By Jase Walker
What a bloody lovely warm day it is in Manchester, absolutely ideal for cramming into a toasty dark box to get my ears blasted to bits by some blackened prog death courtesy of Australia’s Ne Obliviscaris! On this tour we’ve got a band that’s been on my to-see list for an extremely long time after I missed them playing Manchester years ago at Ruby Lounge (RIP), Persefone. Not only them though, but Asymmetric Universe as well, so we’ve got a real trifecta treat tonight.
With early-ish doors today, Asymmetric Universe gets started at the 7pm mark and look a bit clustered in due to the massive amount of kit on stage. Seeing the guitarist with a headless Strandberg gives a solid indication of what they’ll be playing and that’s exactly what we’re getting, instrumental virtuoso playing, exactly my cuppa. That bass player already has my attention with his fat tone and tasteful tapping, slapping and chord playing, excellent. If you’re familiar with the likes of Plini, Intervals and the like, that’s what’s happening!
An often unsung hero of these types of acts is definitely the drummer though, and in Asymmetric Universe’s case he’s got an unreal amount of groove. Nevermind the tasty stuff both the guitarist and bass player are doing, which is unreal in its own right, the drummer’s knack for carrying the groove in his way while adding all sorts of bits of flavour here and there all adds up to the act that is far greater than the sum of its parts.
At one point both the bassist and guitarist have an extended noodling session with more notes than you can shake a stick at and they remain in perfect synchronicity, note for note, the entire time. These guys are blowing my mind right now, genuinely some outrageously jazzy stuff and quite different compared to the two bands that are due to follow them. What a way to kick off this show tonight, wow.
Next up is Persefone. Admittedly I’ve had to dash back in from the beer garden as they’ve started slightly early and the signal of pounding drums had me running back into a now packed venue. They sound fantastic right from the outset, drums, guitars and keys all in balance and just enough room for the singer to scream over the top of. Relentless pounding drums, symphonic guitars and keys and mixed vocals and an audience that’s already massively invested is exactly what I wanted from this set. A quick “Open This Shit Up” works as a call to arms for the crowd and sees a pit open up immediately and flashing lights punctuates people gleefully smashing into one another, it’s a metal show innit?
The guitars are forever as busy as the bass drum is, constantly riffing or busy running through extensive ranges of notes, rarely ever a gap in any of their stuff. As much as they’re kicking arse on this stage, I would love to see them on a larger stage as it feels like their sound is far grander than what Rebellion could really contain.
The crowd’s been fantastic for these, energized by a brilliant stage performance that’s never felt like it’s dragged at any point. Also, we can definitely feel that we’re at a prog gig considering they say they’ve got one song left but nearly 15 minutes in their set time. Another great set and just Ne Obliviscaris to finish off the night next.
Finally for tonight, Ne Obliviscaris take the stage, sadly missing their usual unclean vocalist due to health issues but with a live fill in so let’s see what he’s got eh? Right from the start, he’s definitely got what it takes to fill in because those gutturals are really something! The bass drum is maybe a bit loud but thankfully doesn’t drown everything else out, the sound on the whole is incredibly powerful so the cacophonous sound these guys roll with works well. As with the last few times I’ve seen these, their bass player always stands out to me with his extended melody sections interspersed across their songs, yet not forgetting when to hammer the rhythm home during intense parts. These guys are so unique with their use of blast beats juxtaposed with beautiful violin playing, the mix of brutal intensity and delicacy is rare even amongst progressive metal bands and the fact that the violin is so strong despite the wall of sound from the rest of the band is a real treat.
It’s not just the violin being there that sounds unique and unusual though, it’s the use of it to play a melody and the guttural uncleans following the same melody. Ne Obliviscaris have a way of applying melody in a manner that I struggle to compare with any other band. It’s so easy to get lost in their extended instrumental sections as well, often serving as a slow build towards a massive crescendo of their songs. Each component part of the band serves exactly the purpose they need to, all as integral parts of what gives them their sound.
Ne Obliviscaris are every bit as beautiful as they are heavy, each song is a masterful application of melody, feel, and musical knowledge. Ne Obliviscaris truly are an incredible experience to witness, the sort of music that Ne Obliviscaris creates is so very unique and coming from quite literally the other side of the world (mostly), it doesn’t come around often.
The sheer skill that’s been on display from every band tonight has been sublime, each act a master of their craft and one after the other has blown the roof off Rebellion on a sold out show on a Thursday night. I would like to hope it won’t be long before I see Ne Obliviscaris again but given the logistics I won’t hold my breath. All the more reason to treasure the few occasions I do get to see them though I suppose.
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