Gig review: Wolves In The Throne Room, Dodenkrocht

Most probably it has come to the point, again, that my readers think that this blog is dead. Despite it  may seem to be the truth, I assure you it is absolutely otherwise. I've taken a sort of break from life a bit, not being in my country and just relaxing and enjoying myself. A couple of upcoming posts, including this one, will be gig reviews and later on I will go back to posting band submissions and some other exciting news looming ahead. This previous period of my life has been a real hibernation and I presume I'm slowly waking up.

This amazing show took place some time ago and I seriously took my time with gathering my thoughts about it. It transpired eight days ago, namely on 23 May 2012, in "Tivoli De Helling", Utrecht, the Netherlands. This venue has already been mentioned and described in detail when I wrote the review for the "Russian Circles" and "Deafheaven" gig, so in case you missed that write-up you can check it out here. Although I extremely enjoyed the place when I visited it the last time, it left a bittersweet taste in my mind due to the performance of the latter act. Seeing as how this gig featured black metal bands as well, I was worried that the end result would be the same and that I would walk away from one of my favorite names of the genre rather disappointed. Luckily, what occurred that night was nothing like I imagined or hoped for.

First band to perform was "Dodenkrocht", a black metal band from a city called Leiden in the Netherlands, which was the only support group that evening. Literally translated to "kill cavern", this project has quite a bit of history behind it due to the fact that it started as a solo project of the current drummer way back in 2004. Gradually over the years more members have been added and now the band is in the form of a quintet. To be honest, I have listened to a couple of their songs prior to the gig and I wasn't really intrigued much, thus my excitement about seeing them live wasn't actually that vast. Needless to say their performance managed to kick that aside and remarkably increase my interest in the band. The act opened with the sounds of eerie choir singing creeping around the room as members of "Dodenkrocht" got on stage, one by one. Once the mood was set the band kicked off with an extremely intense, nonstop, one-breath execution of their tunes which lasted a mighty forty or so minutes, if I remember well. All of their songs were extremely aggressive and straight to the point, so to speak, with not much time taken for atmospherics and instead providing a really brutal assault on the ears in the form of rather lengthy tracks. The speed at which their songs were presented proved to be quite entertaining and there was barely any time to think or ponder about their music during their performance. Although aggressive, their music succeeded in radiating coldness and depression toward the audience which proved to be a marvelous introduction for the main act of the night. The final song saw the band slowly withdraw from the stage, leaving only the guitar player to produce the last of their sound before it went dead and silent. I will definitely have to pay more attention to this band at home, especially now after witnessing such an intriguing show. Great work.

After the support band finished its act, a short pause ensued. Big flags bearing symbols of "Wolves In The Throne Room" were set on stage. Soon small gas-lamps decorated the stage and other forms of light were cut dead, making a brilliant atmosphere which was to be expected from a band of this caliber. If memory serves me correct, the performance was ignited with the sound of "Thuja Magus Imperium", the first song of their latest studio output "Celestial Lineage" and just an amazing opener for a concert. That song then and there instantly showed that this was to be an outstanding show and that the band will truly live up to its name. Personally, "Wolves In The Throne Room" have been a huge influence on my taste in music, basically opening the door and showing me the way toward black metal. Ever since I first took a listen to their tunes I have been repeatedly falling in love with them, as if discovering them anew over and over again, and seeing them live made me find that much more infatuation for their work. The sound they produced that night was enormous and epic in proportions, an incredible force smashing at the audience without a single pause. Prior to the concert I lurked around the internet and have discovered several setlists the band has played on their most recent concerts and I must admit that I was somewhat saddened by the fact that they effectively managed to elude all my favorite songs. But after the opening song came a true surprise to me, since melodies emerged which I, at first, didn't recognized and it seemed that they changed their repertoire. "Dea Artio" was played second, followed by one of my all time favorites "Vastness and Sorrow". I was utterly mind blown and excited beyond my imagination when I realized what was going on, feeling literally ready to die then and there at that very moment. During my entrancement with the melodies flooding from the stage, I became aware of how much the sound was perfect and everything was discernible amid the chaos and vastness of sound. Also, these songs were excellent at showing the diversity of tones the band was capable of producing. As much as it was vicious their playing proved to be also gentle and highly atmospheric, traits which were further showed with the songs "I Will Lay Down My Bones Among the Rocks and Roots" and "Prayer of Transformation".
The sounds drifting, disappearing and finally melding with the screams and applauding from the crowd found me completely stunned, the band leaving me utterly speechless that night. Discussing the show with my girlfriend was rather short, since at those moments following the gig I had no idea what to say or how to gather my thoughts. It took me several days to actually start forming an opinion and write a mental review, particles of which are found in written form in this post. As followers of the band know, there has been word that "Wolves In The Throne Room" will cease to exist, either completely or just in the form they are now, but this show carved a strong hope for me that maybe, some day in the future, I get to see them perform again and that they continue to keep this beast alive. That night will not be forgotten.