Meshuggah bring the bomb!
When I first entered the Concorde 2, before the first support had even come on it was evident the night would be a success, with such an intimate venue for a sold out show and such a huge crowd; mayhem would surely be the conclusion.
After much anticipation and as the remains of tape played Obsidian drew to an end Meshuggah appeared on stage to open with their first track Demiurge. The crowd had doubled by that point and for fans, the suspense had already killed them; with a pit forming almost instantly I knew things would get slightly brutal.
Click for large image |
By the sixth track Lethargica, I wasn't at all surprised at how receptive the crowd was, having already worked themselves up into frenzy; there wasn't just one insane circle pit at the front of the stage but several small ones nearing the back of the entrance; with veins bulging form his head - banging front man Jens Kidman had done what he came here to do.
Hidden behind their hair, the guitarists Fredrik Thordendal and Marten Hagstrom had already begun torturing their strings; executing polyrhythm laced metal to perfection as they went on to play two tracks Pravus and Combustion from 2008s album ObZen, before moving on to more new material in the forms of Do Not Look Down and The Hurt That Finds You First, inviting fans to more delicious thrash moments.
After breaking for an encore, the Swedish quintet returned to the stage, and opened with another oldie Future Breed Machine before polishing up their set with Dancers To A Discordant System.
The lighting was kept simple throughout but simple enough to capture Jens Kidman's bald head and the constant expression that usually follows a metal vocalist on camera. These metal veterans packed in fifteen heavy tracks in total, proving that years on from when they first started out; they still have what it takes to keep an audience amused.
Having not seen Meshuggah before and only being introduced to them a couple of days before the show; I was a little apprehensive, but from the moment their set had begun, I could tell heavy metal was no stranger to these guys; they knew what they were doing which made it even more enjoyable.
The energy they'd put in to their set and the atmosphere among the crowd that they had created was incredible, the most enthusiastic band I've seen since 2011 and one of the definitive bands of the genre.
To view all photos taken during this set click here. There are 1 available.