Not many people know this, but Thanksgiving in Canada does come a little early every year –typically, in mid-October. This year, Torontonians were treated to a spectacle of profanity in the middle of the celebration, with the tour of Opeth and Tribulation making its way into the Great White North on October 14th.
The sexagenarian Queen Elizabeth Theatre doesn’t really have a tradition of hosting metal events, but recently that began to change. We had KK’s Priest and Accept playing at the same venue a few weeks ago, and now it was time for Opeth. Before them, the Swiss compatriots of Tribulation opened the show, displaying their blend of occultism and romance.
Tribulation have changed their sound dramatically over their almost twenty years of existence. Their new album, “Sub Rosa In Æternum” still draws from occult and supernatural mythology, but there’s also a commercial appeal. Nowadays they sound like a cross between Type O Negative and The Cult, and based on the reception of the new singles, this direction seems to have pleased the fans. They kicked off their set with one of the new songs, “Tainted Skies”. Singer/bassist Johannes Andersson alternated demonic growls with a melodic voice that echoes the late Ian Curtis from Joy Division. The stage visuals matched the gloomy aspect of their lyrics, with black and white lights being predominant, and the only colorful element being the rose from the cover of the new album, which was shown on the back screen.
The show progressed with “Nightbound”, one of the singles of 2018’s “Down Below”, where guitarists Adam Zaars and Joseph Tholl showed great chemistry. While on past tours the band used to wear make-up, tonight only a little bit of mascara was spotted on them. They continued with the intense and dramatic “Suspiria De Profundis”, a ten-minute epic with lots of tempo changes. Johannes, Adam, and Joseph could be seen headbanging side by side during the heavier moments of the song. Next up was one of the new singles, “Hungry Waters”, with a distinctive Echo & the Bunnymen influence, which the crowd really enjoyed, and the catchy “Saturn Coming Down”. Their set was closed with a staple of their shows, the punky “Melancholia”.
TRIBULATION Photo Gallery (Photos by Mihaela Petrescu)
Every time an Opeth show is discussed, the first questions to be asked are “How are the growls? Did he growl?”. Well, let me get that out of the way immediately: yes, there are growls, and they sound mighty fine. They kicked it off with “§1”, from their upcoming album “The Last Will And Testament”, with screen projections showing details of the story. The crowd had been somewhat quiet for Tribulation, but erupted into a frenzy when Mikael Åkerfeldt et al entered the stage. Coming up next was the death metal riff-fest of “The Leper Affinity”, from their seminal album “Blackwater Park”.
Those who have been to an Opeth show know that Mikael uses humor to great effect during their performances, and tonight it was no different. He addressed the crowd asking when marijuana was legalized in the country, because he had never seen so many cannabis stores so close to each other. A masterful rendition of “The Grand Conjuration” followed, with keyboardist Joakim Svalberg shining on the Hammond-sounding keyboards and percussion, and bassist Martin Méndez slapping the bass and keeping it tight.
Mikael announced they would play a song “from a not-so-popular record”, the infamous “Heritage”, which represented quite a departure for the band. Mentioning that the Tribulation drummer is a great carpenter, “just like Jesus – and speaking of Jesus, why don’t we play a song about the devil?”, the band launched into “The Devil’s Orchard”. The screen projections really brought this song to life, with a demonic figure looming over a city and women being tortured by an evil being.
Humoring the crowd, Opeth played Napalm Death’s “You Suffer” three times, before jumping into the keyboard-driven “Eternal Rains Will Come”, from 2014’s “Pale Communion”. One of the high points of the show, the melancholic “In My Time Of Need” came up next, with the crowd singing every word of the chorus. It was followed by the mellow “Face of Melinda”, where drummer Waltteri Väyrynen, the “new kid on the block”, used brushes to add some levity. Speaking of drums, Waltteri did change the fills here and there, giving a new lease of life to long-standing songs from the repertoire, and making them his own.
Fan-favorite “Heir Apparent”, from 2008’s “Watershed” brought back the heaviness and the powerful growls, and a small but intense circle pit was formed during the heavier parts of the song. That album was the first one that guitarist Fredrik Åkesson did with the band, and his performance here was nothing short of mesmerizing.
“§3” came up next continuing the storyline of the new album, and the main show was closed with a blistering rendition of “Ghost Of Perdition”. The triumphant encore was comprised of “Sorceress”, with a plodding riff, and the perennial set closer “Deliverance”, arguably the best progressive death metal song ever made.
Opeth remain a force to be reckoned with in the progressive death metal realm and is most likely the biggest name this genre will ever have. One look at the seemingly infinite line for their merch is all the evidence one needs. Even when they play safe on their setlists, there’s always an element of progression in their career. With the new album being released on 22 November 2024, their first fully conceptual album since 1999’s “Still Life,” one wonders if the band will eventually play it in full, or if only a handful of songs from it will make it onto their set. Whatever happens, Opeth‘s evolution guarantees they will remain a captivating and unpredictable force in metal for years to come.
TRIBULATION Photo Gallery (Photos by Mihaela Petrescu)
