SEPULTURA, The Sorrow, Urban Grey
6.02.2009 Sofia,В "Blue Box" clubВ 

words byВ Metal Willie, photo: Victor Alexandrov & Begemot

Tangra Mega Rock's 3rd anniversary was bound to be a glorious carnage of beer, sweat and metal!!! Sofia isn't exactly San Francisco's Bay Area of the 80's, but tonight- February 6th 2009 it was oozing aggression, energy, and most of all- METAL!

For our 3rd birthday bash (yes, this baby's only 3, but already knows how to give the "fuck you" and "devil's horns" signs ) we had 3 fantastic bands and about a thousand moshed up metal mentalists in the house!!!

Sofia is pretty cold and downright freezing in February, but this time God knows why, we had some absolutely fabulous warm weather on this Friday night, while outside waiting for the doors to open. This, of course, meant hundreds os metalheads in Sepultura attire mixing outside the venue.

Everyone was sporting drinking flasks or plastic bottles full of whatnot bevvy to swill while waiting for the doors to open. This latter, long anticipated event finally occured at 8:00 pm. Seeing the very first mentalists RUN like mad towards the metal barriers in front of the stage, The very first few pouncing upon them, as if to ascertain their authority was dead exciting in itself.

The EXCITEMENT was in the air and no mistake about it. The venue began fillin up, as the first opening band hit the stage

Urban Grey hail from Sofia, have played over 150 gigs and their debut album was unleashed upon the unsuspecting masses only last month. They came out to a police siren which pierced every eardrum whthin distance. There was simply nobody who could ignore the piercing wail - no fucking way, I tell you! And so the mob gathered up front to be mashed up and good!!! Urban Grey's set was absoutely ferocious, no sucking up to the crowd, no quater given either. Up on the balcony, behind me, I noticed Sepultura's Andreas Kisser and Paulo watching the Bulgarian band's set. "What a really really good band! Excellent set!" - remarked Andreas later on, when asked what he thought of Urban Grey's set. I guess that's accolade enough...

Next up - The Sorrow from Austria.

You just knew they would not be a band that's into heavy innovation and experimenting...That's not knocking them - the guys had all the right "moves", both stage and music wise, to captivate the throngs of metalheads. They did seem a bit too studied and contrived, but if it makes for a fist-pumping concert hall, then - hey - you can't knock it.В В 

A short break...anticipation building...people in Brazil football tops nervously fidgeting...The light so dim...just like in the Corova Bar out of Clockwork Orange...The Roar goes upand so does the volume! Sepultura's intro tape has just begun! They ghost onstage shrouded in darkness and suddenly burst into Alex I/Moloko. All hell breaks loose.

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SEPULTURA have chosen Sofia and radio Tangra Mega Rock's 3rd anniversary to kick off their European tour and they're about to spare nobody!

The band smash away at their instruments as the larger-than-life Derrick marks the stage as his and the band's Territory! "Filthy Rot" - to smack us up next and the band continued blazing it up and violating us relentlessly until about 5 songs into the set, when Derrick finally decided to say something to the audience, which I barely remember as it came so unexpected and while we were all still in a daze from the band's opening salvo.

The moshpit was a sight to behold and even a 60 plus year old man next to me was tapping his feet in agreement. "We know you want some old stuff and we're gonna play that for you" - said Derrick.

All the idiot haters who think there is no Sepultura without the Cavalera bros should have witnessed this gig. Because, live, Sepultura absoutely RIP the fuck out of their instruments and kick all kinds of ass.

The performance was blinding, the band delivered all the new stuff and the classics, and delivered in style! This was the first time they had ever hit Sofia and hit it they did! The sell out crowd went completely berzerk and were rewarded with a 4-song encore, culminating in "Roots Bloody Roots"! What a fucking blinding night, what a fitting birthday for a radio that, just like Sepultura, doesn't give a fuck!

SEPULTURA setlist Sofia 2009

intro Alex IV
1. Alex I/Moloko
2. Intro/Filthy Rot
3. What I Do!
4. Manifest
5. Convicted In Life
6. Intro/We've Lost You
7. Alex II/Treatment
8. False
9. D.E.C.
10. Troops Of Doom
11. Forceful Behaviour
12. Sceptic Schizo Escape
13. Mass Hypnosis
14. Innerself
15. Alex III/The Experiment
16. Sepulnation
17. Refuse/Resist
18. Territory
19. Arise

ENCORE
Kayow As Jam
Enough Said
Conform
Roots

see SEPULTURA in our studios

GALLERY