There is no better way to get to know a band than to attend one of their album release shows. That way, the metalhead is “forced” to listen to an album in its entirety (or almost in its entirety), as is required with every musical story created by our favorite artists. PASSENGERS IN PANIC, on Saturday, January 24, presented their new album, “Amnesia”, but the show started much earlier with two great bands.
Initially, the opening act was the Metalcore NOVELTY, somewhat rushed as there was a significant delay of about half an hour in the door opening, resulting in people still entering the venue when NOVELTY started their set. Nevertheless, with their inexhaustible energy, they managed to attract attention with ease. Especially Dimitris, the singer of the band, literally didn’t stop moving and the most impressive thing was that he managed to alternate clean with growl vocals easily. With a modern sound that can be characterized as melodic Metalcore and backing vocals from the two guitarists that gave depth to the performance, NOVELTY will definitely manage to gather a big fanbase soon, mainly among the younger generations of metalheads. Another thing tht impressed me was their drummer Jason, who played at unimaginable speeds. We expect their first releases soon.
Setlist
- Take the Fall
- Days Are Numbered
- Origin
- Vanity
- On The Edge
- Remorse
- Darkest Days
Next in line were the Heavy Rockers DEAD SOUTH DEALERS who, to be honest, excited me. More of a classic Heavy Rock band with many modern touches but also an equally capable singer, Andreas, who as time went by, got more crazy and covered every inch of the stage without of course affecting his vocal performance. Like Dimitris of NOVELTY, Andreas combined clean with growl vocals but unlike Dimitris, the clean version of his voice is his strong point. With two full length albums, they had the necessary material to offer a satisfying set in which they honored both of their albums equally. More from DSD soon in our webzine…
Setlist
- Melody
- Liar
- Exile
- Walk Through the Line
- DSD
- Fairies of the Swamp
- Through Void and Empty Stones
- Wrong Cargo
However, the evening was dedicated mostly to PASSENGERS IN PANIC who, with full energy and great pride, presented us “Amnesia” and some of their older songs. PASSENGERS IN PANIC tackle a genre of Folk Metal that has been gaining ground in recent years with bands like VIC but also many other bands including folk elements in their repertoire (for example ENEMY OF REALITY). Of course, we enjoyed the entire “Amnesia” album as well as some additional songs from their first full-length album as well as Greek traditional songs such as the Pontic “Tsambasin” and the old rebetiko “Πέντε Χρόνια Δικασμένος” by Perpiniadis. Certainly bold choices when you are dealing with a purely metal audience, but those choices were their way to show us that they are not artistically limited and that they like to experiment. Johanna, their singer was really communicative and thanked their fans many times for their support through good and difficult times for the band. Last but not least, there were two guest musicians that honored PASSENGERS IN PANIC. Giannis Manopoulos of THELEMITE accompanying them on bass and Thodoris Papadopoulos with his bouzouki on “Kaixis” and “Πέντε Χρόνια Δικασμένος”.
Setlist
- 2321
- Echoes of Death
- Shipwreck
- Amnesia
- How to Breathe
- Erase Me
- Tsampasin
- Lacrimae Rerum
- Siren’s Call
- Mother’s Lament
- Πέντε Χρόνια Δικασμένος
- Kaixis
- To Stain
The show was certainly considered successful both in terms of crowd attendance and the performance of the bands despite the delay in the start and the minor technical problems with the sound. PASSENGERS IN PANIC have formed a colorful musical palette in which they combine heavy, progressive and folk elements that will blend together better and better as time goes by.
Live Correspondent – Photos – Videos: Kostas Boudoukos
