Hey folks,
so finally the show began - and it began with a disappointment: Of "O Fortuna" they only played the first three lines, not the complete song. Before I knew what happened, they were already busy with the next song.
And that was all I didn't like about the show! The keyboard player was kinda cool, that reverend with the dreadlocks who made it possible to play "Via Nocturna", "Land of Canaan" etc. Christian was very cool and relaxed, chewing his chewing gum all the time. (After the show he told me that this helps him to stay focused, to stay concentrated.) The new female singer did well and had a pretty clear voice, and Thomas and Lori were impressive as always. Also, the sound was very well mixed; each instrument and voice was easily and clearly heard.
What big fun "The Flight of the Lord of
Funny Little Bumbl Flies" was! What a beautifully family-like atmosphere, when they all were standing at the edge of the stage, singing "Lemuria"! How much they enjoyed to make the crowd go "Hey! Hey! Hey!" or to sing along with a riff! How much fun Lori and Thomas had acting the songs. Her fever in the second verse of "Khlysti Evangelist", and her Rasputin taking a bite out of her neck.
Thomas played the flute and Lori played a bit of keyboard.
I'd been skeptic about "Siren of the Woods" being on this set-list, too, as they had played it a couple of times before. But they managed to give it a new, fresh twist. Not much of theater on this song this time; instead they played the immensely beautiful melody of the outro on flute and crowd before having the guitar finish it. It was wonderful and highly sentimental to me for personal reasons.
Also, they talked a lot more to the crowd than on previous tours. They spoke about the new album appearing and the 25th anniversary. Later Christofer told the sad true story of one of the FdM-songs, and he also told the story of the album - and how surprisingly easy it had been to get the credit of 75,000 Euro.
Well, "Ginnungagap" really blew me away this time, I went totally wild.
But all too soon the end of the show approached. A friend of mine had written on the back of one of the posters "Please play Kali Yuga 3" and held it up. Christofer saw it and quickly shook his head; of course they hadn't practiced this one, so that wouldn't be possible. The lady insisted, and I must admit I was beginning to feel embarassed... and then Christofer started to play a riff and Thomas actually sang the beginning of the song.
Yeah, he mixed up the first and second verse, but who cares? What a gesture!
"For To Mega Therion" was the final encore, and the show ended after more than two hours under loud applause and cheering from the crowd. Before that, however, I got to pluck a pick from Nalle's forehead.
Cheers!
Markus
