ICETODIRON (concert's review).

A good gig can often serve as an excuse for travel and vacation. This was at least how I found myself on the night bus from Tallinn to the beautiful capital of Lithuania, in the middle of the darkest winter. A local arranger and label Autarkeia was organizing an industrial-night which sounded very promising. The hospitable organizer also made everything run very smoothly on location for us visitors.

We had prepared by arriving one day before the gig itself so we could load up with a good night´s sleep, which proved to be wise, because the gig ran at a quite late schedule. And the lovely taverns of Vilnius certanily made time pass pleasantly.

The venue itself was a club called The Vault, which turned out to be an old Soviet-era underground bunker. Although the location was somewhat difficult to find, it provided the perfect setting for an industrial concert. Sturdy concrete pillars divided the room into an open middle section and more loungelike sides with camouflaged benches. The walls were decorated with old illustrated evacuation instructions and gas masks of different types. The air smelled of mold and wet concrete, and the space itself was warmed with gas heaters. The bar was behind a safety net, and guests also had to undergo a quite thorough safety inspection at the door.

Time passed slowly, as I did not know anyone there, and thus the first set, Error from Latvia, was very welcome. Error played well-structured, even hypnotic noise. A large backdrop was shown, which balanced between very impressive and rather comical. Error´s style is hard to describe – it was definitely noise not quite rhythmic, but definitely not chaotic either, but clear, almost ambient-like in structure, but yet forceful and effective. I was very impressed by the set and look forward to Error´s first releases.

The crowd was not very large, perhaps fifty persons. Probably the ticket price of around twelve euros was a bit steep for the locals. But it was fun to observe the enthusiasm of those present, especially when it came to recording the experience: a whole flock of people were constantly buzzing in front of the stage with cameras and video cameras, filming and taking pictures non-stop.

After a longish break, it was Negru Voda´s turn. The north Swedish trucker Peter Nyström took a steady pose behind his equimpent while a slowly intensifying intro set off. The screen showed Swedish highway landscapes, filmed from a driving truck. Just the kind of rough beauty that suits Nyström´s music. After a long intensifying rhythm, the set exploded into the relentless rhythms of Under the Ice, with the sound volume on level that made my innards vibrate. I´ve often wondered how big a risk there is for rhythm failure on a gig like this. After a very intense beginning the set lost effect for some tracks in the middle, where Nyström did some improvisation on bass guitar. But towards the end it intesified again with thumping rhythms and the majestic atmosphere of Northern Beauty. The crowd had seemed a little reserved in the beginning of the evening, but were clearly warming up at the time.

Again there was quite a wait for the next artist, Des Esseintes, and I was already getting a little tired. However, staying awake was necessary – I had not yet seen Des Esseintes live, and this more industrial project of Magnus Sundström has made a big impression on me on record. The performance was also stone-hard, constisting mostly of first-class rhythmic industrial in the same vein as Negru Voda and Deutsch Nepal. The erotic backdrop did not quite sync with the cold and hard music at first, but that did not prevent me from enjoying the main point. In the middle of the gig we were also treated with a fire show amidst the audience.

The most important thing remained: Megaptera´s momentary rise from the grave, at least for one more live show. This would require endurance – i was already quite fatigued as the clock approached two. Fatigue was also evident among the artists, and the diminished audience. The strength of will of those who remained was finally rewarded: this time Megaptera consisted of Nyström and Sundström together, and some first-class old school death industrial was on the menu. Gloomy synthesizers, cellar sounds, movie samples and a very dark backdrop. The performance was pure quality, I could not help but start nodding off in the middle. Finally, the strong rhythms of an improvised encore track forced me back to consciousness.

As a summary I could say that Lithuania seems to have some of the truest industrial spirit to offer. Let it be mentioned that the organizer has suffered losses repeatedly, but has not let this bring down his spirits, or prevent him from keeping up the good work. The enthusiasm of the audience was evident, and just being able to say that I have once in my life attended a great industrial show in an older bunker goes a long way.

Written by :john björkman / www.kuolleenmusiikinyhdistys.net