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Elusive

 
2005-10-08 DE – Bochum - Matrix

After a few extended tour activities in 2000 and 2002 it got quite silent around THE MISSION. There have been some festival appearances and Wayne Hussey solo shows but generally speaking there was not that much to hear about them. Now the British GothRock legend celebrates their 20th anniversary and released there very first DVD entitled: Lighting The Candles, supported by another European tour, which might be the last one. As they announced, THE MISSION will at least take a longer break, focusing on their upcoming studio release that will be not supported by a tour. Afterwards single band members wanna spend time on various projects. That gave me the impulse to definitely see one of these shows, since the last one was long time ago. THE MISSION shared the stage and tour bus with Pandaimonium protégés ELUSIVE, who took the chance introducing the crowd to their sophomore The Great Silence, expanding the fan base …

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:. ELUSIVE ~ is a quite unknown band hailing from Norway, but with some known faces in it, as Tommy Olsson was a former axe-man in Theater Of Tragedy and Morten Veland (ex Tristania, Sirenia) left a mark on ELUSIVE’s first album Destination Zero. The current trio consists of Tommy Olsson – guitars, programming; Jan K. Barkved – vocals and Kristian Gundersen – guitars. Bass, drums and keys were synthetically created. ELUSIVE convinced with beautiful Gothic Rock influenced by the classics Sisters Of Mercy, The Mission und Fields Of The Nephilim. No-frills, no clichés. Songs were emotional and catchy leaving a complaisant (what do you mean by this word) impression on the audience in the very crowded Tube of Bochum’s Matrix. Besides from the songs from their current album The Great Silence they closed with Billy Idol’s Rebel Yell as a cover version that thrilled the crowd a lot, letting them singing along. I think, ELUSIVE made it right this evening and could collect some new fan-souls ;)

:. THE MISSION ~ got cited on stage by the singing of the fans. Current line-up has changed: guitarist Mark Thwaite is back replacing Holiday who is currently on tour with The Prodigy; on bass – new entrant Richard Vernon and Steve Spring behind the kit. THE MISSION presented themselves in high spirits, agile and enjoying to play, communicative and not too drunk. Analogical to the just released DVD they offered a grandiose best-of list including all known hits, some newer songs and a brand new track (the GIC #1 single Breathe Me In). Fans were brimming over with enthusiasm, vociferously singing along almost every song. Easy job for Wayne Hussey then *lol* who was very satisfied about this energetically response from the crowd. Sound wasn’t the best for the singing was badly controlled and the bass too dominant, which is a general sound problem in the Matrix. But that all doesn’t belie the fact that THE MISSION have crossed the zenith of their career, despite of all the effort they take to please their fans. Comparing this show with ones in the past, they cannot recapture their old magic from bygone days. This evening’s show was more living on the mood and feedback of the audience than anything from the band. To that conclusion maybe an absence of needed time off is what is needed. But all things considered I experienced a great show with a wonderful “back to the past”-feeling. Just great!
Setlist: (Intro) Serpents Kiss, Evangeline, Severina, Heaven Knows, Garden Of Delight, Breathe Me In, Fabienne, Butterfly On A Wheel, Family, Naked And Savage, Beyond The Pale, Deliverance // A
melia, Like A Hurricane, Bird Of Passage (Wayne & Mark only), Wasteland // Tower Of Strength

 

story & pics © Dajana