Within Temptation
Taylor Swift
I attended this concerto way back in '07 so it's rather hard to analyze this one. I remember being seated near the back, so it'll be hard to analyze from that regard too because I didn't wear my glasses lol. I do remember though, that she played my preferito song da her and that she sang us a anteprima from Fearless (which at the time had yet to be released). In general I remembered having a good time there, the crowd was really tame, everyone stayed seated and sung along so it was good for a first time concerto goer as I was. I don't remember much about how the set was set up o how the lighting was, but Taylor was very friendly with the crowd. And I remember admiring her acoustic guitar.
Rascal Flatts
I saw these guys when I saw Taylor so I don't remember them as much either. Also I'm pretty sure that my sister complained so much (about being sleepy) that we left after they played Life Is A Highway. What I did see (and do remember) was really cool; they had these projector board things; and they had this image of a road playing as the song played on. Before that it was fire. So it was pretty cool. But we left before I could really get a sense of how they interacted with the crowd.
Dagoba
Sharply contrasting Taylor Swift, Dagoba is a death metal band. And they had a rough crowd. The band encouraged moshing (which is never good for me being so small). Basically not good for first timers lol. Needless to say, I was standing and I was near the back so I didn't get a great view. But what I did see was that they had these huge banners with the band name and their newest album cover. The drum was set up on this big platform. If I remember right, the band members spoke only a little English, so interaction was limited. But no less they were able to work the crowd up enough to mosh. So props there. The lighting was really rather bright and with lots of flashing that got faster as the beat quickened. As of the vocals; these guys can really scream and growl--I came to find out that (while some bands enhance their screaming electronically), these guys did just as well without.
Dir En Grey
Dagoba opened for these guys. At this point my sister, father, and I moved up a little, closer to the stage. However the view was still largely obstructed da the moshing crowd making it very hard for me to see and enjoy...and also this one chick whipped her superiore, in alto off and threw it on stage. That aside, j-rock band Dir En Grey was very different when it came to lighting. They kept the stage pretty dark, limiting the spotlight to only the band members. And the spotlights were usually dim mostly blue, purple, o red. Sometimes yellow. It really worked though, because the band is a rather dark band and at the time Kyo (the singer) liked to paint his face like a skull and wear a grim reaper style veil; the lighting put a sort of eerie emphasis on this. Interaction wise, there really wasn't any. I'm wanting to assume this is because (and I'm not entirely sure) none of them really speak English. Speaking of speaking, vocally Kyo was amazing--though sometimes hard to hear--all of the crazy noises he could make on albums he could replicate live too.
Xandria
Xandria is the first band I remember really really enjoying live. I was standing up front and off to the left so I got a pretty good view. Seeing as they were in a really really small venue, there wasn't much room from elaborate stage decor. In fact, Xandria didn't really have any decor aside from one banner with the band logo (if I remember right). However Dianne's liveliness made up for it. She had this kind of stage energy that bought life into the venue. Though Xandria isn't super well-known she still managed to get the crowd pumped and singing. I was kind of sad that I didn't get to see the band with Lisa, but watching Dianne do her thing made me realize that she's più than fit to be in the band. One of the things I remember most vividly was her costume; it was really beautiful; a black mini-dress with these kind of 'wings' attached to her hips. They were all sparkly and shiny and flowed about as she danced. And then there were those heels! Though my preferito two songs weren't played, Dianne did a killer version of the older Xandria songs that had been originally done da Lisa. And her voice was strong, powerful, and killer. It was as if I was right at home listening to the album version. Lighting wasn't anything spectacular, just the standard blues, reds, and yellows.
Delain
Preforming after Xandria, these guys were freaking amazing. They were the band I came for (though I really Amore Xandria and Sonata Arctica, for me Delain was where it was at)! Like Xandria the crowd was really nice, no moshing but a lot of headbanging and what not. carlotta, charlotte wore a pretty neat outfit; it was this black t-shirt that was see-through(ish) down the middle (vertically) and matching jeans. Delain didn't have much più stage decoration either; they had these two rectangular banner-flags on either side of the stage that detto their band name. Though it wasn't too bad (since I was so far off to the left) at times they blocked my view of carlotta, charlotte and the boys. But no less Charlotte's stage energy really put a smile on my face. Everyone was kind of Canto along and te could feel that she was having a good time too. She added quite a bit of headbanging and really encouraged Canto along. Vocally, she was rather soft and a bit hard to hear at times, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the music. The highlight of their performance (for me) was either when they sang latte and Honey (because the intro was so alluring), when they sang April Rain (because that's my secondo preferito da the band), o when they played The Gathering. The Gathering was great because she legit introduced it as a song about people who are all coming together to have a good time. Its an upbeat song, and this is the one that the entire crowd was Canto along to--it's also the one where she kind of turned the mic to us during the chorus. As for the lighting; it was più comparable to Dagoba in that it was rather light. Most often a shade of red. There was less flashing. What stood out most about the lighting was actually during latte and Honey, during the first verse of the song the lighting was rather dimmer which really helped set the atmosphere.
Sonata Arctica
Not gonna lie; at this point in the show, my feet were getting really tired so I was getting a bit distracted. However Toby still had me engaged. He was actually really hilarious--I don't quite remember what things he detto that made me laugh, all I know is that he did. I liked his way of kind of pacing about the stage; often using the speakers as a foot rest (pretty sure one of the stage workers told him not to do that in the middle of a song lol). The point in the mostra that stood out the most for me was I Have A Right, this was the song that had me dancing (in a sense) with the crowd the most. It was really up beat and actually ended up becoming my preferito from the band. That said, his vocals were very clear and they didn't overpower nor were they overpowered da the instruments. The lighting for them was pretty similar to Delain. They also had the flag-banners with their band name and a large background of their newest album, I really loved the wolf.
Amaranthe
I actually saw these guys twice, once when they were opening for Within Temptation and once when they were the headliner so I'll make a paragraph for both.
As an opening act they didn't really have much decoration on stage. But then again I was standing on this sort of platform that was quite a distance from the stage. I noticed that the lighting was mostly green. Not even gonna lie, the thing I remember the most was Elize tripping. And no wonder, the boots she was wearing had such high heels! But she handled it like a champ, didn't even stop Canto and she incorperated it into her dance. Along with those heels, she wore this long (what looked like from afar) this long black cappotto thing. Also noteworthy; Eliz is a pro-headbanger, her long ponytailed hair just made the headbanging look kickass. The biggest flaw I could think of was; like Delain her vocals were rather soft and hard to hear at times, but I loved the performance no less. The highlight of that opening act was probably Nexus; they mostly played their newest songs (and I'm più familiar with their older stuff from the 'Amaranthe' era and the 'Nexus' era. So when they played the song Nexus I was più able to sing along and such.
As the headlining band, they had room to do more. This time Elize wore a kind of beige, long-sleeved mini-dress, still in heels da the way. Her hair was still ponytailed and as long as ever. This time I was up front and to the right, so I got a great view of the headbanging. And her voice was a lot clearer during this performance. Though Elize interacted with the crowed very well, I found that Olof (the guitarist) was più interactive; like when I would make the 'rock on' hand gesture he'd return it. There was really no stage decoration as the venue they played at was really small.
Within Temptation
This was the concerto I'd been dying to see for ages. And I was not disappointed at all. Though I didn't get near the front I still had a pretty good view from the platform I stood on. Sharon is such a cutie pie, she came on stage all happy and energetic. In the beginning she was wearing this white giacca (which she took off halfway through the show) and this short black dress. WT actually had some pretty neat decorations; they had their Hydra background hung up like Sonata Arctica's album cover. Along with this they had about 4 large digital panels projector boards (like the ones used da the Rascal Flatts). And they used those to play Musica video and fuoco graphics and such. My preferito bit was when they had showering rose petals on those screens accompanying 'Covered da Roses'. Sound wise they were amazing too; te could hear Sharon very clearly but not to a point where she overpowered the instruments. She was a sweetheart to the crowd too; before playing 'Stand My Ground' she detto something along the lines of “there are Lost of disputes going on over religion, gay rights, civil rights. I just want te all to know that each and everyone of te belongs here.” Along with the touching moments there was a part of the mostra where she played an acoustic Sinead. And then Ruud (think it was him) almost tripped over Sharon’s mic stand. And she was like “man te really hate that thing. Well it’s my best friend.” It was so cute and funny, probably my preferito part of the show. Though 'Our Farewell' wasn't played they did go back and play 'Ice Queen' and 'Mother Earth' for the encore. That part was great too because everyone was Canto along the entire time, I mean those were two of the classics. Lastly as far as the crowd went; it was a very tame one, some head banging and such but everyone was really friendly and what not.Overall it was just an amazing time. I'd Amore to see them again (hopefully closer to the stage).
One Eye'd Doll
Not even gonna lie, despite the fact that WT is my preferito band ever, One Eye'd Doll probably gave me my preferito concerto experience. They were spectacular, phenomenal really. The entire mostra was hilarious and full of crazy theatrics--this was a mostra I was glad to be front and center for. At one point in the mostra she had anyone wearing a band T get up on stage and try to 'teach' she and the crowd to dance. One Eye'd Doll's latest album was heavily themed 'Salem Witch Trials' so te can probably take a guess at what some of the theatrics were. Kimberly with her wonderful dark humor, before Canto 'Back In The Rye', told us her own version of the witch trials; she explained that in Salem there were hallucination causing toxins in the water and so everyone in Salem was simply on an acid trip. And before Canto 'Be My Friend' (which is my preferito da the band) she held up a horse puppet and a unicorn puppet. She then detto that the horse represented Satan and the unicorn represented God and held each of them up to see which would get the most cheers. And for every song she'd pull out a different hat to wear from her prop/costume bin. Finally in terms of theatrics she actually took her water bottle and spit the water out into the crowd. As I said, I was front and center lol. Basically 20 out of 10 for interacting with the crowd. As for stage decoration, there wasn't really much, but all of the props made up for that one. Kimberly also had some hella wicked dance moves and these dance moves were done while playing the guitar. So naturally with theatrics te need good lighting and such; I came to notice that the più upbeat the song, the brighter and flashier the lights. The più dark the song, the più somber the lighting--mostly shaded in blue. And of course Kimberly's Canto was on par. And Kim is a loud singer, the girl can scream. This mostra was just an all around great show. As for the crowd, again it was super tame. But there was a wide variety of people; a lot of people dressing in drag--made me wonder if there was a memo I missed. But a diverse crowd is a fun crowd that's for sure.
Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz opened for Amaranthe. This band had a più 80's/classic rock feel to it. The stage lights were pretty bright during their performance, but not obstructive so. The crowd for them was also very tame. And their Musica was up beat. There wasn't really any stage decoration. But there was a lot of head banging and a very feel good vibe. Santa Cruz gave one of those performances that just got te moving. I've never heard of them before that night and I was Canto along. I really loved Let Them Burn and Wasted and Wounded.
I Prevail
To be quite honest, I didn't really get to enjoy these guys properly as the crowd did get a bit nuts. But none the less I could hear them loud and clear. I don't really know much about these guys and their songs, but they sounded pretty catchy.
Cold Kingdom
Up until seeing them in concerto I only hard them briefly. However they kicked ass. There wasn't much stage decoration. And since the concerto took place outside (and it was mid-afternoon) they didn't really use any stage lights. But Dani had amazingly clear vocals. I was sitting in the front row off to the right so I got a clear view. She didn't really dance o anything, but her hair. It looked really cool blowing in the breeze. The band also did a cover of Ellie Goulding's Lights and I think that was my preferito part of their show.
Nine Shrines
These guys were super new to the industry. They announced that this summer festival was one of their first shows. The lead singer really liked his Jack Daniels lol. They also didn't have any stage decorations. And again it was mid-day so they didn't use stage lights either. I remember that after two o three songs they actually went back stage. Apparently they hadn't memorized all of their songs lol, but they came back on stage and finished out the mostra after prepping some more.
Fit For Rivals
Though Fit For Rivals wasn't the headliner, they were the band I was looking the most inoltrare, avanti too that day. Like Cold Kingdom and Nine Shrines the sun was still out so no stage lighting to analyze. However Renee's performance absolutely lived up to my expectations. Everyone pretty much stayed in one spot as long as one person sat down and held it, I got to stay in the front row. So from that same spot I got a clear view of the band. Renee's performance was like a classic rock throwback, it was intense. They played my preferito song, Damage, too. Basically it was headbanging fun.
We Are Harlot
So it started getting dark one these guys hit the stage. So they did use the stage lights a bit more, mostly white/yellow lights. Danny came up wearing a red leather giacca and baggy jeans with these sunglasses. It was pretty badass. His microphone was pretty eye-catching with an American flag tied to it. I wasn't all too familiar with their songs but I tried to sing along no less. Danny was a bit of a comedian (crude humor coming up); some girl flashed him and he just stops Canto and says "well ya learn something every day, I learned what that chick's nips look like". And I died a little, in a good way lol. Needless to say, they were a fun band to see.
Halestorm
And now for the headliner. da now it was dark so they used a lot of stage lighting in all different colors. At this point some people did squeeze their way in between the bleachers so I was now it what was the secondo row. Not complaining though because I could stand on the bleachers and still see. Lzzy really knows how to rock that guitar, let me say. This was another great band to headbang to. And they played all 3 of my preferiti da them. Again this concerto was just a great time all around.
The Agonist
For this concerto I was third row center. So Vicky comes out wearing this really cool shirt; white with many slits. And what looked like black leather pants. The stage lighting was pretty bright. And oh lordy lordy, this girl can scream. Like powerful screams. Despite the heavier sound the crowd was very tame, but it had that kind of high-energy vibe. Lots of headbanging and metal hands.
Eluveitie
Eluveitie's performance was everything I expected and più from my first Folk Metal concert. They had their band name/logo as a backdrop, but other than that, the stage had minimal decor. So then te have Shir-Ran Yinon with her violin off to the left side of the stage. Matteo Sisti is sitting behind lead singer (Chrigel Glanzmann) playing his bagpipes. And of course Anna Murphy comes in with her hurdy-gurdy--really odd instrument really. There were a bunch of other instrument players--the bassist, guitarist, and batterista to name a few. The blend of Chrigel and Anna's vocals was always balanced, each sang their parts clearly and powerfully. On superiore, in alto of that Chrigel played a number of instruments himself--one of which were the pipes so this dude is majorly multi-tasking. And he does so flawlessly. The crowd didn't mosh but there was a lot of jumping around and the like...it had great energy. Needless to say, this was one of my preferito concerts.
Echo Black
Let me start da describing the stage for a second; it was small. And I mean small, it was just as crowded up there as it was in the audience. Really the only stage decoration the band had was the banners with their band name. The rest of the stage was taken up da instruments. Which were very fab looking da the way; light up drums of blue with a sparkly black stripe and this really nifty black bedazzled mic. This didn't really leave much room for dancing o anything like that, the boys were still able to sposta about the stage though. The boys' cloths were just as fab as their instruments too; the guitarist had these really neat bedazzled hand warmers and these spiky bracelets. Really neat pants too; lots of slits and chains. The lead singer had these really awesome neon blue contacts in. But enough about the appearances, time to talk performances. At times it was hard to hear the lead singer and his voice cracked a couple of times...part of it I think had to do with some technical difficulties. But I still enjoyed hearing him sing. And the guitarist (who provided back up vocals did amazing). The bassist was the one doing most of the moving around and head banging, I loved his stage energy. And of course the batterista did great on the drums. Aside from the typical 'you guys having a good time's' there wasn't too much interaction with the crowd (though the bassist actually did hop down and play in the crowd). But that was made up for after the show; the guys hung around da the merch stand and talked to me for a good half an hour. Gave hugs too.
For this one I was in the third row of people of to the right. And the crowd was tame so the mostra was easy to enjoy.
Mxms
Mxms was the secondo opening band. This duo has only been around for a anno (as of 2015). And yet they managed to be the highlight of my night. Right when they got on stage the atmosphere in the venue just seemed to change. The lights were kept at a dim red creating this air of calm almost melancholy that was later accompanied da a sound to match. I adored it. The Musica was very lullaby-like. It was the kind of Musica that wasn't for headbanging o partying but just kind of had the crowd...allured. Ariel Levitan just has such a soft and angelic voice. When she and Jeremy Dawson came on stage wearing these black hooded cloaks I was intrigued. Ariel pretty much stood in one place the whole time, but it worked for the kind of Musica she was singing. Jeremy, the pianist/keyboardist also had me enticed. He had this way of looming and sulking over the keyboard, at points he was bent over in such a way that his head was level with the instrument. It was this somber kind of dance that went well with the funeral aesthetic associated with the band. più than anything I was impressed da how clear Ariel's voice was; like I could understand every world without having to refer to the projector. Speaking of the projector, that was the stage visual. Mxms bought out this projector bored that played a couple neat things; 'Omg' Musica video (very interesting and worth checking out ,by they), a lyric video for their song Rx, immagini of a marching army, immagini of a graveyard, and sometimes the band logo. All in black and white. For this performance I was still in the third row but pushed da the crowd più to the center.
The Birthday Massacre
The first of two headliners. TBM is the band I came to see. At this point I somehow managed to squeeze up to row 2. I'm glad I did because chibi had the best facial expressions that I probably would have missed if I was stuck behind a bacheca of tall people. I also probably wouldn't have been able to catch the fake blood makeup a few of the dudes were wearing. Another thing I enjoyed about the mostra was that someone tossed chibi a rose, she used it as omaggio and kind of showered petals onto herself and then into the crowd. She was also dancing around a lot, it was più like swaying, but cool no less. chibi was also great with interaction she'd reach out and high five the crowd every now and again. Loads of thank you's upon getting applause and someone held up a picture of their rabbit and she was having a conversation about on stage. Basically she was really fun. Birthday Massacre reminded me a lot of One Eye'd Doll. I was also really happy to hear them play "Blue".
Combichrist
It's really hard for me to talk about Combichrist because before they got on stage I was just so thirsty I had to leave the front of the crowd to fix that problem. Needless to say I couldn't get back and I was all the way in the back. I'm really short so I couldn't see a thing...even when I stood on a chair I could only really see the singer's head and the tip of a guitar. But they sounded good lol. Very rough vocals but at the same time understandable and fun. In a way I'm kind of glad I left the crowd because they started moshing. I had fun talking to the other two bands da the merch stand and just listening. From what I could tell, a lot of yellow stage lights.
Fit For Rivals
