Characterized by its unique lineup and familiar atmosphere among visitors and staff, Euroblast is a festival that gathers not only the most influential bands of the broader progressive scene but also offers insight into lesser-known acts that have just as much to offer as the more commercially accomplished. Keeping that in mind, every day holds a surprise for any connoisseur of progressive rock and metal. This year promised to be a special edition due to the festival’s 15th anniversary. This year’s Euroblast took place from September 20th to October 1st, 2023 at Essigfabrik in Cologne. For anyone who identifies as a proghead, Euroblast is a name that should at the very least sound familiar and a must-visit festival!
Euroblast‘s third day included bands like ATLAS, HYPNO5E, ALLT, FUTURE STATIC, EARTHSIDE, LEPROUS, and more…
The third and final day of Euroblast started with the Berlin-based band R3VO. With their modern approach to progressive metal, their instrumental sound was highlighted by the vocal performance of singer Leo Lotux whose vibrato gives the musical landscape a very special touch.
It appears to us as though the Finnish quintet ATLAS has been on everyone’s lips for the last couple of months. Allow us to confirm that there are good reasons for this. With an innovative approach to metalcore and coining the term “Northcore,” ATLAS intelligently incorporate the dark and heavy ambiance of the north into metalcore. Full of ups and downs that seamlessly blend into one another, they make use of a mixture of both English and Finnish to enhance vocal performance. This is the kind of darkness that, far from pushing you down a hole, energizes and uplifts the listener.
The Turkish/German act BIPOLAR ARCHITECTURE were next on the cellar stage. The atmosphere that this stage offers was well suited to their music, which places their style somewhere between the realms of post- and black metal, covering the cellar stage with a dark and gloomy soundscape.
The Swedes from ALLT took over the main stage. This band quickly became one of my highlights of this year’s Euroblast. With bouts of melancholic passages that make their performance emotional yet dynamic, the quintet demonstrates how multifaceted metalcore can be. It doesn’t take long to realize how serious they are about their craft, a display of commitment that lasted until their very last second on stage.
E.N.D (short for “Evil Never Dies”) from Croatia were next in line. The band has been around since 1996, and their experience definitely shines in their live performance. Probably one of the heaviest bands in this year’s Euroblast edition, they have a hardcore style with a lot of groove that at times feels like technical death metal.
When considering the relationship between a band’s name and their music style, it’s not very common to find a direct connection or hint, but HYPNO5E defies this norm. The French band have a unique way of blending acoustic/folk elements with progressive rock/metal, creating soundscapes that transcend these genres. They spare no effort in musically constructing landscapes, as their songs are often longer than 10 minutes. While this aspect might make you wonder how well it works in a live setting, we can promise you that it does, effectively. HYPNO5E transformed the entire hall and main stage into a natural landscape with their mesmerizing music during their performance.
All the way from Australia, FUTURE STATIC graced the crowd with their engaging presence on the cellar stage during the last day of the festival. This quintet is a true force, creating powerful music and exerting themselves physically to match that energy during their performances. A couple of months ago, the Australians gained critical acclaim for their cover of Daddy Yankee‘s hit “Gasolina” (translated to “Fuel” in English), a piece they couldn’t leave out of their set on the final day of Euroblast. In case you’re wondering, “Gasolina” belongs to the genre of reggaeton, which is a fusion of various traditional Latin American and electronic subgenres, resulting in a form of “modern Latin American dance” music. Is reggaetoncore already a thing? If not, it might be worth considering, and as much as I’d like to claim this term as my own, I must give credit where it’s due, so I’d like to thank our fellow enthusiasts for coming up with it.
For many reasons, Sunday at Euroblast was one of the days we were most looking forward to, with EARTHSIDE being a significant part of that anticipation. The American quartet has a reputation that can be compared to an astronomical event, in the best sense of the term. They released their first album, “A Dream In Static,” in 2015 and completed their second album just a couple of months before the 2023 Euroblast edition, titled “Let The Truth Speak,” which is set to be released on November 17th of this year.
In the digital era, where the ongoing demand from consumers for instant gratification often forces artists to continuously release work, there are very few bands that can maintain such a substantial output over an extended period. The fact that EARTHSIDE have built a solid fanbase over the years, despite the time between releases, speaks to three important points. First, it attests to the magnetic power of their music and its pivotal role in engaging listeners, transcending time. Second, it highlights their commitment to craftsmanship and their dedication to refining every detail as often as necessary before presenting it to the public. Lastly, it confirms the extraordinary quality of their music as a result of the aforementioned factors.
The main hall filled up rapidly as the band prepared to take the stage. They faced an initial delay due to unforeseen technical difficulties. Nevertheless, the crowd continued to support them through this stressful situation and was more than eager to cheer them on once they struck their first notes.
It was truly a mesmerizing experience to witness this music live for the first time, with the contributions of talented vocalists like Daniel Tompkins (TESSEERACT) and Gennady Tkachenko-Papizh in their masterpiece “Let The Truth Speak,” as well as Keturah in their first single of the year, “We Who Lament.” Unfortunately, their performance had to be cut short due to the earlier delay. However, the crowd passionately urged them to continue, but ultimately, the organizers had to make the tough choice to stick with the scheduled program.
Nonetheless, the Euroblast attendees had the opportunity to experience the marvel that is EARTHSIDE, some for the very first time, and others for the first time in a long while, leaving us all hoping that it won’t take them as long as a comet to reappear on our horizon again.
Every year, the organizers of Euroblast set aside time on the last day’s schedule to step onto the main stage and personally thank everyone involved in making this one-of-a-kind festival possible, capturing a photo of this moment that has now become a tradition.
This year’s edition was inevitably dampened by the tragic news of VOYAGER‘s cancellation due to the difficult and life-altering health diagnosis that singer Danny Estrin received a couple of weeks prior to the festival. However, every single person involved in the functioning of Euroblast successfully managed to ensure that this would still be a year to remember.
The organizers and crew went on to encourage the crowd to record an uplifting message for VOYAGER, using their very own words from their superhit “Promise,” reminding them that no matter what, everything is going to be alright.
We made our way back to the cellar stage to see PLAYGROUNDED, the Greek band based in The Netherlands. We decided to let loose with this band, and we’re going as far as to assert that they are undoubtedly our favorite discovery of the entire festival. This should mean something, considering we were truly impressed by many bands we weren’t previously familiar with. There’s something about their combination of instrumentally minimalistic yet soulful vocal style that immediately captivates the listener. Oscillating between alternative rock and electronic music, their hypnotizing rhythms compel you to close your eyes and concentrate on the spellbinding journey that PLAYGROUNDED‘s music takes you on.
The time had come for the long-awaited first live solo performance of Einar Solberg, the singer of LEPROUS. As this marked his debut live performance, the crowd eagerly awaited his appearance on the main stage. The singer and composer took the opportunity to express his heartfelt appreciation for VOYAGER and singer Danny Estrin by starting his set with a beautiful and incredibly moving cover of their superhit “Promise,” which left the spectators in awe, both for the gesture and their deep appreciation for VOYAGER.
Einar Solberg‘s solo project offers the listener a chance to experience his well-known style beyond the confines of progressive metal. While it wouldn’t be accurate to label it solely as pop, it also wouldn’t be right to deny that it contains some pop elements. However, it goes beyond that, with various other components at play, including neoclassical aspects contributed by cellist Raphael Weinroth-Browne and some Trip-Hop influences that are impossible to ignore. Musically versatile, sincere, and emotionally charged, the singer delved into the events in his life that inspired the themes in his compositions. The mutual appreciation between the artist and the crowd created a memorable event out of Einar Solberg‘s first solo appearance.
Next up on the cellar stage were the Australian trio, THE OMNIFIC. They delivered an electrifying performance of instrumental progressive rock, with a primary focus on their rhythmic prowess. THE OMNIFIC crafts groovy and accessible music without sacrificing their technicality, making it a fitting soundtrack for an otherworldly experience.
Due to VOYAGER having to cancel their appearance at this year’s Euroblast, LEPROUS kindly offered to step in as a replacement, providing the festival-goers with a chance to experience a different set from their performance the day before. Unlike their set on the second day of the festival, LEPROUS decided to play an “old era set,” featuring songs from their early work, some of which are rarely, if ever, played nowadays.
Just like the previous day, on Sunday, the main hall quickly filled with anticipation for this unique opportunity to witness LEPROUS with a rare setlist. The set included songs from their first four albums: “Tall Poppy Syndrome,” “Bilateral,” “Coal,” and “The Congregation.” This was in contrast to the day before when the Norwegian band focused on their more recent albums, including “Malina,” “Pitfalls,” and “Aphelion.” Vocalist Einar Solberg playfully teased the crowd between songs, acknowledging the unconventional song choices from their earlier work, citing his awareness of fans’ preferences by closely monitoring streaming numbers, all with a sense of humorous disbelief.
When comparing the old and new eras of LEPROUS, one can notice a tangible sense of maturity in the band, both emotionally and musically. However, this doesn’t make their older work feel outdated or unrelatable for those who have followed their development over time. On the contrary, it offers a somewhat rawer experience, marked by heavier passages and even harsher vocals (growls) that still stand the test of time.
In our live report from the previous day at Euroblast, we delved into how LEPROUS‘ music has a cathartic effect. In a similar vein of emotional expression, their earlier work takes a potentially even more aggressive approach to conveying emotions through music. Regardless, LEPROUS should, at the very least, be considered a treasure in the realm of progressive music, if not in the entire musical world.
And thus, the 15th anniversary of this fantastic festival has drawn to a close. After a wonderful day with considerably less physical discomfort from the accident in the cellar stage on the first day, we decided to venture into the food area to explore the menu. With options ranging from Senegalese cuisine to vegan and typical fast food, we found it challenging to make a choice. That is until the kind lady in charge of the Euroblast Kitchen graciously offered us two portions of Käsespätzle, which are typical South German noodles with cheese, both vegan and non-vegan, and, astonishingly, for free. Yes, you read that correctly – for free. It appeared they were in a hurry to close the kitchen, and perhaps in an effort to avoid wasting food or taking it back with them, they decided to extend their kindness to everyone around and distribute the food for free. Cheers to the Euroblast kitchen and the hamburger truck nearby for their generosity!
Since we had missed the afterparties on the previous days, we made the effort to stay longer this time for DJ Rémi Gallego‘s set, who also happens to be the guitarist of the band THE ALGORITHM.
From the diverse line-up to the outstanding performances, the venue to the afterparties, the friendly crew and attendees, the delectable food, and the exceptional company, we had a wonderful time and relished every second of the unique adventure that was this year’s Euroblast.
Text and photos by Michelle Rosales
