Since four bands were playing, things started quite early and punctually at 6 p.m. with Ad Infinitum. Unfortunately only for half an hour, but the band around Melissa Bonny was able to convince again, showed their full skills and Melissa proved once again that she doesn’t have to hide from Alissa or Angela Gossow with her growls, but can easily keep up. Before the concert I was hoping they would play Afterlife, the duet between Melissa and Nils Molin from Amaranthe. It was a good idea and my wish was also fulfilled, they played the song as third and Nils came on stage to loud cheers and a fantastic performance was delivered. After the first three songs being from Chapter II – Legacy, two songs followed, which already showed a preview of the upcoming album. The only track on the setlist from Chapter I – Monarchy, I am the Storm, was replaced for the first time on the tour that night by another from Chapter I, Live Before You Die. A very moving song, which I like a lot, but I am the Storm has a special meaning for me, as it was the very first song that Melissa released and wrote when she presented the Ad Infinitum project at the end of 2018 and I was immediately captivated by it. But back to the performance, it ended with Animals, a hymn that serves very well as a concert conclusion. For me I can say that I am already looking forward to the next opportunity to see the band. A band that doesn’t shy away from being at the merch stand after the concert to be there for the fans, to be ready for photos and to let the pens heat up to write autographs. Which was also the case this time, except for Niklas, who, in addition to his drummer job that night, also had the job of guitar technician for Chris Hermsdörfer, as he already does on the tours of Serenity, Chris‘ other band.

Setlist Ad Infinitum:

1. Intro + Unstoppable
2. Into The Night
3. Afterlife
4. Upside Down
5. Somewhere Better
6. Live before you Die
7. Animals

[See image gallery at catchingmovement.de] After about a quarter of an hour of conversion, the Butcher Babies came on stage at quarter to seven and delivered a firework of action and energy. Visibly in a good mood, there was hardly a quiet moment when Heidi or Carla stood around quietly, not even while singing. Carla in particular kept letting her very long hair fly through the air and kept doing jumps that questioned the gravitational pull of the earth. Both of them alternated again and again either with their clear vocals or their screams and thus formed a harmonious unit. I wasn’t hoping for much, but I was pleasantly surprised. If you like Groove Metal and haven’t seen the five live yet, you should definitely not miss this. You can do this in Frankfurt, Hamburg and Berlin in mid-June 2023. Go, it’s worth it. With their 45 minutes of stage time, they shook the Stadthalle in Offenbach.

Setlist Butcher Babies:

1. Korova
2. Igniter
3. Monsters Ball
4. The Butcher
5. Gravemaker
6. Bottom of a Bottle
7. Yorktown
8. Sleeping With the Enemy
9. Best Friend (Saweetie cover)
10. Magnolia Blvd.

[See image gallery at catchingmovement.de] At 8 p.m., the lights went out again and the intro music for the Amaranthe performance played. Anyone who knows me will know that one of my absolute favorite bands has come onto the stage here. Plus the shouter from one of my other favorite bands, The Unguided, namely Richard Sjunnesson. What more could I have wished for in a concert. But enough raving. It started with Fearless, which is also the opening song from the last album Manifest, for which this should actually be the tour in 2020. Suitable with his speed to bring the hall to a boil, which they also managed to do here. It then went straight on with Viral, the first official single from Manifest, which then and now fits the situation in the world like a glove. Also another uptempo number, which is very suitable for singing along. The five are having fun on stage and Richard integrates as if he had always been there. The third track was one of my highlights as it’s my absolute favorite song by the band, Digital World. It was a bit difficult to sing along and resist the urge to bang your head and take photos at the same time. But worked quite well. Hunger then went even further back into Amaranthe‘s past, to the band’s first single and the song that started it all for me. To then jump into the most recent band history with Find Life. A song, I have to admit, which I didn’t like that much when I first heard it, but do more and more the more I hear it. Some songs you just have to listen to more than once to start to comprehend and love them. It then continued with songs from different periods of the band, mostly from Manifest, of course, but each album featured at least one song. After about an hour it was over for the time being, but the band then gave an encore and then ended the show after an hour and 15 minutes. Between That Song and Drop Dead Cynical, I bumped into Richard, I was able to say “hello” and show him The Unguided sweatshirt jacket that I wore especially for the evening, which made him happy.

Setlist Amaranthe:

1. Intro + Fearless
2. Viral
3. Digital World
4. Hunger
5. Find Life
6. Make it Better
7. Strong
8. Helix
9. Maximize
10. Crystalline
11. Dynamite
12. The Nexus
13. Amaranthine
14. Call Out My Name
15. Archangel (Encore)
16. That Song (Encore)
17. Drop Dead Cynical (Encore)

[See image gallery at catchingmovement.de] The performance of Beyond the Black should also show that the evening was meticulously planned, the intro music played at quarter to ten sharp and it got dark. The band members came on stage one by one and started with Is There Anybody Out There. Jennifer then came on stage, obviously delighted, with the two long light-emitting diodes, which are reminiscent of the video for the song. And the spectacle began. Lots of light show, musicians having fun and the fans even more, and everyone could tell that they were happy that this show and tour could finally take place. The spark immediately jumped from the stage to the fans. With Lost in Forever and Songs of Love and Death, two classics from the somewhat older band history were brought out, which was very well received. Then it was over for us photographers and it was time to enjoy the concert. The next new song came with Reincarnation, to which Jennifer changed clothes and used her mask microphone, which looked very cool. The Hørizøns‘ first song was Human, followed directly by Dancing in the Dark, which had not yet been released at the time. For this purpose, the big drum known from the video was brought onto the stage, on which Jennifer then also played. Great song that was very well received. Followed by Heart of the Hurricane, came the next new song with Winter is Coming. Those who were looking forward to more songs by the Hørizøns were a bit disappointed because later, but not worse, material was played. But this did not detract from the mood. As an encore, there was Wounded Healer, where I was certainly not the only one hoping that Elize Ryd would take the stage again, but unfortunately this was not possible for Elize‘s health reasons. Hallelujah was the worthy conclusion of the evening. An evening that had (almost) everything to offer that makes the heart beat faster and which the visitors will certainly remember for a while. At least I will.

Setlist Beyond the Black:

1. Intro
2. Is there Anybody out there
3. Lost in Forever
4. Songs of Love and Death
5. Reincarnation
6. Human
7. Dancing in the Dark
8. Heart of the Hurricane
9. Winter is Coming
10. Heaven in Hell
11. Scream for me
12. When Angels fall
13. Shine and Shade
14. In the Shadows
15. Wounded Healer (Encore)
16. Hallelujah (Encore)

The post Amaranthe and Beyond the Black – 22.10.2022 – Stadthalle Offenbach appeared first on Catching Movement.

On Monday, June 13th, 2022, Ad Infinitum played at the Nachtleben in Frankfurt. They were supported by the band Winterstorm.

Shortly before the show, the small hall of the Nachtleben was filled with numerous spectators who could hardly wait to see one of Ad Infinitum‘s first headlining shows. The fact that the concert took place on a Monday was not a problem for real fans. Unfortunately, the first tour for the album Chapter 1 had to be canceled due to corona. The numerous spectators were all the more looking forward to the concert that is now taking place.

Winterstorm

The five sympathetic musicians from Winterstorm from Franconia appeared as support act. They have now released four albums and have developed rapidly since their gig at Wacken 2012.

At the Nachtleben, Winterstorm showed what they’re made of. The band exuberantly combined a wide variety of styles, including melodic refrains with folk metal and elements of power metal. Singer Alexander Schirmer gave everything on stage and motivated the audience to clap and sing along. At times, guitarist Michael Liewald and bassist Peter Cerveny leaned against each other, closed their eyes and played their instruments together.

Many in the audience didn’t seem to know the support act that had been announced at the last minute, but after the first few songs everyone was celebrating. The audience had fun rocking along to songs like Cube of Infinity or Remember. The hall and the guests present were heated up for the headliner of the evening, Ad Infinitum.

Ad Infinitum

The symphonic metal band Ad Infinitum, from the Latin “to infinity”, with singer Melissa Bonny from Switzerland has already released two successful albums and has numerous fans.

The Nachtleben was now filled to the last corner. The audience could hardly wait for the conversion break. A large part of the crowd consisted of die-hard fans and wore t-shirts of the band. The performance started with a mystical intro, followed by the well-known title, namely Reinvented. The audience cheered and freaked out as each band member took the stage one after the other. Ad Infinitum convinced in the Nachtleben with melodic metal sounds and a mixture of soft, catchy refrains and hard growls and screams. Mellissa Bonny sang with a lot of emotion and took over the entire stage with her voice and presence, giving her songs an unmistakably deep and stirring atmosphere. This was underlined by rising fog on the stage. Big spotlights behind the band made for an epic light show.

Guitarist Adrian Theßenvitz stood by Mellissa’s side during the performance and kept motivating the audience to sing and rock along. Drummer Niklas Müller obviously gave his all. You could see how happy he was to finally be able to play in front of an audience. Bassist Korbinian Benedict headbanged while showing off his bass skills. We had a lot of fun being able to experience the most popular songs from the two albums live. Our personal highlights were Reinvented and Marching on Versailles. At the end, all band members bowed and were greeted with thunderous applause and calls for encores from the audience. It was a really successful and thrilling performance.

[See image gallery at catchingmovement.de] We had a really great time at the concert and unfortunately the evening went by way too fast. At 11:00 p.m. the last song was played. The members of Ad Infinitum and Winterstorm took some photos with their fans.

We are already looking forward to many more performances.

Setlist Winterstorm:

1. Pacts of Blood and Might
2. Windkeepers
3. Remember
4. Timeshift
5. Cube of Infinity
6. Into the Light
7. Dragonriders

Setlist Ad Infinitum:

1. Intro & Reinvented
2. Unstoppable
3. Live Before You Die
4. Haunted
5. Your Enemy <3
6. Maleficent
7. See You In Hell
8. Marching On Versailles
9. Afterlife
10. Inferno
11. Into The Night
12. Demons
13. Son of Wallachia
14. Lullaby
15. I Am The Storm
16. Animals

Co-Author of this report is Markus Beck of the Webzine Dark Art, which I also work for.

The post Ad Infinitum – 13.06.2022 – Nachtleben Frankfurt appeared first on Catching Movement.