CREMATORY, EVERGREY, Chaoswave, Fyeld, New Disease
19.07.2009, 'Hristo Botev' hall,В Sofia - BulgariaВ 

words byВ Ivaylo ALexandrov, photo: Georgi Georgiev.

What a waiting last night! Let’s start directly with the reasons for it; I believe everybody wants to know why we have waited a few hours for the beginning of the ‘Pill Against Depression Festival’. Evergrey were delayed at the Serbian customs and they came in Sofia after 6 PM which automatically pushed the start ahead in time. There followed arrangements between the managers of the leading acts and by Crematory’s insisting (who early today flew back) the order of the headline bands was reversed. At this time sound systems were installed and there fell some songs from the supporting bands. It seems they took most of the negatives from the delay – around ten-minute sets for the local bands and half an hour boredom of Chaoswave.

Now in details. New Disease took the role of the white mouse and they leapt shortly after 8 PM before the looks of the tired of staying on feet, still loose audience. Terse, shortly and clear, the guys showed huge desire for playing live. Strong metal, screams and as a dessert – guest vocals by Bobz from Fyeld for the last song. Ten minutes for warming up the neck muscles and almost without enough time to buy a beer, Fyeld were on stage.
This band really is special. They passed through what not until they finally released their second album 'Not Blond Enough to Survyve the Holocaust', but the CD is a fact at last, moreover really affordable and even playing on my stereo right now. The band has great hunger for the stage and in the frame of some fifteen minutes they showed that they still have a lot of punches to give. Cool, see you in the clubs – watch out for them, they are currently on tour!

In the pause that followed more people came in the hall and the sound engineers adjusted the rigging and the installations for the forthcoming performance for the Italians of Chaoswave. It was past 9 PM when the singer Giorgia came on stage to check the microphones dressed in the typical gothic-metal outfit and her curly colleague in singing Fabio enthusiastically asked: “Are you ready for some Italian shit?” Damn, you were right, bro! It is true that the sound in the beginning of their 30-minute performance wasn’t perfect, but their music combines perfectly the terms cliché and boredom. Modern metal sound, diluted by female vocals, some mid-temp riff passages and lack of personality in high level. And only when I think that such bands could drop off and we could listen to more Bulgarian bands who really have it… But the bands go in package. You keep mum, drink beer and wait for the headliners.

В 

И And the first of them came out around 10PM. Crematory saluted for second time ‘Hristo Botev’ hall, swapping positions with the Swedish of Evergrey and they jumped straight into ‘Remember’ from their last album till now ‘Pray’. It made impression that the sound for the Germans was more than clean which showed also in the warm welcome from the risen to 1000 people audience. The band rules the stage, the show and its fans and it gave us a wonderful walk through all it periods as at one moment it was in the 90s with ‘Shadows Of Mine’ and the hit ‘Tears of Time’ and at the other we were listening to songs like ‘Tick Tack’ and ‘The Fallen’. By the example of New Disease Crematory also had a guest on stage – a well kept India-rubber plant in a flowerpot at the right side of the guitarist Matthias Hechler. It seems that some plants thrive in dark halls and loud metal music.

Shortly before the end of the standard set in the hall there resounded the popular war cry of the Bulgarian metal-head “Yebanyeeee!” (Fuuuuck iiiit!) to which it was loudly answered with “Slayeeeeeerrrr” and for our biggest surprise Felix responded warmly. “You wanted Slayer? Well, you’ve got it!” And Crematory started 'Raining Blood'! Shock! And moshpit! In a moment the thrash-hymn flowed into Arise of Sepultura who finished us turning to Davidian from Machine Head’s debut album. That’s what I call a fine gesture and unexpected change. I love surprises.

Another cover song but this time emblematic for the band – ‘Temple of Love’, before Matthias wished good evening to the crowd with the tender ’Perils of the Wind’ and Crematory left under the unstopping applauses by the scanty but adequate audience in the hall.

And now the patience of the crowd was put for another time to heavy (one-hour) testВ  that took serious victims in the form of three-number count of fans who, yield themselves prisoners to the tiredness, sank in the night of the Student Town, leaving barely 300-400 fans for the show of Evergrey.

The Swedish came out half an hour after midnight with the wonderful 'Fear'. And even though they were tired, Evergrey decided to give to their loyal public a full-blooded concert. They remained on stage more than hour and half, out of spite the fatigue, delay, chaos, the insane hour of the night and the crappy sound. Yes, with the Gothenburg five the sound again appeared to be notable problem. But not for the fans in 'Hristo Botev' who firmly supported their heroes, applauding loudly and singing along Tom Englund to their favorite tunes 'As I Lie Here Bleeding', 'Watching the 'Skies' or the lyrical 'I’m Sorry'...

Evergrey themselves played with great will and they really gave it for all these who were still in the hall and made the concert a fact, preventing absolutely real fiasco. Well done, guys! Well done to all the bands that did not give up but carried the situation on their shoulders, strings, throats and drums. Well done also to everyone of these few hundred people who stayed, listened, sang and headbanged, devoted to the metal.В 

And to promoters of Mask Music we wish unforeseen obstacles like the ones from the last night to remain only as an echo from the past and good luck in all future initiatives!

GALLERY