The dark lords of Polish extreme metal came to conquer Charlotte this past Monday evening as Behemoth made a stop at The Underground on their Ecclesia Diabolica Fall Tour. 2018 has been one hell of a year for the band with the release of a live DVD “Messe Noire,” a spot on Slayer’s final tour, and just recently the release of their 11th studio album “I Loved You At Your Darkest.” Their music is often referred to as blackened death metal , basically the sonic fusion of black metal and death metal, but Behemoth frowns upon being categorized into any particular sub-genre. Regardless of what you may call it, their music is heavy and extreme and not for the faint of heart.
The capacity crowd began to roar as the venue lights dimmed as a taped intro of “Solve” began to play to warm things up. Behemoth made their entrance opening the night with “Wolves ov Siberia” off their latest album. Frontman Nergal took his place center stage behind his elaborate microphone stand and much like a priest in a pulpit, quickly took control of the audience. Nergal , formerly known as Adam Darski, handles both lead vocals and guitar and is a commanding presence on stage. His name is taken from the ancient Babylonian deity, Nergal, the god of war, plague, and death. The band all wore black masks which they removed after the first song to reveal their elaborately painted faces. The members of Behemoth are all technically amazing with drummer Inferno and bass guitarist Orion provided a crushing backbone for the vicious guitars of Seth and Nergal. The set list included a variety of newer songs like ‘God=Dog” and “Bartzabel” along with crowd favorites “Daimonos” and “Lucifer.” Behemoth puts on a great stage show with lots of wild lighting, plenty of fog, and even a few costume changes making for a very theatrical production. Lyrically, the band tends to focus on the occult and the spiritual philosophy of thelema whose basic tenet in a nutshell is to follow your own true will. The last song of the evening “We Are the Next 1000 Years” closed out the show with Nergal, Orion, and Seth strapping on drums for a final thundering salute. A tape of “Coagvla” played as the venue lights came on to signal the end of the night.
This was an outstanding concert both sonically and visually and a must see for all metal fans. Don’t miss your chance to witness the sounds and sights of Hell in person when Behemoth lays siege to a city near you.
Set List:
Wolves ov Siberia
Daimonos
Ora Pro Nobis Lucifer
Bartzabel
Ov Fire and the Void
God=Dog
Conquer All
Ecclesia Diabolica Catholica
Decade of Therion
Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel
Slaves Shall Serve
Chant for Eschaton 2000
Lucifer
We Are the Next 1000 Years
We would like to thank Liz Ciavarella-Brenner from Earsplit PR for the credentials to review the show.
