During the 80’s, the extreme music scene was not so popular in the Central/Eastern part of Europe, compared to what happened in the democratic West. But somewhere around 1985 a young band named Tormentor popped its ugly little head from the Hungarian underground and without knowing it, they became in a couple of years a very big influence for a big part of the second wave of black metal bands, a trait which is still recognized to this very day.
Their most inspiring material, which brought them the world wide recognition and also helped Attila Csihar in being selected as the lead singer of the infamous Mayhem after Dead‘s death is without doubt Anno Domini, material recorded in 1988 which was supposed to be their first album.
But due to the difficulties the band encountered with the communist bureaucratic system, the album was not released properly and instead its fame grew considerably in the underground due to the intensive tape trading.
But I am not here to talk about Tormentor‘s past. I am here to talk about the present, and the official reunion show in 30 years which took place in Budapest on the 21st of April. The show was announced last year and it quickly got sold out, because of the huge interest this event represented.
During the past months the other 2 bands on the bill were announced and the line up was complete: the Czechs from Cult of Fire and the locals Perihelion (formerly Neokhrome) were to open that special night.
I arrived at the venue around 19.45. when Cult of Fire were just about to enter the stage. I have never listened to this band before, even though its releases crossed my path many times, when browsing my European distributors’ catalogs for music. I noticed their 2 albums were/still are quite appreciated in the black metal milieu, but for me something did not click. And last night I realized exactly why.
From the stage set up to the music, I realized that this band represents exactly what I hate the most about some parts (too many, unfortunately) of the nowadays black metal. Witnessing black metal turned into a circus with altars, candles, hoods and other paraphernalia has been too much for me these past years, therefore some time ago I have decided to distance myself from this modern approach of black metal, which I do not feel any connection with. But more about that in another article.
After a couple of songs I went out of the main concert hall because the music was not interesting for me. On my way out I saw that some people were really appreciating Cult of Fire‘s effort, so for some there is still hope. Not for me though.
After browsing the merch stand a bit and socializing with other people, I went back to the venue just in time for the show of Perihelion. The last time I saw this band live was 4 years ago, when they played a now defunct venue in Bucharest under the name of Neokhrome, just before their switch to the new name and concept. So I was really excited to see them again, especially since the Debrecen based band had a new album under their belt, Örvény, which got some positive reviews after its release in November last year.
The show was really intense and the guys did their job very very well, considering this concert was quite a “strange” apparition for them in such a different company.
The new style suits them just fine, and even if they still kept some black metal influences here and there, they managed to provide their new concept a very interesting direction. Obviously that Perihelion‘s new approach is not suitable for the majority of the extreme metal lovers, but I really appreciated that last night each band had its own supporters, so those who stayed in the main hall of A38 during their show really enjoyed a fine set.
I personally liked the drummer’s performance, who “tortured” his drum kit with blast beats and quite difficult parts. I would definitely like to see this band again, maybe in a different set up so I could appreciate the music even more.
After Perihelion‘s show, the final change over took place and the stage was prepared for the last and the most awaited guest of the evening, the mighty Tormentor. As previously announced before, at 22.30 sharp a creepy Intro started to pour from the amplifiers and the band walked on stage in front of an absolutely insane crowd. I have never seen that venue so packed before so when the whole mass of people started to move uncontrollably during the first song of the night, Tormentor I, I really thought something bad will happen to that ship.
To get an idea what I am talking about in this review, below is a video of Elizabeth Bathory, the classic track which gained its world wide recognition after it was covered by Dissection.
The whole band was amazing, considering they must be in their 50’s by now, but their playing was impeccable, their energy contagious and the stage presence was just perfect. Their sinister make up was extremely well chosen and Attila‘s huge inverted crosses and demonic facies were of great effect.
I have never seen Attila live before so watching this “mad man” performing the classics I listened to on shitty tapes long time ago was absolutely unbelievable. He is more than a simple vocalist, above all he is an excellent actor, playing his part fucking good.
Since this was the first show in 30 years, the band played Anno Domini in full and a very nice selection of tracks from The 7th Day of Doom demo.
It is not everyday that you hear Anno Domini played in full so tracks like Transylvania, In Gate of Hell, Beyond and the title track had a fuckin huge impact on me, as I watched mesmerized how the musicians on stage “played” with their audience. An audience which was absolutely brilliant, screaming and singing along almost every track. Even if at some point there were some stupid mosh pits and things seemed to get slightly out of control, in the end everything cooled down and everybody enjoyed the magnificent performance the 5 crazy Hungarians delivered on stage.
This is definitely a concert to remember and a milestone in the history of black metal. It seems Attila Csihar has a very good talent to be part of these milestones in different periods of his life, so I am pretty sure what happened last night will remain forever in the hearts of those who attended the show and also of those who performed on stage. When you come all the way from Chile to Hungary just for such a show, then it definitely has to be special. And last night was special indeed, it was…Beyond!
A big thumbs up to Planet Noir Industries for putting on such a show like this, it must have been fucking difficult, but I am sure the final outcome payed off.
Tormentor set list:
1.Intro
2.Tormentor I
3.Heaven
4.Elisabeth Bathory
5.Damned Grave
6.In Gate of Hell
7.Transylvania
8.Tormentor II
9.Trance
10.Beyond
11.Apocalypse
12.Lyssa
13.Anno Domini
14.Intro/Branded the Satan
15.Mephisto
16.Intro/Live in Damnation
17.7th Day of Doom
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