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Live Reviews : Coheed and Cambria & Closure in Moscow @ The Metro Theatre, Sydney 05/05/2016

By on May 6, 2016

Images: Jainash Prakash
Words: Martin Michea

Click here to view the full gallery.

As I approach the Metro Theatre on this pretty chilly May evening there’s a big line outside, which is a bit surprising considering the fact that the doors have been open for about 20 minutes already. It is a promising sign though, as I’ve been worried about the attendance for a couple of days. I know that it’s not really the same type of music, but the Iron Maiden hysteria has been very much real on social media over the last week or so and I was afraid that it would affect the attendance numbers for Coheed and Cambria tonight.

It turns out though that I didn’t have to worry. I enter the charming venue just as Closure in Moscow kicks off their set. Now, this is a band that I have never listened to a single second before tonight. They have completely escaped my radar until now. This turned out to be a big shame, because they made a huge impression on me from the get-go. For a good while I was trying to come up with a good description for the band as a whole. I turned to their Facebook page for help, the answer I got was: “Pffftt…Genre”. Which is a pretty good description honestly. They bounce in and out of a multitude of genres throughout their (way too short) set. I do get slight Opeth vibes from time to time, think Heritage.

Closure in Moscow

What I really like about Closure To Moscow’s set is that it is way different to anything I have seen in the past. There is such a vast array of different things going on, but there is always an underlying groove and a heaviness that makes the music work extremely well live. Frontman Christopher de Cinque is not only a fantastic vocalist, he’s also a great entertainer. Think Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode meets Jack Black, and you have a pretty accurate description.

The opener’s thirty minutes are gone in a flash, and I can admit that I could have happily left after that half an hour of brilliance. I am a fan of this band as of this very moment.

I haven’t been to the Metro Theatre that many times, only twice in the past from memory. I really love this venue though. The sound is impeccable tonight and the light show gives you an excellent view of the entire crowd, all the way from the front to the elevated stands at the back. This would prove highly beneficial later in the evening.

A couple of minutes before tonight’s main act is about to take the stage the venue is completely packed. It’s hard to move anywhere, except for a tiny line that enables the punters to make their way to the bar. As I look around me I see people from all walks of life. There are your typical band shirt metalheads (yours truly included), but there are also a lot of “normal” people that you normally wouldn’t see at a show such like this. I think that it’s a testament to Coheed’s musical abilities. They know how to write songs that appeal to the masses. This might sound like a bad thing to the true metal keyboard warriors out there, but I can assure you that you would’ve thought different if you witnessed this show tonight.

Coheed and Cambria

Since I moved to Sydney in 2014 I have been to many shows. The vibe I usually get is that the crowds are a bit rigid and not very active, a bit like back home in Sweden. Tonight there was no sign of that however. The Metro crowd was probably the loudest crowd I have witnessed in Sydney ever. At 9 pm sharp Claudio Sanchez and Travis Stever enters the stage, performing the acoustic piece “Ghost”. From the very beginning the crowd is singing their hearts out, almost drowning the beautiful vocals provided by Sanchez. As drummer Josh Eppard and bassist Zach Cooper completes the four-piece on-stage the band rapidly breaks out into “In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3”. I can’t remember the last time I saw a set with such a tempo. Almost forty minutes pass before the band takes a break just long enough for Sanchez to greet the Sydney crowd.

The four-piece is pretty stationary on stage, having a classic setup with Travis to the left, Claudio in the middle and Zach to the right, the powerhouse Josh being seated centre back. Coheed and Cambria are not a band that require a lot of crazy stage antics, they play to their strengths: performing music in a maddening tempo and feeding the crowd bucket loads of energy.

One thing that I noticed tonight is how much better Coheed and Cambria are live than on CD. I haven’t been a massive fan of the band by any means before tonight, but the songs grow so much in the live setting. This being said, the music has never really hooked me, and I don’t think it did so tonight either. Coheed and Cambria are an extremely talented band, and their song-writing skills are incredible, the crowd’s reaction throughout the evening is proof enough of that. I suppose it’s just not the band for me, but I would gladly catch them live again just to marvel at the sheer energy they provide. I think that the rest of the country will have to bring their A-game on this tour to beat the Sydney crowd. As I leave the Metro tonight, I find that I’m really happy, not because I’ve personally had the best night of my life, but because it seemed like so many others did.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW
VIP MEET AND GREET PACKAGES AVAILABLE
www.selecttouring.com.au and www.taperjeanmusic.com

FRIDAY MAY 6th –MAX WATT’S , MELBOURNE18+ **SOLD OUT
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au

SATURDAY MAY 7th –MAX WATT’S , MELBOURNE 18+ **2ND SHOW ADDED
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au

MONDAY MAY 9th – The Cambridge Hotel , Newcastle 18+ **NEW SHOW ADDED
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au | www.bigtix.com.au

TUESDAY MAY 10th – MAX WATT’S, BRISBANE 18+
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au

WEDNESDAY MAY 11th –THE GOV, ADELAIDE LIC/AA
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au | www.moshtix.com.au

FRIDAY MAY 13th –CAPITOL, PERTH 18+*
Tickets available at www.oztix.com.au | www.moshtix.com.au

* Closure In Moscow Not Appearing

PRESENTED BY TAPERJEAN TOURING, SELECT TOURING AND METROPOLIS TOURING

About

Martin is an aspiring music photographer/videographer. He is originally from the southern parts of Sweden and now he's living in Sydney, Australia. Thanks to his older sister, he got into Rammstein at the age of 9, and since then he's been into all types of metal/rock. He loves to combine photography and music, but also filming concerts and produce live material. Follow him on Twitter and check out his website.