On a dreary Monday, 84th of January (or so it felt) the most metal circus came to put grimaces on the many painted faces of Tampere, bringing along the highest quality melodic death metallers the US has to offer. Avatar and Æther Realm played a packed (if not sold out) Olympia.  Although it was a Monday, one would have never guessed by looking at the amount of people, and their enthusiasm. I was personally surprised to see a line out the door, as I approached the venue. The amount of people who seemed to be just as excited to see Æther Realm open was also surprising. At least half the audience knew exactly what to do when the band called for the “tiny metal hands”, a running joke within the band and its fan culture. It was quite an honor to be at their debut gig in Finland too, since they’ve also had a running joke that although they play high quality melo-death metal, they are, in fact NOT from Finland. Their vocalist mentioned it had been a dream of theirs for over fourteen years to play Finland and we were lucky enough to witness the dream finally coming true for the first time! The band not only played a beautiful set, with a perfect blend of more melancholic folk (my heart twinged at the mention of Appalachian folk!) and hard driving death metal, but were also incredibly sincere on stage. Their passion and humor along with their gratefulness for finally getting to play in Finland was pure and made the show all the more genuine.

The whole gig turned out to be unexpectedly amazing and unique in so many ways. Beyond Æther Realm‘s story and significance of this show for them, the enthusiasm of the crowd was like nothing I had experienced before. Specially at a smaller venue like Olympia, specially on a Monday in January. I mentioned the unexpected line out the door and genuine interest in the opening act, but there were also many people dressed up in Avatar attire. Intricately painted clown faces, costumes and other metal circus-esque aesthetics could be seen in at least a third of the crowd, or so it seemed. As I stood waiting between bands, I also heard a lot more English and other languages being spoken through out the crowd than usual, as well as listened in on their conversations of their travels to Tampere (and plans for going to the other shows in Finland as well). The fact that Avatar had a huge stage setup with them was also quite unexpected, and uncommon for Olympia (though knowing this band had recently played stadium gigs around Europe made it a bit more understandable). I believe this extravagance was also what lead to the first time I could feel the floor moving during the gig in Olympia ( and it wasn’t even during the mosh pits or wall of death, which was another thing I had rarely experienced at that venue, and agian, on a Monday no less!). 

But after experiencing the show, it all made sense. The grandeur, the enthusiasm and dedication of the fans, the fact that the venue was near sold out, people traveling from other countries, everything. It was an epic experience. Not only the whole circus aesthetics and moments that were more theater than metal gig, but the bands presence, their cohesiveness and how they seemed to be completely at ease, in sync and enjoying themselves but still taking their music and showmanship seriously. The thread of darkness and heaviness that somehow maintained its presence despite the playfulness (including NSFW kind of playful) and circus aesthetic somehow made those kitschy gimmicks not too kitschy. It tinted the bright colors and glitz with a darkness that made it a bit more haunting than fun. The moments of seriousness and moodiness that the band members wove into the silliness, not to mention their talent theatrically as well as musically made it an unforgettable night. Only one month into the year and I can bet this gig will make it to my top 10 if not top 5. Both bands are now on my wish list to see again at a festival or club or anywhere in the near future!

ÆTHER REALM

AVATAR:

Photos by Serena Solomon