Category: Photography

Illumishade – 05/03/2024 at The Forge

Illumishade opened up the night with their own brand of Melodic/Groove/Prog Metal that really got the crowd going. I hadn’t put two and two together that Illumishade featured Fabienne Erni and Jonas Wolf of one of my personal favorite bands Eluveitie. So when I was told they were playing, I was immediately intrigued. And Illumishade definitely delivered. It’s not too often that you attend a show and fully enjoy every band on the line up, but tonight was just one of those nights. If you get a chance to see Illumishade you should definitely get out and see them.

Visions of Atlantis 05/03/2024 at The Forge

So this was my first time seeing Visions of Atlantis in several years. Actually the last time I saw them they had a difference singer, so I wasn’t too familiar with their music or even their style. That being said, I will say they put on a great show. I was thoroughly impressed by their performance and I highly recommend them for fans of folk metal, pirate metal, symphonic metal or melodic metal.

Korpiklaani 05/03/2024 at The Forge

Korpiklaani returns to the states once again bringing with them their unique style of folk metal. As per their usual the band put on a stellar performance rocking out the crowd. Their set list contained a nice mix of both of their older folk ballads and their bouncy folk metal party songs. Regardless of which version of Korpiklaani you enjoy, the show was great. I personally look forward to seeing them and other folk metal acts return to the states after the long cold spell we’ve had post vid.

Johnny Hexx – 04/28/2024 – Whitestown, IN Viking Festival

Johnny Hexx is what I like to call metal adjacent. Although not actually a metal band, they play a style that a large number of metal heads gravitate towards. Similar in style to Wardruna or Heilung, Johnny Hexx plays Germanic, Pagan Folk music. Whether this is your style or not, Johnny Hexx stole the show at the Whitestown Viking Fest this year.

Ratface, Final Assault, Hävitys, & I,Cursed live at Meara Klubi, Pori (Finland)

On the stage of Meara Klubi vol. 28 Ratface, Final Assault, Hävitys, and I,Cursed performed and our photographer Cristina was there to take some shots.
Ratface is a Finnish hardcore punk band piloted by MC Respektor. It was founded in 2006 in Helsinki. The band’s lyrics mainly deal with alcohol use and drunkenness. Final Assault is a Finnish thrash/punk-hardcore band formed in 2009. Hävitys is a Finnish grindcore band from Jyväskylä in 2010. I, Cursed is a death-grind band formed from Pori, at the core of the bands are musicians familiar from Atlases, Oceanwake and Marto.

 

 

Surut & Matti ja Tappo live at Meara Klubi, Pori (Finland)

Meara Klubi‘s second event of the year saw three very different bands on stage Matti ja Tappo, Surut and Juggling Jugulars. Matti ja tappo plasy upsidedown crossover since 2017. Surut is a blackened hardcore band from Tampere, founded in 2017, that combines the explosiveness and psychoticism of hardcore, screamo and black metal with the soaring melodies of post-rock and blackgaze. Juggling Jugulars play melodic hardcore punk, the band was founded in 1989 and has been active throughout its existence.
Our reporter Cristina was there and took some photos from the performances of Matti ja Tappo and Surut.

Askel, Svarta Havet & Sunniva live at Meara Klubi, Pori (Finland)

Meara Klubi inaugurates 2024 with the first event of the year and three bands on stage: Askel, Svarta Havet and Sunniva.
Sunniva is a fusion of sludge, doom and post-metal, founded in Turku in 2016. Svarta Havet plays post-hardcore and metal that defies definition and ripples in shades of black. In the band’s disconsolate lyrics, the loss of nature and the eco-crisis, fear and anxiety for the future and hatred towards the capitalist destruction machine of the north of the world come to the fore. Askel is a band founded in Helsinki in 2022 that plays cold, painful and loud sludge.
Here some photos of the night by Cristina Gregori.

Psychework, Folkrim & Vanguardian live at Meara Klubi, Pori (Fin)

This time on the stage of the Meara Klubi three bands with different genres created a noteworthy show. The first to take the stage was Vanguardian, an extreme technical heavy metal band from Jyväskylä resurrected from the ashes of the thrash band Inkvisitor in 2019, followed by Folkrim, a band that plays a combination of metal and traditional instruments inspired by beer and nature that brings good mood everywhere. Closing the evening was Psychework, with singer Antony Parviainen and guitarist J-V Hintikka (ex-Machine Men), who offers melodically strong, dark and progressive heavy metal with impressive orchestrations and an undeniable talent for the dramatic.
Here some photos taken by Cristina Gregori.

 

 

 

 

Split Iris, Balance Breach & Khroma live at Meara Klubi Vol.18, Pori (Fin)

This time on the stage of Meara Klubi played Split Iris, Balance Breach and Khroma. Split Iris is a progressive metalcore band that combines elements of djent, deathcore and many other sub-styles of modern metal. Balance Breach is one of the most promising metal bands from Finland, its music combines wistful melodies, furious energy and big choruses in such an irresistible way that it has been noticed not only in Finland but also in Central Europe. Combining low-key groove, electro, hip hop and ambient, Khroma has done several foreign tours since its founding in 2010, the most recent being a massive 37-gig European tour with the Jinjer in autumn 2019, as well as a 10-gig club tour in the fall of 2022, with the crowning gig at Cologne’s Euroblast festivals in October 2022. Khroma has also warmed up for the band Gojira, performed in addition to the 2013 Tuska Festival at several festivals in Central Europe and visited Japan for a showcase gig.
Here some photos taken by Cristina Gregori.