Be'lakor
I’ve been a casual Be’lakor fan for years, but in the lead-up to this show I listened to their whole catalog end-to-end on repeat, and really fell in love. Everything they’ve put out is incredibly solid, and I was so pumped to see them that I bought tickets well in advance.
Immorium opened, but I missed their set completely. It’s a real shame because they’re fantastic live and are one of my favourite Canberra bands. I also missed the start of Andy Gillian’s guitar wizardry, but what I did see was damn impressive and entertaining.
With all the prep time I put into Be’lakor, I hadn’t left myself any time to check out the supports. Orpheus Omega were a really pleasent surprise, had great stage presence and really got the crowd excited. I’ve since added them into my rotation.
As is often the case with melodic, proggy metal, Be’lakor’s show is more about playing brilliantly rather than playing to the crowd. High energy, high charisma performances are great fun, but in a lot of ways I enjoy the music-focused approch more (though it does make for less exciting photos).
Flashiness be damned; give me an hour or so of bone-crunching perfection and I’ll walk away completely satisfied.
Full galleries: Andy Gillion | Orpheus Omega | Be’lakor