Moonspell

By Gonçalo Lemos Matias on Jun 29, 2013 in Exclusive Reports | Comments Off on Moonspell

Moonspell @ The Underworld, Camden, London, UK – 2013-04-23

It was an unusual day in London; the temperature was warm and the sun was stronger than the clouds that imprison the old city. Camden is a place known for its alternative cultures, and the Underworld is one of the premier venues for metal gigs and events. The outside was packed and seemed excited when a few members of the band walked around the sidewalk, hidden by shades. It’s not every day that London hosts a band like Moonspell, famous for their blend of gothic and traditional metal.

As soon as the doors opened, fans were greeted by the band, behind the merchandise tables, available to interact, sign or just take a few photographs. This is really a testament to the band’s ethos regarding its fans: a close relationship with mutual respect and interest.

It was not long before the light dimmed and the concert started; Mike (drums) made his way first and as soon as the intro to “axis mundi” morphed into the main part of the song, Fernando Ribeiro made his triumphant entry with a battle helmet, styled to the bands more recent aesthetics – think about the covers of their most recent albums.

The sound was not perfect at first, but you could clearly notice that it was being adjusted. It was not long until all instruments were blending symbiotically with the crowd.

In typical Moonspell fashion, they started with tracks from a not so distant past, namely the singles and centerpieces from their latest albums “alpha noir”, “night eternal” and “memorial”. The energy was very strong and you could tell that most fans in the attendance were connoisseurs of the Moonspell legacy, by the (almost frightening) way that they sang all of the lyrics.

 

 

One of the night’s climaxes was about to follow, when the first riff of “opium” – the main single from 1996’s Irreligious. Pedro Paixão’s keyboards were fantastic, creating the atmosphere that introspective song carries; this misty ambience bridged perfectly to “awake”, that got the whole venue screaming the chorus.

“Scorpion flower” was another strong moment of a night that really seemed to leave the fans very satisfied, thanks to the diverse and widespread nature of the material selected by the band. “Em nome do medo” was a surprising song to see live due to its lyrics being in Portuguese, but that didn’t stop the fans from singing along in the chorus; it was remarkable to witness the connection between the band and the crowd. Fernando is a masterful orator, and really knows how to captivate the audience – the way he bridged “em nome do medo” to “vampiria” was truly amazing.

Enter Wolfheart – the band’s first album, filled with some of Moonspell classics. “Vampiria”, “trebaruna”, “an erotic alchemy” paved the way to “alma mater”, which got everyone again singing the songs catchy chorus and melody. It was with this prideful moment that the band thanked the fans and went back to the dressing room.

The noise was deafening and the fans were shouting and clapping… suddenly one of the members of the road crew jumped into the drum kit and tightened one of the cymbals – this was the sign that the fans were waiting for! Now they knew they were going to stay a bit more under the band’s spell.

Usually encores seem very forced, most of the times rushed, and it’s in very few occasions that you feel that the band really wants to keep playing because they want to give something back to the audience. This was one of those situations!

“Wolfshade” continued and closed the Wolfheart suite; this song, rich in mood changes and dark melodies transported the audience to a different place… the initial enthusiasm from the beginning of the concert was gone – now there was a perfumed melancholy in the air, which made every fan feel closer to each other. At this point, everybody was waiting for “full moon madness” that is known to be the band’s closing song, but we were surprised with an emotional rendition of “mephisto” – another of the night’s highlights.

All of the sudden, the wolf howls… it was in this atmosphere that the band started to play their last song, the closing track from Irreligious – “full moon madness”. Again the crowd was singing every lyric, and you could see Fernando was touched by this, from the looks and expressions he made during this epic song. Ricardo Amorim was in tip top shape during the night, but he really stood apart from everybody else during this song – the powerful melody of the guitar solo reached every single person inside the underworld that night only to leave them mesmerized… The coda from this song always extends into some nice exchanges between the band, and this one was very long, revealing the deep care that the band nurtured for the fans.

 

Moonspell are really one of the premier bands to see live; they have a terrific set, with an abundance of interactions with the crowd. The sound quality of the concert is amazing, very rare in metal concerts these days, so a note to the production team which did an excellent job.

 

Pleasant surprises:

“An erotic alchemy” – a song that got buried by time, but that makes complete sense in a time where the band is resurrecting its more gothic sounds.

Irreligious will always be one of the most revered outputs of the band, namely because of the quality of its songs; it was pure joy to see them played with such attention to detail – it is a case to say that these songs aged extremely well!

 

Setlist:
01 – Axis Mundi
02 – Alpha Noir
03 – Finisterra
04 – Night Eternal
05 – Opium
06 – Awake
07 – Abysmo
08 – Nocturna
09 – Scorpion Flower
10 – Lickanthrope
11 – Love Is Blasphemy
12 – Em nome do medo
13 – Vampiria
14 – Trebaruna
15 – An Erotic Alchemy
16 – Alma Mater
Encore:
17 – Wolfshade (A Werewolf Masquerade)
18 – Mephisto
19 – Full Moon Madness