Some people just aren't made for good luck! Everything sure was arranged, I knew the direction to the concert, didn't forget my camera and I was on the guestlist ! But still I had troubles getting in. It seems like Nuclear Blast didn't send a guestlist to the Biebob, so had to pay at the entrance anyway. I didn't give up though and finally managed to retrieve the tour manager that returned my money and arranged an interview with SINERGY after the concert.

While I was busy searching the tour manager, I really didn't have the time to check out GRIFFIN, the first band of the evening. I heard them play, but they failed to keep my attention.

Then it was time for SINERGY, the first time I was going to see them live and was I surprised! Even though Kimberly stated that she doesn't like the Beware The Heavens album anymore, they kicked off with the song Venemous Vixen. This band sure rules live, the sound was amazing and so was the action on stage! The stage act of Kimberly Goss even impressed me, since Belgian people are a hard audience, she did manage to get the crowd moving. But I sure have to congratulate the other members too, Alexi Laiho and Roope played some impressive guitar duels and their new bassist Lauri knows how to handle the job. Without doubt, Beware The Heavens and Suicide By My Side were the highlights of the concert. They were even asked to return on stage, which is rare for a support band! Great gig, will sure check them out next time on tour, and I suggest you'd too!

Then it was time for DARK TRANQUILLITY. I've seen this band in the past at the Arch Enemy - Children Of Bodom - In Flames tour, but they didn't impress me that much then. But after listening to Damage Done my hopes were high for this concert. And we sure got another blast! The already warmed up audience almost broke down the building! Instead of focusing on their latest album, they treated the audience with all their best songs. Indifferent Suns, Haven, Insanity's Cressendo, and many others sure made some head banging. DARK TRANQUILLITY sure seems a band that stands close to their fans, letting them come on stage to dive, headbang, even sing along. Seeing the big smile of Mikael Stanne only made it clear that he had a great time too!
When they got of stage, they didn't have to run far, because everybody wanted more of this. Actually this band plays very tight and has the ability to improvise at any timing. When somebody screamed a song title, Mikael 's reaction was "Yeah, you sure get that one", and they played it instantly! At one moment they stopped in the middle of a song, and Mikael told the audience to be silent, which was quite funny actually. So there you have a concert hall full of exited people, and you could hear a mouse crawl at that moment. Until someone from the audience screamed the next line of the lyrics, and the band continued! It sure was impressive that they all started to play on the perfect timing. The concert got that intense that even Mikael himself dived in the audience, now that's trust in the fans!

Even though Mikael told that the show was over, they were asked to return another time for the final round. Instead of starting the concert with the first track of the new album, like most bands would do, they actually finished the show with it, and isn't Final Resistance a perfect way to end the evening!

I can't tell this enough, DARK TRANQUILLITY turned out to be one of the best headliners I've seen up to date and after reading the reviews on their forum, Belgium isn't the only country they've conquered. After the concert I had an interesting talk with SINERGY, check it out at the Interview section.