Unpure and Xalpen: Europe Ablaze Tour 2024 – Bratislava and Vienna Concert Report

The moment Europe Ablaze Tour 2024 was announced last December by Goetia Productions, I knew I had to be on 2 of its dates to see the legendary Unpure and the maniacs from Xalpen sharing the stage together. I couldn’t believe it that after 33 years of activity Unpure will embark on such a tour. So, this was probably a life time opportunity to witness live, from the very front row, one of the best underground black metal bands that I love so much. The Chileans from Xalpen were the best choice for this package and the fact that I already knew what to expect from them after seeing their show last year in Budapest was more than enough to buy the tickets for the Bratislava and Vienna shows.

Bratislava: Pink Whale, 06.04.2024 AB

I have never been to a show in Bratislava before, so this was the perfect occasion to see how such an underground event will unfold in the neighboring city. Besides the 2 headliners, two more bands have been added on the bill, locals Black Light and the new underground sensation Otras, a band which has released recently their first album “Čas Karhat” on the German label Into Endless Chaos Records.

The venue was the subdeck of Pink Whale, a club on the Danube, which seemed a nice location for such a show. We arrived there half an hour before the start, eager to check out the merch stands and buy as much stuff as possible (it’s not everyday that you get to buy Unpure and Xalpen shirts and other memorabilia, so it had to be done accordingly). Both bands brought plenty of interesting stuff to choose from (multiple T-shirt designs, LPs, patches, CDs, tapes, pins or even some ultra limited Watain belt buckles), so the choice was hard, but eventually all the chosen items found their forever home with me. The concert hall seemed quite alright, perfectly suitable for the occasion, but I was very anxious to check out the sound. Since it was a Saturday evening quite enough people showed up, and as we were about to find out later on, some of them were there especially for Otras.

According to the schedule, Black Light was supposed to start at 19h30, but for some unknown reason they only started their soundcheck around that time (and not before, as it should have been done), which of course triggered the delay of the entire evening’s schedule. After some time, they eventually went on stage and for 30 minutes they delivered a slab of death/thrash metal with a very mid 90s feeling. The music was not bad, I enjoyed it a bit and I liked their enthusiasm, even if some tracks were not completely to my taste. Good choice for an opening band, though.

Next on the bill was Otras, a band who seems to be quite popular among the local fans, at least according to the audience’s reaction. They did their sound check on the spot too, so we had to wait for another half an hour or so before their show started. Otras plays some black metal with a lot of punk influences and their music is quite energetic. Even though I am not a fan of such a style, I kind of enjoyed their performance, despite some sound issues they had along the way. The vocalist has a disturbing appearance (he sings with a sack on his face) which suits the music, but apart from that I was not too moved by what I heard.

After Otras‘s show and a well deserved change over and sound check, it was time for one of the bands I went there for: the legendary Unpure took the small stage and started their performance with “Megalithic Gateways” and “Northern Sea Madness“, the first 2 songs from their recent album, “Prophecies Ablaze“. I was in the front row and the sound was shitty as fuck, everything was fuzzy and chaotic. At some point during the show Hampus tried to sing on “A Forest Event” but his voice was completely inaudible, nothing came out of the microphone. The band played on, but it was an awkward moment which spoiled this great old track. I was hoping that the sound guy will do something quick to fix the issue, but he didn’t sweat too much about it. Nevertheless, seeing the mighty Kolgrim and Co. delivering the goods in such a glorious way was pure pleasure. I was ecstatic hearing old tracks like “To the Ancients“, “A Forest Event“, “Surrounded by Darkness“, “Count Dracula” or “Forever Lust” along with newer tracks from the recent LP, like “The Witch of Upsala“, “Prophecies Ablaze“, “Beyond the Nightmares” or “Endtime Dictator“. Due to Pelle‘s last minute withdrawal just before the start of the tour, Unpure recruited Matti Jalava (ex Vorum – nice “Current Mouth” shirt man!) on second guitar. He did a very good job on the songs and together with the other guys he was able to sort it out in a professional manner. Useless to say that Emil‘s insane drumming gives the band a dizzying speed which they were never able to attain before.

Despite the sound issues (caused by the venue, not by the band), Unpure delivered 50 minutes of pure underground black metal, fast, raw and old school as fuck.

Last change over and sound check for the day and the lights went dim, while a creepy shamanic music poured out from the speakers. Covered in blood and corpsepaint, the 4 Chilean maniacs from Xalpen came on the stage and attacked the audience (fewer in number than before) with the first track of the evening, “Kòlpèwsh“. The band unleashed all its force on stage, and during the show, dark energies enveloped the small venue and those present. It’s incredible to watch Alvaro and JP spewing forth their lyrics into the microphone, transforming into some otherworldly beings, completely different than the persons you talked to earlier at the merch stand.

After their short Eastern European tour they did last year, Xalpen enrolled Gia as a permanent member in their ranks, so it was no surprise seeing her again shredding the guitar with that specific look on her face. She is really a great addition to the band, as the 2 guitars complement each other perfectly and bring a much needed heaviness and balance to the Xalpen songs. Behind the drums, hidden in the smoke and fog, Claudio massacred his kit and pounded like a maniac all throughout the show. Unfortunately the sound guy could not solve the sound issue during Xalpen‘s show, so they also had the same buzzing sound I mentioned earlier, but that did not prevent them to play with even more force and vigor. Alvaro and JP make a great duo, their vocals complement each other perfectly in a frightening unison.

Everything is very well calculated in Xalpen, from the mike stand decorated with bones and skulls, to the appearance of the 4 musicians and the ritualistic music and gestures. Alvaro did not communicate too much with the audience, but when he did, his voice and words evoked some sort of nostalgia combined with aversion towards all the things holy and nice.

During their 1 hour performance, Xalpen played most of the songs from their latest LP, “The Curse of Kwányep“, but also went back in time to its first 2 EP’s, for the songs “A Cold Rain Under a Cloudless Sky” and “Devourer of Light“. As the last sounds of the Outro faded away and the band left the small stage, I was left in awe. Xalpen showed me again why they are one of the best bands in the black metal underground. Their dedication and passion for this art are contagious and I would like to see more bands and more musicians embracing this attitude.

Since next day we had an early trip to Vienna, we said our goodbyes to Pink Whale and headed back to the accommodation, sharing impressions on our way back about what we witnessed that night. Even if tired, we were already looking forward to the second part of our mini tour and the mere thought of seeing both bands again in Vienna gave us goosebumps.

Vienna: Viper Room, 07.04.2024 AB

After a short and quite adventurous trip from Bratislava to Vienna , we arrived in the city of waltz under a scorching summer sun. 29º in April were too much for me, but it didn’t matter in the end, knowing that in a couple of hours we’ll see Unpure and Xalpen at work again.

As mentioned before, the concert took place at Viper Room, a fantastic location we haven’t been to since the Tribulation/Grave Pleasures show back in 2015. Unlike Bratislava’s Pink Whale, who constantly updated their event page with useful information, Viper Room chose the silent treatment and did not post any kind of updates about the show whatsoever.

We arrived at the location at 19h00, we checked in and through some apologies from the club staff about the lack of communication we were told that the shows will start at 20h00 and there won’t be any opening bands for that evening. That was a relief for us and I bet it was for the 2 bands as well, as they won’t have to deal with unnecessary change overs, unexpected soundchecks, lateness and whatnot. Inside the club, we had another unpleasant surprise when we were told that the bar is cash only. It would have been nice to inform about this in advance on the page of the event, not to find out at the location. Anyway, this minor communication issue didn’t spoil our evening and we patiently waited for the 2 shows to start. And what shows they were indeed!

Unpure walked on stage and delivered the same set list as the night before, but it seemed like now it was a different band. Everything sounded clearer, gone was the fuzzy sound on the guitars, Hampus’s solos and vocals could be easily distinguished and to my astonishment I even saw (and heard) Emil doing backing vocals on some tracks while blasting the drums away. The lights were far from dim and blurry like in Bratislava, they provided a clearer view upon the stage, even if smoke was used here as well. Hearing again the same songs as the night before, I had the impression of listening to a record, not to a live show. What a change! Unpure kicked ass one more time, the guys were energetic and played in full force.

“The Witch of Upsala” is a great track live, its intricate bass line detail was perfectly audible and I was really happy the band put it on the playlist. Of course, as a fan I would have also loved to hear tracks live “Never in Gold“, “Sabbath” (one of my Unpure favorite songs ever), “Rapist” or the thrashing monster that is “His Wrath and the Red Soil“, but hopefully there’ll be another Unpure tour in the future. The audience was very responsive and enthusiastic all throughout the show and I was surprised to see that many of those present in Viper Room were not exactly youngsters, which made me think that perhaps Unpure still has a strong fanbase among those who were teenagers more than 30 years ago. Hail UNPURE, total cult band!!

The show continued with Xalpen. The band was hungry for playing and the 4 musicians attacked the public with its wicked rhythms as soon as the Intro faded away. Their overall sound also improved and made their performance that Sunday night in Vienna the best I witnessed so far. The fierce music hit its target right in the heart, as those in the first rows instantly started to move or headbang, feeling the songs to the maximum.

Alvaro communicated more in between the songs, establishing an invisible connection between the band on stage and the small but enthusiastic audience in the venue. Timid at first, those gathered in Viper Room rewarded the band with shouts and applauses after each track, opening their bodies and minds to the black fumes of Xalpen‘s music. The impending feeling of something dangerous about to happen was floating in the hall and was enhanced by the primal aesthetics of Alvaro and JP, who looked like some possessed acolytes of a forbidden cult. The 4 musicians felt and lived every moment of the show, fiercely headbanging and using their music to incite the audience to liberate themselves and become one with the spirits invoked on stage.

Xalpen‘s show lasted for one hour, but what a powerful hour that was, filled with black metal magick, spirituality and blood. The performance ended with the (by now) classic “The Curse of Kwányep“, a song as monstrous as the band itself. I cannot imagine any of the band’s set lists without this epic song, which represents the quintessence of all the elements Xalpen is about.

In the end, this was truly a memorable night and trip and I was very happy I could meet and see these two excellent bands in two different cities, during such a real underground tour. Both shows I attended will remain forever engraved in my memory and I will always remember that feeling of pure liberation and ecstasy I felt during the Unpure and Xalpen shows. Hail Satan!