For the third time in their career, Semblant performed at Cafe Central in Weinheim. We also reported on their last concert, and just like in October 2023, they once again gave three different bands the opportunity to present themselves to a larger audience.
Since there were so many bands, the concert started at a quarter to seven, earlier than announced, which is why I only caught the last few songs by Another Approach. I honestly found that a bit of a shame, because they delivered really solid progressive metal and didn’t shy away from interacting with the audience. Okay, that’s not difficult at Cafe Central anyway, but the bassist took a trip into the audience to play there. If you’re a fan of progressive metal, you definitely shouldn’t miss this band. One special thing to mention is their tradition at concerts. They always play the theme song from the Pokémon series as their last song. They did it again this time, and bassist Claudio threw plush Poké Balls into the audience.
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The second band to take the stage was
Blame Zeus from Portugal. Despite having been around for 15 years, this was the band’s first European tour and therefore completely new territory for them. But you could tell they were experienced, and it turned out to be a really good performance, with bassist Celso standing out in particular. It was also clear that the current line-up has been together for nine years, as the band members harmonized on stage and repeatedly joked around with each other, as far as the small stage allowed. The approximately 30 minutes of playing time flew by.
Then
Rexoria from Sweden came on stage and things immediately became more colorful, accompanied by melodic power metal. Fast, catchy, melodic, they fulfilled all expectations. Headbanging at its finest, on and in front of the stage. Added to this was the absolutely powerful and stunning voice of singer Frida. As with
Blame Zeus, you could tell that the musicians harmonized perfectly and had fun together. Unlike the others, however,
Rexoria had been on tour in Europe several times and was now in Weinheim for the third time. As the third band, they were allowed to play a little longer, and I have to admit that every extra minute was worth it. The band definitely gained one more fan after their performance.
At a quarter to ten, the moment had finally arrived: the band everyone had come to see took to the stage. First came drummer Welyntom, bassist Johann, guitarist Juliano, and keyboardist Guto, kicking things off with Incinerate, just like the album does. Then Sergio came on and started his part, soon followed by Mizuho. They continued right away with Dark of the Day. But then they stopped following the album’s track list, because instead of What Lies Ahead, the band’s most successful song, they played Selfish Liar. They then played Mere Shadow from the album Obscura, the second most successful song in the band’s history. At least according to Spotify streaming figures. This was followed by all but three songs from Lunar Manifesto, as well as songs from Obscura and their latest album Vermilion Eclipse, which was released in 2022. The evening concluded with the long-awaited What Lies Ahead and the opener from Vermilion Eclipse, Enrage. Afterwards, Sergio and Mizuho came out to meet the fans and take photos with them.
Setlist
Semblant: Incinerate // Dark of the Day // Selfish Liar // Mere Shadow // The Shrine // Purified // Scarlet Heritage (Legacy of Blood Part III) // Ode To Rejection // Destiny In Curse // The Hand That Bleeds // The Human Eclipse // Dethrone the Gods, Control the Masters (Legacy of Blood, Pt. IV) // What Lies Ahead // Enrage
