Epica, Fleshgod Apocalypse, The Agonist @ Corona Theater, Montreal, Canada

It was a Saturday night and the Corona Theatre in Montreal was sold out for what was going to be another night to remember for hundreds of Metal fans that are ready to brave the cold outside. The line at the door stretches to the adjacent streets; everyone is cold, but in a great mood. Metalheads have a way of socialising that most other genres don’t; we look at the other person’s shirt and just start talking about music. The passion was palpable. Once the doors were open, hands were shaken between new friends and the show became the priority.

THE AGONIST

THE AGONIST are always treated as stars in their hometown of Montreal. That night was no different; the crowd went totally wild when they set foot on stage. Vicky, as always, looked really comfortable on stage while talking to the crowd. She even attempted a few words of French, which was well received by the French-speaking crowd.
 

The show in itself was really good. The crew were up to the task, but there were a few vocal mishaps in the first song and in “Thank You Pain”. I’m not sure if Vicky was nervous or if she was feeling under the weather, but her voice sounded shaky on those two songs.
 

The overall performance was well received and they infused the crowd with a lot of energy for the bands to come.

Setlist:

1.     My Witness, Your Victim
2.     The Villain
3.     The Hunt
4.     The Moment
5.     Thank You, Pain
6.     Gates of Horn and Ivory


FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE

FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE came on stage blazing with energy and sporting great Renaissance outfits.  The experience was unfortunately tainted by a technical difficulty when Francesco’s guitar wasn’t hooked up correctly on the first song; therefore the song fell flat and sounded repetitive. In front, while taking pictures, we could hear the string vibrations, but nothing was translated through the speakers. Happily, everything was cleared up by the time the second song came around and everything got back to normal.
 

They pulled off a flawless performance following those issues and it made the fans very happy. Their stage presence was amazing and successfully raised the energy of the crowd to another level.
 

Setlist:

1.     Marche Royale
2.     In Aeternum
3.     Pathfinder
4.     Healing Through War
5.     Cold as Perfection
6.     The Violation
7.     Epilogue
8.     The Fool
9.     The Forsaking


EPICA

After another 20 minutes of rest, the lights were dimmed and the crowd began to roar. Simone showed up on stage in a grey and black dress, looking as great as ever. Right away, the crowd were drinking her lyrics and screaming out their lungs along with the catchy songs. The energy was at its maximum; clearly FLESHGOD didn’t drain the batteries of the crowd too much.
 

This time, there was no issue with the sound, no guitars were missing, and the vocal volume was perfect, much to the delight of the fans.
 

The set list was varied and taken from a lot of different albums throughout EPICA’s packed history; and Simone did an amazing job leading each one of those songs. She interacted with the crowd with the ease of someone who’s been doing it for over a decade.
 

The show went into the next gear once “Unchained Utopia” kicked in followed by “Design Your Universe”. The energy build-up in the crowd was palpable just before the band stepped off the stage to wait for the encore.
 

According to another metalhead that was present at both this show and the one the night before in Quebec City, the set list was a bit different. If you are following the show for more than one city, you will be happy to know that the band is adding some variation to the list.
 

The show ended on a high note with the crowd spontaneously creating a wall of death on the last song of the night. The band immediately got into action by counting down to the commencement of the hostility. Everyone was in a good mood and the action was welcomed by everyone around. This was definitely a great night of metal in Montreal.
 

Setlist:

1.     Edge of the Blade
2.     A Phantasmic Parade
3.     Sensorium
4.     Universal Death Squad
5.     Divide and Conquer
6.     The Obsessive Devotion
7.     Ascension - Dream State Armageddon
8.     Dancing in a Hurricane
9.     Quietus
10.  Unchain Utopia
11.  Design Your Universe
Encore:
1.     Sancta Terra
2.     Beyond the Matrix
3.     Consign to Oblivion
 

Promoter:

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