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Concert Review – Zeal & Ardor (The Opera House, Toronto, ON, 11/28/2024)

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Fans in Toronto had the pleasure of enjoying a very diverse and dark night of heavy music on a cold and chilly Thursday in the city.

OPENING ACTS: Zetra and Gaerea

Traffic to get to Toronto and to leave the city any day of the week is brutal, but Thursday nights seem to be the worst of all. It took me forever to arrive at The Opera House this Thursday night to enjoy the concerts by ZETRA, GAEREA and ZEAL & ARDOR during their North American Tour 2024, to the point I completely missed the show by London, England-based Synth Rock duo ZETRA. Not only that, the way back home was even worse as two lanes of the QEW were closed due to construction, which turned my usual 25-minute drive into a 1h40min nightmare, but I’ll stop my rant here and focus on the music, which is what really matters. Fortunately, my buddy Keith Ibbitson of Metal Paparazzi was there to enjoy their show and take some killer photos of them, and of course you can listen to their self-titled 2024 album on BandCamp and on Spotify. I’m not sure if they were the right choice to open the night, as some fans considered their show a bit weird for their taste, but I can’t say much as I wasn’t there.

Setlist
Sacrifice
Starfall
Shatter the Mountain
Suffer Eternally
Gaia
The Angel Cries

Band members
Adam – vocals, guitars
Jordan – vocals, synthesizers

It was not even 8pm when Porto, Portugal’s own Black Metal creature GAEREA kicked off their stunning performance, and even with the huge delay due to traffic and the hassle of finding a parking spot I made it to the venue exactly two seconds before they began their show. And what a show that was, my friends! Those uncanny black metallers sounded brilliant during their short but extremely captivating and hypnotizing set, with their theatricals, especially the moves by their ultra talented and charismatic lead singer, certainly converting several Zeal & Ardor fans to the Gaerea cult. The entire band was on fire, and the reaction of the crowd, including some intense mosh pits, made their whole show even more memorable.

It was my third time seeing Gaerea live, and I don’t know if it was the fact that this was by far the best venue they played in, if the songs from their newborn spawn Coma like The Poet’s Ballet, Hope Shatters and World Ablaze (all available on BandCamp and on Spotify, by the way) are among the best they’ve ever created, or if it was a combination of both, but this was by far their best ever presentation in the city of Toronto. The crowd was in total sync with the band, and you could notice everyone headbanging nonstop, some with their eyes closed to simply let their music do the entire job. I honestly hope Gaerea return to Toronto in a not-so-distant future as a headliner, because they definitely deserve a lot more time to kick some ass onstage with their unique music.

Setlist
The Poet’s Ballet
Hope Shatters
Unknown
World Ablaze
Wilted Flower
Laude

Band members
*Information not available*

ZEAL & ARDOR

I’m going to be honest with all of you and confess that I had pretty much zero idea of what ZEAL & ARDOR was before this show, and not even listening to their 2024 album GREIF helped me identify their genre or style. Although they’re labeled by some as an Avantgarde Metal band that mixes sounds of African-American spirituals with Black Metal, once they hit the stage the task of identifying what the hell they were playing got even worse, as each song sounded completely different form the other, sometimes sounding like a Gospel band, sometimes like an Experimental Rock one, and even showing elements from Djent in their music (and you can check all that on BandCamp and on Spotify). Don’t get me wrong, Manuel Gagneux and his crew did a great job and the reaction from their fans was fantastic, but for me personally it was a weird combination of different sounds from start to finish.

When they played their heavier songs, like Feed the Machine, it felt more like a metal concert, but then there were some weird songs like Devil Is Fine in their setlist that were a bit boring in the end. One thing that worked really well onstage was the presence of backing vocalists Denis Wagner and Marc Obrist, who not only added depth to all songs, but the fact they kept dancing, headbanging and interacting with the crowd the whole time inspired the band’s most diehard fans to jump up and down and scream even louder. As I said, it was a phenomenal concert for fans of the band, but for me Gaerea stole the night with their much heavier and sinister performance. Well, I’m a Black Metal enthusiast, so maybe my opinion shouldn’t count, right? Anyway, I wouldn’t mind seeing Zeal & Ardor again live as those guys are excellent musicians, mainly bassist Lukas Kurmann who’s indeed a metallic beast, and you should give them a try too as their uncompromised blend of styles might be exactly what you’re looking for if you’re thinking about exploring new lands in music.

Setlist
the Bird, the Lion and the Wildkin
Wake of a Nation
Götterdämmerung
Ship on Fire
Erase
Gravedigger’s Chant
Tuskegee
Blood in the River
Kilonova
Run
Golden Liar
Sugarcoat
Death to the Holy
to my ilk
Feed the Machine
Devil Is Fine
Trust No One
I Caught You
Clawing out

Band members
Manuel Gagneux – lead vocals, guitars, keyboards, synthesizer, programming
Tiziano Volante – rhythm guitar, lead guitar
Lukas Kurmann – bass
Marco Von Allmen – drums
Denis Wagner – backing vocals
Marc Obrist – backing vocals

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Album Review – Violent Life Violent Death / Break. Burn. End. (2023)

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The demonic new album by these North Carolina-based Metalcore and Deathcore heavyweights takes the band’s sound to a whole new level of intensity, resulting in their most assaultive effort yet.

Sometimes violence is the answer. That’s exactly what you’ll get in Break. Burn. End., the incendiary first full-length opus by Charlotte, North Carolina-based Metalcore/Deathcore heavyweights Violent Life Violent Death, following up on their critically acclaimed EPs The Color of Bone (2020), Sadness Rains (2019), Come, Heavy Breath (2018), and V-EP (2016). Mixed and mastered by Kyle Dameron at Rareform Recordings, and featuring a Stygian artwork by Mark De Gruchy, the new album by vocalist Scott Cowan, guitarists Joseph Benham and Daniel Knight, bassist Justin Campbell, and drummer David Holquin takes the band’s sound to a whole new level of intensity, resulting in their most assaultive release since their inception in 2016 and, therefore, placing the album as a must-listen for fans of the more metallic form of Hardcore blasted by Hatebreed, Every Time I Die, Zao, A Life Once Lost and Ringworm, among others.

A dark and cryptic intro ignites the visceral metal feast titled Weapon of Pain, with Scott already delivering his demonic gnarls while David crushes his drums in the name of old school Hardcore, not to mention how austere the riffs by Joseph and Daniel sound; and more of the band’s acid fusion of Metalcore with Hardcore and Death Metal is offered to us all in The Snapping of Teeth, a neck-breaking extravaganza by VLVD that will keep your blood boiling while Scott sounds utterly demonic on vocals. Then grim, devilish guitar sounds kick off the also obscure Deceit Welcomed by Blind Grace, exploding into the band’s trademark heavy music spearheaded by the unstoppable drums by David, supported by the always groovy bass by Justin; whereas the band shows no mercy for our damned souls in Devastation on the Tip of the Tongue, a pulverizing Metalcore and Deathcore onrush perfect for slamming like a beast inside the circle pit, with Scott once again delivering an inhumane performance on vocals. After such infernal tune, they keep the adrenaline flowing in The Light Behind, offering two minutes of pure savagery where Joseph and Daniel alternate between scorching riffs and more melodious lines.

The title-track Break. Burn. End. brings to our avid ears one minute of eerie noises and a wicked narration, working as a demonic interlude to the bestial Saying Your Name is to Choke on Ash, another circle pit feast that will explode your ears to the infernal growls by Scott and the classic blast beats by David, with Justin once again sounding thunderous armed with his bass. There’s no sign of slowing down for those ruthless metallers, with Maintain the Quiet being the perfect depiction of how technical yet brutal and vile their music can be, sounding absolutely pulverizing and thrilling from start to finish; followed by Heaven so Far Away, the second to last breath of evil by VLVD, starting in a more somber, phantasmagorical way before evolving into a rumbling feast of harsh roars, slashing riffs and pounding drums (albeit not as electrifying as its predecessors); and there’s time for one final dive into the mosh pit together with VLVD in Come Armageddon, with the Punk Rock and Hardcore-fueled beats by David speeding things up considerably, offering Scott all he needs to burst his lungs screaming before the song ends in a truly visceral note.

In a nutshell, the guys from VLVD did it again, bringing forward in Break. Burn. End. their undisputed amalgamation of Hardcore with more traditional metal styles in great fashion. Hence, you can get in touch with the band directly on Facebook and on Instagram for news, tour dates and so on, subscribe to their YouTube channel for more of their caustic music and videos, stream their venomous creations on Spotify, and of course grab a copy of Break. Burn. End. From the Innerstrength Records’ BandCamp page, from Apple Music, or from Amazon. This world is broken, burning, and soon coming to its inevitable end, and there’s nothing better than the music offered by VLVD in their newborn opus to guide us through our violent lives into our (most probably) violent deaths.

Best moments of the album: The Snapping of Teeth, Devastation on the Tip of the Tongue and Maintain the Quiet.

Worst moments of the album: Heaven so Far Away.

Released in 2023 Innerstrength Records

Track listing
1. Weapon of Pain 3:24
2. The Snapping of Teeth 2:58
3. Deceit Welcomed by Blind Grace 1:58
4. Devastation on the Tip of the Tongue 2:09
5. The Light Behind 2:25
6. Break. Burn. End. 1:07
7. Saying Your Name is to Choke on Ash 2:18
8. Maintain the Quiet 2:14
9. Heaven so Far Away 3:04
10. Come Armageddon 3:07

Band members
Scott Cowan – vocals
Joseph Benham – guitar
Daniel Knight – guitar
Justin Campbell – bass
David Holquin – drums