This Burning Day, Violent Chapter

 

We live in a country where every time someone dares to try crawling out of the swamp of mediocrity, we're quick to respond with “Who the hell do they think they are?!” 

And the author of this text is no exception. When ODD CREW announced that the Sofia date of the tour in support of their new album 'Mark These Words' will be in Hristo Botev hall – a venue with a capacity for about 3,000 people – I also started asking myself things like “Who needs this?”, “Are they really that big?” and so on.

 

But while some ponder at the sidelines, others work their asses off!

 

In this particular case the answers seem to come by themselves to those asking questions – all they had to do is drag their asses to Hristo Botev on this surprisingly warm November evening. 

 

Here is the gist. How was the sound? Among the better these four walls have been witness to. How was attendance? The show obviously wasn't sold out, the venue was half-full (or half empty if that suits you better), but let's not forget that things have been sadder attendance-wise for much bigger names here. And finally – what was the point of thing this here, since with a few free tickets less the same audience would've been able to squeeze into a club for 700 people like “Mixtape 5”?

 

Hell yeah, there was a point!

 

A show in such a big venue is a completely different thing compared to playing in a club. The intimacy of the small space is nowhere to be found here. You're on stage, there are barricades in front of you and then there's a sea of faces – people who expect something big from you. It's you who has set up their expectations so high by organising such a show and being its headliner. And you can't count on just your musical skills and songs anymore – there's a huge production falling on your shoulders beyond that. A stage to build, decorations to make, backdrops, a PA system, lighting – you name it. On top of that, the bigger scale of the event serves as a magnifying glass, making every little error seem huge.

 

And well, it was nice to see that someone has the balls to cope with all of this. 'Boyond the Shell' was the name of ODD CREW's previous album. But it feels that it is this night when a completely new beast is born out of its cocoon – a band that not only shows potential for bigger things, but makes them happen.

 

But before we get to this triumph, lets turn the clock back to 19:00 pm, when Serbia's Violent Chapter take the stage. 'We'll play you a new song now,” vocalist Milos Marjanovic says before continuing ironically: “They're all new songs to you actually.”

What we hear is some well thought out and well performed metalcore, but the quality of the sound at this point of the show prevents the band from truly shining. 

 

This Burning Day don't have to deal with such issues.  Which is good news since there's hardly aanother metal band in Bulgaria right now that depends more on melody – and is as confident in utilising it. Djent riffs, metalcore breakdowns, rapcore detours and convincing clean vocals – it's an eclectic mix that heir sound is made of, but there's a constant thread of sincere positivity that helps hold all of this together. You just can't help smiling as you watch them play – especially if it is not your first time seeing them and you realise they keep getting better and better. 

A few minutes after 21:00 pm we hear 'Eclipse' – the intro from the abovementioned 'Beyond the Shell'. It stands to announce that the thing we've all come to see is about to take place. After the intro fades out, ODD CREW are on the stage and are soaked in cold, white-blue light. A few seconds of somewhat awkward silence follow as the four musicians stare at each other and I imagine them thinking something along the lines of “Are we doing this?”

And then it's like someone presses play and they kick right into 'Mark These Words' – the title track from their new album which is the reason fro this concert in the first place. They're not only doing this – they are killing it! 

Without extra pauses this time, ODD CREW continue into 'Lay on Me,' the second song from the new album. I notice the lighting for it is completely different. I ask myself when was the last time I saw a local band benefit from the kind of light show that seems to be preserved for big foreign acts.

 

And while I think about how the production of this night's show is exactly in line with what it should be, ODD CREW frontman Vasko Raykov asks the people in the audience to take a look around and realise that 90% of the faces around them are ones they're familiar with in one way or another. Logically, 'A Bottle of Friends' follows. The scale of things may have changed for this band, but its goals and ideas haven't.

Other highlights? 'Shapes in Grey,' the song that many people fell is the standout track of the album is also very impressive live. Kalin Velchev from This Burning Day joins ODD CREW for a very emotional performance of 'Bury the Sorrow'.



Technical problems after the 11th track – Raykov jokes it wouldn't have been an ODD CREW show without something like that happening. Boyan 'Bonzy' Georgiev performs a kickass drum solo. They play half of Black Sabbath's 'Iron Man' before figuring out where to stop.

'Two Steps to Hell' is still one of the band's best tracks, while the combo of 'I Ain't Losing Myself' and 'Fallen Down' is still the inevitable encore and final of the show.

 

Oh, and they film all of this for a DVD! So, even if you didn't feel like showing up in Hristo Botev hall this evening, you'd still be able to see why and how things happen for ODD CREW.