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Concert Review – King Diamond (Great Canadian Casino Resort Toronto, Mississauga, ON, 11/03/2024)

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The city of Mississauga became a huge hospital full of metal freaks as the iconic King Diamond delivered a memorable performance full of melody, darkness and insanity.

OPENING ACTS: Night Demon and Overkill

If you live in the GTA and love Heavy Metal form the bottom of your blackened heart, I believe you were at the amazing Great Canadian Casino Resort Toronto this Sunday for a night of pure heaviness thanks to NIGHT DEMON, OVERKILL and KING DIAMOND during their Saint Lucifer’s Hospital 1920 Tour 2024. Unfortunately this time we don’t have the awesome photos by Keith Ibbitson of Metal Paparazzi, only my crappy mobile ones, but that won’t stop me from reviewing such a memorable concert. However, before talking about the music, let me tell you how incredible the venue is. It was my first time ever at the resort and casino, and not only the place is absolutely stunning, clean and neat, but you also get free parking there, plus tons of excellent food and drink options. The theatre itself, where the show happened, is also perfect for theatrical performances like the one by King Diamond, and I would simply love if almost all metal concerts I go to happened there instead of any other venue in Toronto.

After filling my tank up with a nice combo at Mary Brown’s Chicken (while other fans were trying their luck in the casino), it was time for the openers,  Ventura, California’s own Heavy Metal brigade NIGHT DEMON, to deliver one of the most electrifying performances I’ve ever seen in my life for an opening band. Jarvis Leatherby, Armand John Anthony and Brian Wilson sounded even heavier and more thrilling than when they opened for Blind Guardian in the city a few months ago, blasting sheer awesomeness in the form of songs like Outsider, The Howling Man and Night Demon, with a fun circle pit moving fast in the middle of the floor section during their entire show. Jarvis even left the stage to play his bass right in the middle of the crowd, more specifically right in front of me (and I don’t have a photo of that for obvious reason), being the perfect depiction of true Rock N’  Roll. I’m becoming a huge fan of those guys, and hopefully soon Toronto will get a headlining concert by one of the coolest bands hailing from the current Californian scene.

Setlist
Night of the Demon (Demon song)
Prelude
Outsider
Screams in the Night
Obsidian
The Howling Man
Ritual
The Chalice
Night Demon
Lookin’ Out for No. 1 (UFO song)

Band members
Jarvis Leatherby – vocals, bass
Armand John Anthony – guitars
Brian Wilson – drums

All fans at the venue needed a lot of cardio this Sunday night as right after the devastating performance by Night Demon, we had the utmost pleasure of enjoying a slab of pure and violent Thrash Metal made in New York by the iconic OVERKILL, a breathtaking concert not recommended for the lighthearted. The unstoppable frontman Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth alongside guitarists Dave Linsk and Derek Tailer, plus guest bassist Christian Olde Wolbers (as the awesome D.D. Verni had shoulder surgery earlier this year and unfortunately was forced to sit out of the current tour) and their new live drummer Jeramie Kling (a beast known for his work with bands like Inhuman Condition and Ribspreader), were ruthless during their entire performance, way shorter than I wanted it to be but as incendiary and brutal as any of their full concerts, melting our faces with new songs like Scorched and The Surgeon (from their beautiful 2023 album Scorched) and classic including Bring Me the Night and Ironbound. The show ended with the fun Fuck You, originally recorded by The Subhumans, with Bobby even joking about the Habs to the Toronto crowd, leaving us all eager for more of the thrashing anthems by the green, mean machine in the city in a not-so-distant future.

Setlist
Scorched
Rotten to the Core
Bring Me the Night
Hello From the Gutter
The Surgeon
Ironbound
Elimination
Fuck You (The Subhumans cover)

Band members
Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth – vocals
Dave Linsk – lead guitars
Derek Tailer – rhythm guitars
Christian Olde Wolbers – bass
Jeramie Kling – drums

KING DIAMOND

As the night was getting colder and darker (but only outdoors, because the inside of the casino was amazing), Denmark’s own Heavy Metal entity KING DIAMOND kicked off his fully theatrical and mesmerizing mass for the delight of all admirers of his sensational career. It was only my second time seeing him live, the first being almost 30 years ago, and it’s impressive how he still sounds so heavy, evil and sharp after so many decades. His vocals in the first three songs Arrival, A Mansion in Darkness and Halloween (my favorite of the night, by the way) were insane, sending shivers down our spines in the name of our good old Heavy Metal. Add to that the flawless riffs and solos by Andy LaRocque, and there you have the perfect recipe for a true Halloween party even after Halloween was over.

In addition, the support of the multi-talented, gorgeous MYRKVR (aka Amalie Bruun) on vocals, plus the superb performance by the breathtaking JODI CACHIA who was spot-on with her dance moves and wicked expressions, only made the whole night even more exciting. She definitely deserves our full recognition for bringing so much energy to King Diamond’s already killer performance (and check the WHO section on her website to see what shirt she’s wearing, just to prove how badass she is). She was incredible every time she appeared on stage, period. And what to say about the energy flowing from Sleepless Nights, The Invisible Guests, or the closing song Abigail? King Diamond and his far-reaching falsetto screams are a thing of beauty, something that makes his shows truly unique, and if you’ve never seen him live don’t miss the chance if he ever visits your hometown. After the band’s stellar show some fans even got back to the casino for some post-concert fun, and I gotta say if I didn’t have to wake up so early the next morning I would have joined them for sure. Or maybe I should say I would have joined “Them”.

Setlist
Funeral
Arrival
A Mansion in Darkness
Halloween
Voodoo
“Them”
Spider Lilly
Two Little Girls
Sleepless Nights
Out From the Asylum
Welcome Home
The Invisible Guests
The Candle
Masquerade of Madness
Eye of the Witch
Burn
Electro Therapy

Encore:
Abigail
Insanity

Band members
King Diamond – vocals
Andy LaRocque – guitars
Mike Wead – guitars
Pontus Egberg – bass
Matt Thompson – drums
Myrkur – additional vocals, organ

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Concert Review – Blind Guardian (Rebel, Toronto, ON, 05/09/2024)

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The most talented bards and demons in the world took the city of Toronto by storm on a more than beautiful night in celebration of pure heavy music.

OPENING ACT: Night Demon

What a fantastic night together with the bards in Toronto, my friends! And all started when we decided NOT to park at the parking lot in front of the venue, the revamped Rebel, which looks amazing from the inside and with a really cozy and ample patio, but which is also a nightmare when it comes to leaving the parking lot after the show is over. The best option is parking at the Distillery District, which is cheaper and just a 15-20min walk from the venue, plus the fact there are countless good options to eat and drink there before heading to the show. And as we’re always all about the music, let’s cut to the chase and talk a little about the unique experience of watching live NIGHT DEMON and BLIND GUARDIAN during their breathtaking The God Machine Tour 2024, another striking event brought to the city by  Noel Peters of Inertia Entertainment. Keith Ibbitson of Metal Paparazzi and I wouldn’t miss it for the world, and my excitement for seeing the bards after almost 20 years was beyond visible to anyone who knows me.

The doors at Rebel opened at 7pm, giving all concert goers enough time to have some drinks, chat outdoors (as it was a gorgeous night in Toronto, with a beautiful sunset), and buy some quality merch before Ventura, California’s own Heavy Metal trio NIGHT DEMON began their thrilling performance precisely at 8pm. Still promoting their 2023 album Outsider, the band formed of Jarvis Leatherby on vocals and bass, Armand John Anthony on the guitars, and Brian Wilson on drums put on a very energetic and fun warmup for Blind Guardian, impressing anyone who was already at the venue with their charisma and dexterity onstage. Keith said those guys sounded much more powerful live than in the studio, and I fully agree with him as the live versions of their songs do sound a lot better, which is an amazing thing because live music is what we truly love, right? And if you know nothing about those guys, go check their music on BandCamp and on Spotify, because they live and breathe Rock N’ Roll and you’ll certainly have a blast whenever they invade your city with their awesome creations.

Setlist
Prelude
Outsider
Screams in the Night
Escape From Beyond
Dawn Rider
The Howling Man
Beyond the Grave
The Wrath
Welcome to the Night
The Chalice
Night Demon

Band members
Jarvis Leatherby – vocals, bass
Armand John Anthony – guitars
Brian Wilson – drums

BLIND GUARDIAN

The excitement started to grow stronger and stronger inside Rebel until all hell broke loose when it was around 9:30pm, as German Power Metal bards BLIND GUARDIAN ignited their unforgettable performance in the city, already blasting our faces mercilessly with the all-time classic Imaginations From the Other Side. You know, when a band kicks off a show with such a deep, bold song like that, the night will be beyond amazing, of course. I bet all fans at the venue felt the exact same when André Olbrich, Marcus Siepen, Johan van Stratum, Frederik Ehmke, and obviously the band’s iconic frontman Hansi Kürsch hit the stage with their fantasy-fueled Power Metal almost nine years after their last show in Toronto.

Speaking of Hansi, I honestly don’t know how he has managed to sound the exact same for almost 40 years, stunning us all with his unique, deep vocals from start to finish. Seriously, that guy is a beast on vocals, never sounding tired or out of tune. His vocals are so impressive to the point you can play to me any live version of any of their songs, and I wouldn’t be able to say the year that was recorded. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what makes him one of the best vocalists and frontmen of the entire metal realm, and if you’ve never had a chance to see Hansi singing live, you don’t know what you’re missing. Let’s say it’s like a mandatory experience for anyone who enjoys good music, not only metal.

Back to the concert itself, the band blended some of their best, most majestic classics including Nightfall, Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill) and Lost in the Twilight Hall, and the biggest surprise of the night (at least for me, the thrilling Into the Storm, with newer songs from their 2022 album The God Machine, those being Blood of the Elves, Violent Shadows and Secrets of the American Gods, and don’t think that because those are new songs that they sounded out of place during their set; quite the contrary, the new songs had the same impact and energy of their classic, which goes in line with what I was saying about Hansi, as his vocals turn every Blind Guardian song into a timeless sonic voyage. The reaction of the fans to all songs, including the new ones, was fantastic, with endless fists in the air, horns raised high, lots of screaming, and even some mosh pits were generated during the concert’s faster songs and moments. The sync between the band and their fans was a thing of beauty the entire night, I must say.

Any Blind Guardian concert is not complete without The Bard’s Song – In the Forest, and of course Toronto also had the pleasure of singing it along with our beloved German bards. It was simply epic, with every single person at the venue putting their hearts and souls into singing, proving why that is one of the best metal ballads of all time. And what about the encore? I was honestly getting worried they didn’t play Bright Eyes during the “regular” set, but when Hansi and his henchmen began playing it during the encore I really felt it in my heart. Right after that, let’s say it was pure metal madness with the Power Metal hymn Valhalla, with it’s iconic chorus being sung in full force by everyone at the venue, making Hansi truly proud and excited with the more-than-warm reaction of the band’s Torontonian fans. When they started playing another undisputed classic, Mirror Mirror, closing their concert on a high note, I was just a tiny bit disappointed that Majesty was left out of the setlist in Toronto, but let’s say we can’t win it all, and that their setlist was 99.9% perfect, alright? Maybe next time they visit Toronto we’ll have the pleasure of seeing them playing that classic live, because based on their successful concert in the city, the bards will be back really, really soon, no doubt about that.

Setlist
Imaginations From the Other Side
Blood of the Elves
Nightfall
The Script for My Requiem
Violent Shadows
Skalds and Shadows
Into the Storm
Secrets of the American Gods
The Bard’s Song – In the Forest
Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill)
Lost in the Twilight Hall

Encore:
Sacred Worlds
Bright Eyes
Valhalla
Mirror Mirror

Band members
Hansi Kürsch – vocals
André Olbrich – lead, rhythm and acoustic guitars
Marcus Siepen – rhythm and acoustic guitars
Johan van Stratum – bass, backing vocals
Frederik Ehmke – drums

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