The evening began for me at about 18:45 when I arrived at Principal Club Theater hoping to be one of the first ones that will get in and be in the first line! Unexpectedly, there were only 10 people waiting there and the guard let us in immediately. The show was about to start at 20:00, but even until 19:45 the club was half empty. I guess people didn't care to catch the show from the start, but that made me very nervous. By the time Amorphis came out we hardly were 300 people (which is a humiliating number for a city like Thessaloniki and a band like Amorphis!) Nevertheless, even though we weren't many in numbers, we were one of the most passionate audiences I’ve ever seen and we got our 'gift' for that! (I will explain that later.)
The show started at 20:20 with Amoral. This was one of the most hilarious appearances I've seen. I had listened to their songs before, but I hadn't seen them, so when they came on stage I was in shock! The singer was wearing sunglasses and a Vans hat, drinking Coca Cola Light and he had an attitude I didn't like at all! I was smiling (holding myself from laughing) for at least 10 minutes after they came out. His voice is cool, but their appearance and performance they were indifferent and boring. The singer gave the feeling that he was doing us a favor. He was just standing or sitting behind when the guitarist was playing a solo. Maybe the worst live act I've seen.
At 21:00 Before the Dawn came on stage and the magic began! When the support acts for the show were announced I took a listen to their songs and I simply loved them from the very first second! They gained for sure a place in my favorite bands and I was justified by their performance. They totally aroused the crowd with their beautiful melodies and vocals. Personally they made me feel like I was there to see them. Like they were the headliners! They played 12 songs with My Room being the highlight, in my opinion. The drummer and the guitarist left the stage and only Lars and Tuomas stayed to start the song. Lars interpreted it with emotion and calmed us down for a minute until the rest of the band came out again to finish the song hard and loud! Their performance was excellent! They were vivid, friendly, passionate and devoted. The only complaint I have is: 1. Even though in every webpage I found about them Tuomas is mentioned to be the soul of the band and leader, he didn't even speak a word and 2. they were not moving a lot on stage, but that happens when both guitarist and bassist also sing! The other guitarist though was constantly moving and headbanging. In general I was very pleased by their performance and I think they were the perfect ones to prepare the crowd for Amorphis, but also entertain us!
Set list: Disappear / Faithless / Dying Sun / Unbreakable / Exile / Monsters / Morning Sun / Scar / My Darkness / My Room / The Black / Deadsong
And finally it was time for the Gods: Amorphis! All the time I had been waiting for this day, I was thinking of the first time I saw them in 2008 and how perfect they were on stage (or actually Tomi was, cause the other members are rather passing unnoticed, standing in the background). And of course, Tomi was the master of the stage once again. Every time I see him on stage I am captured by his unearthly presence and the power of his voice! I just can't compare him and Amorphis with any other band as a live act or studio performance. From the moment they appeared on stage the audience went mad, singing and jumping around along with Tomi and proving for once more that metalheads in Thessaloniki may be small in number, but very big in passion and enthusiasm! I guess this is why Amorphis honored us with the song Skyforger at the encore, which was neither on the set list nor they had played it at any other show of the tour! The greatest part of the show though was of course House of Sleep (which I think is the greatest and most characteristic part of every show). People become lunatic when they listen to this song! All the love the audience has for the band reflects on how loud they sing on this song! Unfortunately, this great moment was followed by the end of the show, letting everyone yearning for more. Tomi thanked us all and shaken hands with the fans of the front lines, showing with this gesture his gratitude for the support. In a few words, this was the second best gig of my life, after their 2008 gig in Thessaloniki! First time: Love at first sight! Second time: True love... And I am waiting impatiently to see how farther it can get with the third time.
Set list: Silver Bride / Sampo / Towards and Against / Castaway / Smithereens-The Smoke / Majestic Beast / Alone / Silent Waters / Against-Cares-On Rich And Poor-Against-Better / From The Heaven Of My Heart / Sky Is Mine / (M&M)-Black Winter Day / Encore: Sign / Skyforger / House of Sleep / My Kantele
PS 1: Except for Skyforger, Tomi granted us with another gift too: He came out shirt-less!
PS 2: If I could change one thing from the night, I would add Leaves Scar to the playlist!