Andromeda,
Damnation Angels &
Until Rain

November 21, 2013 - De Pul, Uden (NL)


Planning a concert on a Thursday night instead of the weekend always holds a risk even if you have three bands performing. This triple concert by Andromeda, Until Rain and Damnation Angels was no exception; the venue wasn't filled by far and the people that showed up definitely came to see the Swedish progressive metal band Andromeda.
 

Until Rain

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Vicky Psarakis
The Greek prog metal band Until Rain was the first band to perform. Well, I have to confess that I'd never heard of them before. This is quite a shame since Until Rain did a very good job on stage. So far the band recorded two albums: The Reign Of Dream (2009) and recently Anthem To Creation. Their vocalist Yannis Papadopoulos has a good voice which perfectly suits the music of the band. At some points he tried to encourage the audience to participate, but when he noticed that many people in the audience weren't familiar with the band's music, he wisely quit his attempts to get the hands in the air. This doesn't mean that the music was bad. On the contrary! Just like me most people were quite impressed by it and enjoyed it silently and respectfully.

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Yannis Papadopoulos (with Bill Gkagkavouzis on the left)
The musical style of Until Rain can be best described as technical progressive metal with a strong interaction between the keyboards of Lefteris Germenlis and the guitars of Theo Amaxopoulos. The latter was a real revelation to me: he played great melodies and his riffs and solos really sounded excellent. Another attractive element in the band is background vocalist Vicky Psarakis. She provided the music a new dimension, especially when she came forward to sing a duet and a solo part. For me this band was a nice surprise and I can't wait to review the promo of their latest album.
 

Damnation Angels

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PelleK
The second band on stage was the British quartet Damnation Angels. Their stage performance was quite enthusiastically; PelleK is the kind of singer who has a party of his own on stage. Unfortunately the band used pre-recorded keyboards and sound effects, which annoyingly slowed things down. It prevented the band from creating the same kind of atmosphere as Until Rain.
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Stephen Averill & PelleK
Another annoying element in the band's performance was the fact that they almost forced the people in the audience to sing or shout along with them. I hope this should be a lesson for the band members: please don't expect a small audience that mainly came to see the headliners, to be familiar with your music. People won't sing along on command when they don't listen regularly to your music!

I guess Until Rain could accept that and stopped doing so, but Damnation Angels seemed to get frustrated. Even PelleK's dance steps on stage couldn't get the audience enthusiastic for their music, which was less impressive than that of the previous band. All songs sounded a bit chaotic. After five songs the band surprisingly left the stage! We didn't even see the band members return at the bar afterwards, while the other two bands were cosily chatting with the people who stayed to have a drink and to buy the band's albums. I think it's very unprofessional of a band to react like this. Maybe they think that they're a hit in their own country, but I wasn't impressed at all. Fortunately after this downer the audience's mood immediately changed when the headliners entered the stage.
 

Andromeda

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Joakim Strandberg-Nilsson
The Swedish band Andromeda is where the people came for: progressive metal played with passion from a band that respects its audience. Andromeda's unique blend of melody and metal together with the distinguished voice of David Fremberg has proven to belong to the top of the premier league of progressive metal bands. Guitarist Johan Reinholdz alternated fierce riffs with stunning solos and melodies, while Linus Abrahamson, who played on a seven-string bass monster, challenged him. You can regard Reinholdz as an all-round guitarist, who can compete with every million-albums-selling
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David Fremberg
guitar shredder. However, he remains unpretentious and open to his fans. Keyboardist Martin Hedin is a real master on his instruments; his solos are flawless and the interaction between the guitar and his keyboards sounded superb.

The band had a great time since the audience reacted and interacted to everything that happened on stage; this is what they came for! Vocalist David Fremberg was constantly smiling and juggling with his microphone. He never missed but once, when the mike almost hit between the legs of the two guitarists, who were just ending a nice break! Hats off for drummer Joakim Strandberg-Nilsson as well who learned the band's repertoire in just two weeks. He replaced Thomas Lejon who recently became a father. The audience enjoyed fantastic versions of Chameleon Carnival, Preemptive Strike and Lies 'R' Us, just to name a few. As an encore they played a stunning version of the majestic piece Periscope. Andromeda didn't care that only few people showed up and played a super set. Not every band can manage this without having a new album on the shelves, which shows the loyalty to their fans. Plans for a new album have been made, so I hope we don't have to wait too long to listen to new material of this energetic Swedish band.

Like always, when I visit a small scale concert, the band members joined the people at the bar talking to their fans after the show. This gives one the opportunity to ask about their music and even personal issues are being discussed. Unlike Damnation Angels bands like Andromeda and Until Rain are nice to their fans and they are completely aware of the importance of the people showing up at concerts.

Pedro Bekkers (edited by Peter Willemsen)

Setlist Until Rain:


Intro (Taken from Anthem To Creation)
Think Again
Brain Death
In A State Of great Depression
Anthem To creation
My Own Blood



Pictures Until Rain by Henri Strik

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Click on the picture to enlarge.

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Line up Until Rain:

(left to right)
Alex Hughes:
drums
Theo Amaxopoulos:
guitars
Yannis Papadopoulos:
vocals
Lefteris Germenlis:
keyboards
Bill Gkagkavouzis:
bass
Vicky Psarakis:
vocals, background vocals
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Setlist Damnation Angels:


The Longest Day Of My Life
Reborn
Someone Else
Pride (The Warrior's Way)
Bringer Of Light





Pictures Damnation Angels by Henri Strik

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Line up Damnation Angels:

(click to enlarge)
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PelleK:
vocals
Will Graney:
guitars
Stephen Averill:
bass
John Graney:
drums

Setlist Andromeda:


Intro: Recognizing Fate
The Words Unspoken
Mirages
In The Deepest Of Waters
Survival Of The Richest
Chameleon Carnival
Iskenderun
Antidote
Slaves Of The Plethora Season
Preemtive Strike
Lies 'R' Us
My Star
Inner Circle
Encore:
Periscope





Pictures Andromeda by Henri Strik

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Click on the picture to enlarge.

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Line up Andromeda:

(left to right)
David Fremberg:
vocals
Linus Abrahamson:
bass
Johan Reinholdz:
guitars
Joakim Strandberg-Nilsson:
drums
Martin Hedin:
keyboards
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