A really heavy pleasant surprise
Following closely after an impressive set from Trepalium, more French comrades in Klone hit the stage next, and for a crowd who were probably at least 80-90 percent unsure who exactly they were, they absolutely killed it. By the end of their set the whole crowd within the tight confines of the KOKO were overwhelmingly won over.
On first impression it is clear that this band's influences lie heavily with Tool. They are able to maintain a style showing glimpses of bone-crunching heaviness whilst also delivering more melodic and atmospheric sections. Perhaps one of the more staggering parts of their set actually came with the opening song. The Eye Of The Needle (Part Two) in a live setting has an opening riff that grabs your attention with ease, and it hit everyone by complete surprise. By the end of this song alone there was seriously furious head banging going down. The track itself is not actually on any of the band's albums, instead available, along with Part One, free on their website. The studio version is heavy enough, but live it just carries so much power, it's really no surprise they have decided to open with it. The set list then moves on to showcase tunes from Klone's first two albums before a respectful thanking of both the crowd and Gojira allowed them to move onto the first two tracks from their newest release, The Dreamer's Hideaway. Being one of the 80-90 percent I've since had the pleasure to delve into Klone's discography, and whilst their records are very impressive they are a whole different animal live.
They ultimately did exactly what is required as a support act. Turned up, ripped the crowd a new one and left. Spectacular performance.