A grandiose evening of folk metal descends upon Islington this evening, featuring the titans that have made their name known across the seven seas, Ensiferum. Joining them are Estonia folkers Metsatoll, and Britain’s very own Pythia.
[date]25th February 2016[/date]
[venue]o2 Islington Academy[/venue]
[city]London, UK[/city]
[support_bands]Metsatoll, Pythia[/support_bands]
Pythia
I’ve always thought Pythia are brilliant, and somehow they always end up in these support roles. The surprise for me tonight is that the band have changed vocalists, as founding member Emily Ovenden had departed mid last year without me knowing. Although a big loss, new vocalist Sophie Dorman makes a tantalising impact and fills the vocal void quite adequately.
The light show impresses as the band burn through their fantasy-themed symphonic metal epics, with each light providing the perfect ‘fire and ice’ setting to each track. While the sound gets a little muffled at times, and Dorman still has a bit to learn from her predecessor about stage movement, the show is enjoyable. I can’t help but feel if this band were in a bit more of a headline capacity the show could absolutely own, but we will have to wait and hope for that in the future!
Metsatoll
I’ve wanted to see these Estonian folkers for a while, given that this band takes a really raw approach to the genre. It’s simple guitars, bass and drums, with a multi-instrumentalist shredding the folk instruments where necessary. I’ve always been curious as to how this might come off live, and now I have my chance!
Clearly other fans have been waiting for this opportunity as well as the front rows pack up and the horns go up as the lights dim into a cold embrace. The band members emerge on stage to the sound of ‘Kulmking‘, where everybody’s eyes are instantly focused on instrumentalist Lauri Onapuu’s strange box looking contraption with strings. Honestly the constant change of traditional instruments in this man’s hands is what made this show incredibly interesting.
From flutes to bagpipes, this man owned them all. Tracks such as ‘Lauljasohunt‘ and ‘See On See Maa‘ are raw yet incredibly captivating. It was almost as if we had brought ourselves to witness a Baltic Shaman ritual. Again this evening the instruments got a little muddled in the mix, slowly rectified towards the end of the performance – but it oddly added to the charm of Metsatoll.
Even if there were a few sound bothers here and there, the fans were incredibly appreciative of the show, as was I. There would be no surprises if the band were to return to the UK soon for a couple of shows of their own, there are definitely enough fans now.
Ensiferum
The undisputed kings of folk metal have returned to the UK once again. Clearly Ensiferum have gained even more traction in the country as this time around they have done more than one date than just London, but they return to the city to dominate once again.
As soon as the intro of ‘March of War‘ chimes it’s last notes, it’s ‘Axe of Judgement‘ time – cue everybody go crazy. It’s pretty evident why Ensiferum are at the top of their game, and why people come to their shows. It’s a pure escape from everything. Whether you are there to see some folky shredding, revel in heroic tales of the North, drink a lot of beer or just plain party, Ensiferum has something for you.
Tracks like the epic ‘From Afar‘ and the party track ‘Ahti‘ have people moving left to right, back to front. It doesn’t let up for the majority of the 90 minutes the band are on stage, and the fans are loving every minute of it.
After a long tour one would think that this band are tired, and at the last show would not have that much left to give. To be perfectly honest, this is the most animated I think I have ever seen the band. Rushing on stage from corner-to-corner, with stand-in accordion player Netta Skog doing a couple jigs where applicable.
It feels the fun is only thickening when the band rip into their classic ‘Twilight Tavern‘, but it nears the end of the show. Not without the great numbers of ‘In My Sword I Trust‘ and ‘Iron‘ though. A great Ensiferum show all around and a great sign off for this tour. Shouldn’t be long now before the band start to rustle up some new material, and we see them again in a new capacity!
