What if Alice Cooper and Ozzy had a child together? It may look (and sound) something like Avatar. The Swedish quintet has embarked on their latest tour to support their newest album, Dance Devil Dance, and it is all that you could expect. But let’s do it properly.
First up were the Swiss band Kassogtha. There must be something in the mountains air that sets Swiss singers apart, when you see how amazing those singers are, from Melissa Bonny (Rage of Light, Ad Infinitum) to Manuel Gagneux (Zeal&Ardor), and, case in point, Stephany Hugnin. Despite being pretty new to the scene, the band manages an incredible sound and a great display of power and energy on stage. If you’re looking for (relative) newcomers to watch out for, look no further, Kassogtha is what you need.
Next up were Veil of Maya. The Chicagoans were perhaps a strange choice to fit on the stage. Although quite energetic, it didn’t feel like the room was reacting too well to the rap-inspired stage presence and the metalcore sound. It took the band most of their set to get the audience going and finally get a small circle pit. There’s no denying they gave everything to warm up the audience.
After a quick change of stage (and what seemed like a mountain of props), it was finally time for Avatar. Judging from the many t-shirts and battle vests with their name on it, they have quite a following in the region. Is there anything to say that hasn’t been said already? The stage presence is incredible, the choreography neat, the pyrotechnics pretty amazing for a relatively small indoor venue.
One note of importance here: to me, the sound on stage was, amazingly, way better than what I expected, and, I daresay, more suited to my taste than on the albums. The Eagle Has Landed, in particular, managed to be both more melodic and powerful. And of course Johannes Eckerström’s acting is on point, after twenty-something years of practicing all around the world. If anyone could read the room and make them do what they want, it was clearly him. All in all, the setlist was quite varied and included almost twenty songs, with interludes and dialogues, and it made for a great evening, well worth the trip to Rockhal.