Even though it feels like NE OBLIVISCARIS just toured Helsinki yesterday, the band had a great excuse to come back: their album “Citadel” turned 10 years old in 2024. What better reason to drop everything and head over to Europe to play the album in full? They hit Helsinki on October 12th, 2024, with FREEDOM OF FEAR and WALKWAYS in tow to kick off the night.
It was still pretty early when FREEDOM OF FEAR took the stage, so the crowd was just starting to trickle in. But they managed to draw a decent audience by the time they finished. The first time I discovered NE OBLIVISCARIS was back in 2018. I was bored and unemployed, so I decided to check out a random show at Nosturi, which happened to be just a block away from me. I didn’t bother to look up the band beforehand, but their name sounded cool enough. Little did I know I was about to be blown away. So, needless to say, I don’t always research the support acts. I love to be pleasantly surprised by new music. And that’s exactly the effect FREEDOM OF FEAR had on me. They delivered a dark, technical blend of extreme metal, with fantastic bass, blistering guitar solos, blast beats galore, and ominous vocals by Jade Monserrat, who had a wonderfully mysterious stage presence. Later on, I learned they’re also from Australia. At this point, we might need to investigate what’s in the water over there because the country has been producing some wonderfully extreme yet proggy metal bands recently.
Next up was WALKWAYS, and they were a bit of an odd choice for the evening. They’re an alternative metal band, and while their sound was different from the other two acts, they still put on a solid show. I was only familiar with their song “Despair,” but even without knowing the rest of their material, I could appreciate their catchy, engaging style that got the crowd moving. Ran Yerushalmi, their vocalist, worked hard to hype up the audience, even throwing in some singalong moments. They brought a different dynamic compared to FREEDOM OF FEAR’s introspective energy, and it was fun to watch.
Then it was time for NE OBLIVISCARIS, and as promised, they kicked off with Citadel in its entirety. Due to private reasons, harsh vocalist Xenoyr is sitting out this tour, but James Dorton has been filling in and doing a fantastic job once again. He brings his own style to the role, and while he’s a different presence than Xenoyr, his vocals definitely maintain the high quality the band is known for. The set started with “Painters of the Tempest (Part I): Wyrmholes,” featuring a hauntingly beautiful piano intro. Vocalist/violinist Tim Charles stood on a riser, playing his violin with such emotion that it gave me chills. It had been a while since I last listened to “Citadel,” and I was reminded just how gorgeous this piece of music is. The lighting and crisp sound elevated the experience, making it even more impressive live. As a violinist myself, I’m always amazed by Tim‘s technique—he manages to use dissonant tones in a way that sounds intentional and adds depth to the music, rather than coming across like a cat dying in the alley—which is basically what it sounds like when you start playing the violin. It’s like he found a way to make scratchy violin sounds soothing, not nails-on-a-chalkboard screeching.
The intro lasted about three minutes before the rest of the band joined in for “Painters of the Tempest (Part II): Triptych Lux.” With music this complex and intricate, you’d expect to catch at least a small mistake. Nope. At one point, it even looked like bassist Martino Garattoni and guitarist Benjamin Baret were casually chatting with each other during the songs, as if they were just hanging out and not shredding through some of the most intricate music out there.
The band played through “Citadel” flawlessly, with each section more impressive than the last. After finishing “Devour Me, Colossus (Part II): Contortions,” Tim thanked the crowd and talked a bit about their latest album, “Exul,” which they were planning to play in full next. “Exul” was released during a tumultuous time for the band (and the world, considering it’s a COVID album), and it was great to hear the tracks live. The setlist flowed nicely between “Citadel” and “Exul,” even including songs I hadn’t heard before. The biggest surprise of the night was “Anhedonia,” which hadn’t been part of previous setlists but worked beautifully as an outro. It brought the show full circle with a style reminiscent of the haunting intro, making for a soothing end to an immersive experience.
The band thanked the audience again and joked about whether we still had the energy to hear more after two hours. Spoiler: we did. Even after two hours of playing, they returned for an encore with “And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope.” You’d think exhaustion would start to show by now, but they performed it flawlessly, wrapping up the evening on a high note.
Kulttuuritalo in Helsinki is notorious for being a bit tricky when it comes to metal shows, mainly because I’m pretty sure architect Alvar Aalto didn’t design it with blast beats in mind. The venue’s white ceiling doesn’t help with lighting shows either, as it tends to reflect the light instead of absorbing it. But NE OBLIVISCARIS managed to pull off a stunning lighting and sound display, probably one of the best I’ve experienced at Kulttuuritalo in recent years. The technical aspects of the show were top-notch, and the musicianship was yet another reminder that NE OBLIVISCARIS is a top-tier metal band that never fails to deliver.
Hearing “Citadel” and “Exul” played in full was like being part of a live cinematic experience, and I can’t help but wish they’d record these performances for live albums because this is truly how these albums were meant to be experienced. If you have the chance to catch them on this tour, don’t miss it—it’s absolutely worth it!
Text & photos by Laureline Tilkin
Setlist
Citadel
1. Painters of the Tempest (Part I): Wyrmholes
2. Painters of the Tempest (Part II): Triptych Lux
3. Painters of the Tempest (Part III): Reveries from the Stained Glass Womb
4. Pyrrhic
5. Devour Me, Colossus (Part I): Blackholes
6. Devour Me, Colossus (Part II): Contortions
Exul
7. Equus
8. Misericorde I – As the Flesh Falls
9. Misericorde II – Anatomy of Quiescence
10. Suspyre
11. Graal
12. Anhedonia
Encore
13. And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope
