hellfueled_2006_09

» Hellfueled 2006 09 30

Reviewed by Thomas
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Special guests: Artocreatis, Katana, Evergrace, Electric Haze
City: Alingsås, Sweden
Venue: Fabriken
Date: 30 September 2006s

Loud metal at a low cost. That is what you get when Tinnitus2 organises concerts at Fabriken in Alingsås. Fabriken is an organisation that has as a goal to gather the music, musicians and music consumers in the city of Alingsås in order to nurture the thriving music-life that the town holds. Apart from headliners Hellfueled, four more bands stood on the stage this time - Artocreatis, Katana Evergrace and Electric Haze acted as warmer ups.

Evergrace

Evergrace took the opportunity to hold the release party for their self-titled debut album at the same time as they played in Alingsås this evening. I wouldn't say that I was impressed by Evergrace but I was far from disappointed and I enjoyed every moment of their set. This young band has chosen a name close to Evergrey and that is perhaps not the best choice, since they are probably going to be packed in the same genre as them. Their music worked well live and their blend of melodic parts and harder edges made it a dynamic performance. Comparisons can be made with mentioned Evergrey, Tad Morose, Magnitude 9 and Communic when they let it rip with a little more speed and riffs that are more aggressive.

It felt like the guys were uncertain and suffered from lack of confident on stage but with more routine they can improve. The music does not lack confidence on the other hand, so they should not need to either. Their performance got better as the songs went on and with the heavier and faster songs in the end, I very much enjoyed their metal. The vocals were very good, although it could use some polishing but the guy can hold the notes, and he can hold them long as well.

6 chalices of 10

(sorry, no setlist)

Electric Haze

Local band Electric Haze has apparently been around in the local circuit for many years, and it was obvious. The four-piece band was tight and you could see that they were having a lot of fun on stage. Musically I would somewhat compare it with the hard rock of Deep Purple and it had a nice groove to it with a smell of the blues. This is generally not my kind of music really but it was hard not to dig the hard rockin' groove when they pushed so heavily on the keys that had a Hammond touch to it.

5 chalices of 10

(sorry, no setlist)

Hellfueled

I guess the difference between big European festivals like Wacken and Bang Your Head and the venue Fabriken in the small Swedish town of Alingsås is extremely huge. However, this hard rocking foursome managed to kick ass for about an hour anyway. Hellfueled kicked into gear right from the start and kept the pace up straight through their performance. And what struck me was that their songs became more dynamic and obviously rawer than on their albums. When the songs were delivered live they were put in to a new dimension and they became less static, so I guess an live album with Hellfueled would probably outdo the studio ones. My memory fails me on which songs they played but it seemed to me like they manage to pick out the best songs from both of their albums and can't say that I missed any song.

I was impressed by the vocals from Andy live and even though he sounded a bit tired towards the end, I think he actually sounds better live than on album, it is less Ozzy that way. The band acted relaxed and seemed to enjoy being on stage, as the entire band seemed to be in a good mood. It was probably not their most inspiring gig, but it was my first time watching them live so I can't really compare with their earlier performances. Midnight Lady was the song that seemed to be the most anticipated one from the audience and not very surprisingly, it was the highlight of this evening.

7 chalices of 10

(sorry, no setlist)