songs from their first and upcoming second EP as well as an “Asphyx” cover.  Their whole show was very good and I think we’ll be hearing from them soon.

Finally it was time for Benediction to demolish the stage. Sadly, the crowd wasn’t getting any bigger. Maybe another 10-20 people entered during the show, and that was it. The band gave their best self on stage despite the lack of crowd and they seem to enjoy themselves very much. The few people that were on the front line were already warmed up so some moshing and headbanging finally started to take place.  The sound was very good throughout the whole gig and that contributed to a whole new level of live experience. Even though there were not many people at the club, the atmosphere was really warm and family-like.  The band kept communicating with the crowd during the gig, especially for all the problems that Greece is going through right now.  They also announced that they weren’t gonna lie to us about saying “goodnight” and then doing an encore, instead they were just gonna stay on stage and do three more songs. They played a sufficient set, not too long, not too short, although several people complained about the small duration of the gig. I have to say this one. Maybe it was smaller than they expected, but the band definitely gave their best selves up there, making it a great night for everyone who attended. Cheers to Benediction!

Benediction Setlist:

1) Intro

2) Unfound Mortality

3) Nothing on the Inside

4) The Grey Man

5) Contropolis (Rats In The Mask)

6) Nightfear

7) Nervebomb

8) The Grotesque

9) They Must Die Screaming

10) Shadow World

11) The Dreams You Dread

12) Suffering Feeds Me

13) Jumping at Shadows

14) Subconscious Terror

15) Magnificat

Also on Burst.gr - http://burst.gr/live/reports/item/1203-live-report-benediction-decomposed-existence-live--an-club-athens-greece-18/05/2012#