[Dajana] Dust is still whirling over the now abandoned fields of summer open airs as the first bands already hit the road again for massive fall touring. Luckily, September sees a comfortable amount of shows, a relaxed start into the club season madness yet offering the first highlights ;)

:: pics ::

[Dajana] The magic word that attracts me to hit the road towards Dortmund is DOOM! And this road leads me to the • FZW •, long overdue to visit again, where mighty YOB and aspiring PALLBEARER got together to bring us cosmic doom. Both bands have just released new albums, both stunning masterpieces. And besides, I never saw those bands playing live. Something’s new ahead ;)
[BRT] The advantage of such special package is that annoying and all the time blabbering people stay away. That’s a very comfortable situation…

[Dajana] Yes, with their 2012 debut :: PALLBEARER :: caused quite a stir within the scene and got pretty much hyped afterwards. Rightly, as the youngsters prove with their sophomore Foundations Of Burden. And I really like the melancholically-draped voice and singing of Brett Campbell. Unfortunately the sound was quite unbalanced and the singing hardly to hear. Also musical details went under. It got a little bit better with the show going on. Much bothering from a photographer’s side was the minimum of light. But it all did not narrow mood and atmosphere. Layer by layer was piled up creating a dense and intensive sound, emotional and crushingly heavy. Wow! This was quite amazing!
[BRT] PALLBEARER did everything right. Sound was totally overdriven but still captivates. Ok, some Warning worship the guys surely do here, but wants to nag about such idols?
Setlist: Devoid Of Redemption, Worlds Apart, Foundations, An Offering Of Grief, Watcher In The Dark, Foreigner

[Dajana] A couple of days ago :: YOB :: have released their seventh record Clearing The Path To Ascend via Neurot Recordings, the Neurosis label. I don’t wonder as YOB always had a strong Sludge-side, which perfectly suits the style and attitude of Neurosis and other label bands. On the new record YOB became a bit quieter, what probably makes it even more intensive. Singer Mike Scheidt caught a cold and is a bit hoarse, sipping tea, but he doesn’t rest. And then YOB just blew me away. It wasn’t me alone. Other ones next to me downright freaked out. Second track is In Our Blood from the new album YOB proceed to play in full. It is especially Nothing To Win and Marrow that mesmerize me. Closing Quantum Mystic makes fans even scream in delight. Ah, what a stunning show. Such likeable band(s) playing their hearts out and an appreciating crowd.
[BRT] It’s quite a bit more Sludge and Psychedelic the guys of YOB play here. And that makes the contrast to Pallbearer so thrilling. This is music for lovers of long-track-sound-cascades. If you don’t get hypnotized immediately then it’s the wrong place for you.
Setlist: Ball Of Molten Lead, In Our Blood, Nothing To Win, Unmask The Spectre, Marrow, Quantum Mystic

story © Dajana & BRT • pics © Dajana & Dajana Winkel • Photography