At The Gates & The Haunted
1st May 2019
Whammy! Bar, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Matt Henry Mendonca.
It was the triple bill of Swedish Metal that had fans bottom lips quivering, Witchery, The Haunted and the legendary At The Gates together for one night of what was sure to be epic madness on what was touted as ‘The Ultimate Triple Bill Kill’. Thanks to the powers that be (and a certain tireless kiwi promoter who is the backbone of international metal shows in this country), Auckland fans were lucky enough to be able to witness two out of three, both The Haunted and At The Gates making their way across the ditch for the ‘Swedish Slaughter NZ Tour’. Unsurprisingly tickets were snapped up and Whammy Bar prepared themselves for the onslaught of fans on a chilly Wednesday night.
Dark Divinity opened the evening’s festivities, bringing their own brand of melodic death metal to the table from the capital city. Formed in 2017 by drummer Ian Moir – a familiar face to anyone who is a fan of progressive metal band Into Orbit who have just released their killer brand new studio album entitled Kinesis – the band first introduced themselves with their debut track ‘Seasons of Dark’.
Fast forward a couple of years and there have been a few line-up changes, fellow Into Orbit member Paul Stewart joining on guitar and on vocals the divine siren that is Jolene Tempest who many would recognise from her time with such bands as Zirconium and Bulletbelt. Taking no prisoners, Dark Divinity took the crowd through a set that scorched the very boards beneath their feet. They had already been earmarked as a band that is rising fast through the ranks and with a couple of international support slots under their belt (with no doubt more to come) it is easy to see why.
‘Night of the Witches’ and ‘Exegesis’ took fans by the throat, Tempest commanding centre stage both visually and vocally with her vintage style mic grasped tightly in hand. Closing out their tight set with the mercilessly vicious ‘Set in Stone’ – for which the band released a stylish music video late last year – and earlier released single ‘Seasons of the Dark’ they sealed their reputation as one of New Zealand’s formidable up and comers.
Anticipation was high as The Haunted took the stage, the sold-out crowd pressing in against the rarely seen steel barrier. Looking a little worse for wear thanks to a nasty fever causing virus Marco Aro, wiped an arm across his face and then delivered a set that most other artists could only ever hope to aspire to; ‘Brute Force’ from their last released album, 2017’s Strength in Numbers exploding across the stage and ripping faces from skulls.
Sadly, the Gothenburg metallers were down one member, bassist Jonas Björler unable to make the trip across to Australasia which of course meant that At The Gates would be missing him too; a combination of pre-recorded tracks and some help from Jonas Stålhammar of At The Gates taking his place. However, this absence was not going to deter The Haunted from still delivering a break-neck set; drummer Adrian Erlandsson often leading the charge, Aro spending almost the entirety of the night on the barrier where fans welcomed him with horns and fists raised.
Tearing through tracks such as ‘The Flood’ from The Dead Eye before laying down more from Strength in Numbers in the form of ‘Preachers of Death’ and ‘Spark’, The Haunted never once let the energy of the room falter, Aro good humouredly berating the audience every time their response to the question of wanting more was not up to his expected standard.
The combo of founding member Patrik Jensen (a small piece of Witchery making its way to NZ with him) and Ola Englund was of course a sight to behold, Englunds’ fingers moving across the strings with an almost supernatural presence as Jensen ensured that he made eye contact with as many fans as he could including those on the side who he at one point offered his guitar to. Making the dreams of one exuberant fan come true, The Haunted delivered a pounding version of ‘Bury Your Dead’ before leaving the audiences jaws smashed and bleeding on the floor with ‘Hate Song’ from their self-titled debut album.
Stage turnover gave many of those in the room the chance to re-cooperate, the more die-hard clinging to their hard-fought spots on the rail, their tenacity paying off as At The Gates arrived and threw down ‘To Drink from the Night Itself’. Once again Adrian Erlandsson took a seat behind the skins, incredibly for his second set of the evening – the dedication and camaraderie displayed by so many in the infamous Gothenburg scene worthy of devoted admiration.
Last night of the tour and facing down a pre-dawn flight departure, At The Gates were looking to go out on a high; their desire to give their New Zealand fans everything they had for the first ever appearance on our fair shores coursing through their veins. At The Gates have had a loyal following since their formation in 1990, their followers staying with them throughout their rather lengthy hiatus that saw a nineteen year gap between albums. Watching them perform live last night (even with the absence of Björler) it’s easy to see why, both their sheer talent and humility coming through as one. Vocalist Tomas Lindberg is the ringleader, much like Aro, whipping the crowd up any time they seemed to be waning; despite back to back performances his vocals were robust, surging forth like a war charge.
Beloved track ‘Slaughter of the Soul’ made an early appearance in the set list, the relentless kick drums and short sharp guitar riff that stabbed the air with an underlying malice paving the way for more classics from the album of the same name; ‘Under a Serpent Sun’ causing great excitement amongst the fans. Keeping it simple, the At The Gates set list moved around three albums; the aforementioned Slaughter of the Soul from 1995 (cited as critically one of their best), 2014’s At War with Reality and of course their latest offering, last year’s To Drink from the Night Itself; the combination of material from all three making for an evening that married old with new in perfect hamoney at an altar of charred remains.
Checking in with the crowd, Lindberg would ask if they could play something new, this invited participation one of the reasons that many of these stalwarts of the Swedish metal scene are so beloved; ‘Colours of the Beast’ bringing in a dark melodic tone that underpinned the throbbing verses. All too soon the end had arrived, At The Gates returning to the stage not once, but twice, ‘The Night Eternal’ taking out the astounding ninety-five minute set; Stålhammar beautifully extending the solo ending as fans looked on in awe. Set lists, picks and sticks were both graciously given and received, autographs provided to those who asked.
Some would say a gig for the history books, others a once in a lifetime show, either way it was a night that those who attended will not soon forget.
Were you there at Whammy! Bar for this extreme metal extravaganza? Or have you seen The Haunted or At The Gates perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
At The Gates Setlist:
- To Drink From The Night Itself
- At War With Reality
- Slaughter Of The Soul
- Cold
- A Stare Bound In Stone
- Circular Ruins
- Death And The Labyrinth
- Daggers of Black Haze
- Under A Serpent Sun
- The Chasm
- Heroes And Tombs
- Nausea
- Colours Of The Beast
- The Book Of Sand
- The Mirror Black
- Suicide Nation
- Blinded By Fear
- The Night Eternal
The Haunted Setlist:
- Brute Force
- 99 Tresspass
- The Flood
- The Medication
- Preachers Of Death
- Time (Will Not Heal)
- Spark
- No Compromise
- D.O.A
- Dark Intentions
- Bury Your Dead
- Hate Song
Dark Divinity Setlist:
- Night Of The Witches
- Exegesis
- Ashes
- Tyrant
- Forbidden
- Vertigo
- Set In Stone
- Seasons Of Dark
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