IX Edition - Chiaromonte (PZ) 

09. 08. 2003 - Italy

INTRO

HUNCHBACK

REQUIEM K626

MANTRA

ROSAE CRUCIS

MARSHALL

ELVENKING

FIRE TRAILS

BEHOLDER

THEATRES DES VAMPIRES

LABYRINTH

VIRGIN STEELE

review by   Sara "Shadow Lady" De Vita

The public use of these photos   

is strictly prohibited without written permission

INTRO

This has been the first time I took part into the historical metal fest “Agglutination”, now at its IX edition.

As soon as I get there, the kindness and politeness of Gerardo Cafaro, the person who in the first time wanted the festival, allowed me to look at this event not only from a musical point of view, but also from a human one: the metal world is a positive world made up of involvement and group spirit.

…but well, after this long talk, in my opinion not sterile at all, let’s see the true soul of this festival: the show!!!

After an endless waiting for the sound check (2 hours for Virgin Steele and 1 for Labyrinth) the gates open for the metallers crowd gathering in front of the entrance. They enter in perfect order, with smiling faces and stares hungry for their beloved bands or, more simply, to discover among the opening bands some new talent.

… because are these underground gems indeed that make great this festival, this year being a bit undertone respect to the fans expectations.

HUNCHBACK

Breaking the wall of irritation, due to a long await under a record-breaking hot sun, enter the Hunchback . A great intepretative ability and very good notes of individuality stimulated my curiosity towards this rookie band: well made songs, rich and elaborated lyrics, aulic and stout sound underlining the ancient passion of Italian metallers for the prog-power enriched with speed influences. After three songs Hunchback played a very well done “Breaking the Low” by mythical Judas Priests, thus obtaining great praise from the crowd.  

REQUIEM K626

The band passage has been very quick, bringing on the stage a new Italian underground band, the Requiem K626 …pure destruction, I would not find a better word to define this band sporting a black sound enriched with sharp death splinters. They manage to enthrall the younger audience, causing a choreographic head moving. The band sparkled with energy, for a strong and powerful impact. A very professional performance, indeed.  

MANTRA

After all this Italian metal, enter the stage the Mantra, a band coming directly from Costa Rica.

This is the last date for their Italian tour, crowned by wide success.

A fascinating sound, capturing the senses and developing a ferocious and heavy black, advancing by means of the guitars with their powerful riffs and by an aggressive and penetrating voice. All in all, a very good black… pure, slow, and stout.  

ROSAE CRUCIS

The Roman Rosae Crucis follow, with a rounded and sharp thrash-power style.

As soon as they hit the stage, they suffer the boomerang effect caused by Mantra, who literarily hushed the audience with their sound, thereby distracting it from a more melodic and soft performance, such as the one by Rosae Crucis. But fear not: few seconds and the Italian band gains ground with pursuing and proposing melodies. The audience heat up thanks to the fiery athmosphere created by powerful and sharp riffs, giving to young metallers the charge to light up their souls. A really good performance for the Rosae Crucis, good hopes for the Italian metal scene.  

MARSHALL

Dreaming and paced by oniric melodies, the 20 minutes of performance by Marshall, a metal band from Napoli just returned (from almost two years) to the stage with a new line up respect to the old Eighties band and preserving only the leader, the drummer Lino Mazzola, indefatigable sould of drums.

Marshall propose a very personal power-prog, impossible to confront with any other band, except maybe to the very first Dream Theatre. A melodic yet ferocious blend, this band pleased the more refined audience. These neapolitan boys really won at the Agglutination, nonwithstanding the penality due to the lack of the show time. A compact and stable band that discharged the more aggressive tensions created by those who played before them, sliding into a smooth musical flow.  

ELVENKING

But as Marshall go, the Elvenking come on stage.

I look at them very curious, admitting my ignorance about them; yet I see the audience waiting for them with eyes wide open, almost as they were waiting some musical revelation!

…and, as a matter of fact, as the first notes are played, the band lives up to the expectations!!! Theatrical, with a classic-style sound, they fly on the notes creating melodies from other times that reinforce a more power base. The folk soul of this band is the violin player, to who my compliments go for the overdose of perfection he inoculated to us in the audience. A long intervention, yet never noious, this one of the Elvenking, that again allowed the young part of the audience to appreciate a metal style which still is a bit confined into its own niche.  

FIRE TRAILS

From the ex-Vanadium vocalist pure adrenalin is spewed forth elating the audience with a hymn to rock ‘n roll that almost slips into a metal with hints of the Seventies.

A passionate and passionating sound that again undelines how the new generation metal still has to learn from the veterans of the stage. Pino on the stage is a true showman fully capable of involving the audience, nonwithstanding his musical genre which is usually shunned by the more young metaller.

It is with displeasure that I notice the failure f many of my colleagues in noticing the presence of Beholder at the Agglutination!

BEHOLDER

Too bad for them: Beholder are a strong and valid band, that enriched the metal scene with innovative and proposing ideas. Very good performance for them and I have to admit that they surprised me, both in scenic presence and professionality in as a difficult performance as a live may be! The audience was enthusiastic and drank heavily at the Beholder spring to quench their thirst of pure power metal!

Leanan Sidhe’s voice has been sublime, to say nothing of Matt Treasure, methodic yet innovative guitarist, whose notes were strenghtened by an exceptional base drumming-bass performed by Andy McKein and Mike Sachs. A very good show indeed.

…little by little the darkness falls and the metal fest becomes in a sense “esoteric” with the performance of Theatres Des Vampires, a black simphonic band managing to entertain the audience with a very professional show, following the teachings of their masters Cradle Of Filth.

THEATRES DES VAMPIRES

Sepolchral sonorities, with vocal enrichments that make the scene of this fest obscure and damned. I could almost state that Theatres Des Vampires “drained” their fans’ blood straight from their ears creating concernment and atmosphere. Provocating in their movence (mainly thanks to the fascinating and upsetting female vocalist), they mark their musical credo seeping to the audience cruelty and sharp crudeness through blasphemous moves, such as burnign a bible or doing marked sexual things with a wooden crucifix. Maybe an excess in their attitudes, but in this awaking the fest from an otherwise strange daze.

LABYRINTH

Without hurry we come to the hot zone of the happening: the headliners are coming.

Labyrinth come first, a historical band of the Italian power metal that after a long pause (to gather their ideas…), come back fiercer than ever!

Their lead vocalist, immedialty performs some songs from their latest album remarking, before the start, those who said that Labyrinth were dead were really wrong and, turning his back to the audience, invited those malignant to kiss his… well.

For a band not always things go well indeed, and the faith in rebirth is necessary: a crisis may happen to everyone, isn’t it?.

…and here you have them Labyrinth, performing live their new songs, clearly stating that they will rise the hill again and come back to their ancient splendour, giving to Italian metal, once again, prestige and valiance.

VIRGIN STEELE

…TWO HOURS…two hours of ovation for Virgin Steele!

Pure, epic and solemn; these defenders made in USA granted smooth ballads and relentless songs in the purest epic style! The more intense and choral moments have been with Burning Rome, Invictus, Symphony Of Steel e Kingdom Of Fearless. Defeis, Pursino e Gilchreist have been the true masters, winning the audience disillusion for the unexpected and conspicuous absence of Vader!

Virgin Steel rescued the fest with their sound, giving body to a maybe too varied night that exhibited too many genres sometimes creating confusion. All in all the concert has been moving for the defenders that came en masse for their American idols and that sang together with them songs such as “I Will Come For You” and “Noble Savage”!

And yet the most precious gift Virgin Steele gave to their fans  has been a bit of “Emalaith”…the delirium for the audience!!!

So the Agglutination comes to an end: everyone is enthusiastic, tired but happy!

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