Back in October, Dark Tranquillity and Soen did the Ultima Ratio Fest tour across Europe together, with support from Iotunn and Equilibrium. For this tour, Dark Tranquillity was playing a special set, celebrating 30 years of “The Gallery” and 20 years of “Character.” When I traveled to Germany in October (I have not migrated that show review from Instagram as of yet, but you can read about it here), this tour was a key part of the timing, as seeing some of this older material live was a rare thing for the band, and I wasn’t certain I would get to see something similar in the US. To my surprise and excitement, they kept a similar format for the current North American tour, and there was no way I was going to miss seeing them. Soen had just released the first single for their new album right before the tour started back in October, and I remember hoping they would play it or other new songs for that tour. They ended up not playing any new material on the European tour, so I was excited to hear an updated setlist featuring new songs with the album being released back in January. Finally, I missed Persefone the last time they came through the US in 2024 due to knee surgery, so I was very excited to see them for the first time! Add a pre-show meet and greet, and there was a ton to look forward to!

I would normally have seen this show in Seattle, but a bunch of fellow metalheads wanted to see it all together in Portland, so it was also a new venue for me at Hawthorne Theatre.

I had done VIPs previously for both bands. Dark Tranquillity and Amorphis had a co-headlining tour post their ProgPower appearances in 2024, which included a joint meet and greet that focused mostly on signings and pictures, similar to many meet and greets I have done. The first time I saw Soen was June 2024 in Vancouver, BC, and their meet and greet was one of the most unique I had ever done, very informal with drinks, and you were essentially hanging out with the band, with the opportunity for signings and pictures also. My son and I spent a ton of time talking to Joel, Cody, and Lars, and it was super cool making such a fun connection.

I was curious which approach this VIP would take. It was not quite as informal as the June 2024 Soen one was, but it definitely leaned more that way. The weather was stunning for early April in the Pacific Northwest, so the meet and greet was held outside near the band buses. We got to take our time going through the line of each band, getting things signed and having conversation with the various band members. I was pleasantly surprised that Cody and Lars remembered me, and it was a ton of fun catching up a bit with them. Joel also remembered me, particularly from the show in Berlin back in October, where I got to talk a bit and take a picture with him, as well as introducing him for the first time to super fan Michelle, who was so excited to be at this VIP and meet them (see her in 2 of the pictures below). The Dark Tranquillity guys were also a ton of fun to talk to, taking their time with each of us and truly showing their appreciation that we were there to support.

After getting a chance to meet each band and get things signed, we got our pictures, and the band had a lot of fun with them. With Soen in particular, we decided on the theme of “getting serious with Soen,” as can be seen below. The entire experience felt so personable, and you could truly see how much each of these two bands appreciate their fans. I HIGHLY recommend doing the VIP for this tour or with either band on future tours if you get the chance, as it is totally worth it!

The first band of the night was Andorran progressive death metal band Persefone. I had been so disappointed to miss them summer 2024 when they toured with Fallujah and Dawn of Ouroboros due to my knee surgery, and I was beyond excited to see them. To say they were incredible would be an understatement, as they exceeded all my expectations. First off, they are normally a 6-piece, and they only had 4 live members on the tour, meaning they had more tracked than normal. You would never have guessed that they were not complete lineup wise, however, as they were absolutely in alignment and in their own world while performing. They had the energy and charisma of a headliner, with incredible crowd engagement and lots of stage interaction with each other. Their brand of extreme metal is complex, polyrhythmic and uber technical, and they made it look like child’s play as they jumped, spun, and headbanged with their full bodies. Both the vocalist and one of the guitarists came off the stage at separate points during their set, with the guitarist entering the pit and going bonkers on the final song. It was such an incredible set, and my only complaint is they didn’t play long enough! This just means I need to see them again!

The drummer broke one of his sticks during the show, and after their set, he came and gave it to me. I got to talk with the band after and got a picture both with the band and separately with the drummer. The drummer told me he used a specific brand of sticks because they almost never broke, but the stick clearly was out to prove him wrong tonight. He gave it to me because he saw me getting into the set so much (I was right on the rail), which was cool to hear, as I totally enjoyed it! The four band members were super nice and so fun to talk with, and much like what I mentioned about Soen and Dark Tranquillity earlier, it was clear just how much they appreciate their fans. 

Persefone played a 5-song set, though they snuck in a bit of “The Equable” on the back of the second song. The vocalist mingled with the front of the crowd during “Living Waves,” and one of the guitarists started last song “The Great Reality” in the middle of the circle pit, which was just insane to experience. The setlist was:

1. Sounds and Vessels
2. One Word / The Equable (intro melody)
3. Stillness Is Timeless
4. Living Waves
5. The Great Reality

Swedish progressive metal band Soen played second as a co-headliner. This was my fourth time seeing them, starting back in June 2024 in Vancouver, then at ProgPower in September 2024, and finally at the Ultima Ratio Fest Tour in Berlin this past October (also not migrated from Instagram, but you can see it here). I thoroughly enjoyed and published a review of their latest album released in January 2026, “Reliance,” and I was looking forward to hearing quite a few of the new songs live. One thing I can say, particularly with as many times as I have seen them, is that I think they continue to get better and better. They are known for having incredible stage presence and an amazing live performance, but their vibe live just feels even better the past couple of shows I have seen them. I love Joel’s voice as well as his engagement with the crowd, and it feels like he tries to make a personal connection with as many audience members as he can, including taking time for his fans in the moment (like what I described earlier about my Berlin experience). Cody is always so animated and fun to watch, and Lars never ceases to amaze with all of his instrument shifts from guitar to keys while also contributing background vocals. Martin is such an amazing drummer, and Stefan holds the low end down exceptionally well. It was an amazing set, full of energy and passion, and I already cannot wait to see them again!

Soen played a 10-song setlist with a 1-song encore. They played the first three songs from “Reliance” as well as “Indifferent,” one of my favorite slow songs by them that was absolutely gorgeous live. “Primal” was late in the set, and it started with a recording of part of the last speech in Charlie Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator,” which was chill inducing before the crushing riffs ensued. They also went way back and pulled out “Fraccions” from their first album, which got the crowd super excited. Joel made jokes about not knowing anything about the Tool comparisons, and then proceeded to pull a Maynard James Keenan and perform the song entirely from the back of the stage. They played a number of crowd favorites as well, with “Unbreakable” the perfect crowd sing-along encore finale.

The setlist was:

1. Mercenary
2. Antagonist
3. Fraccions
4. Memorial
5. Indifferent
6. Lascivious 
7. Discordia
8. Lotus
9. [excerpt of final speech from Charlie Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator” speech] / Primal
10. Violence
11. [encore] Unbreakable

Swedish melodic death metal masters Dark Tranquillity closed out the night. This was my fourth time seeing them, with the aforementioned show in Berlin last October, and then ProgPower in September 2024 followed by seeing them co-headline with Amorphis (with support from Fires in the Distance) in Vancouver, BC, in October 2024. I am always so impressed with how great a frontman Mikael Stanne is. Having seen him four times with Dark Tranquillity and once with Cemetery Skyline, he never ceases to amaze, with performances that feel like perfection. He has a phenomenal voice whether he is growling or singing, and his energy and crowd engagement are off the charts. Both guitarists, Johan and Peter, are so fun to watch, with the absolute best facial expressions while being super animated on stage. Drums, keys, and bass are also amazing, sounding so big and full live. The band just plays incredibly well together while projecting amazing charisma and energy into the crowd. It was a mind-blowing set as I have come to expect from these guys, and Dark Tranquillity is not a band to miss if they are anywhere close by!

After the show was over and I was heading out, Mikael was just hanging outside the venue, talking with a handful of folks. I waited my turn but got to spend nearly 15 minutes with him. He is always so kind and appreciative of his fans, and I so enjoyed getting to dive in a bit with him. It is easy to forget sometimes that these bands are made up of real people who you can actually have real connections with, and that makes the music even more personable!

Setlist

Dark Tranquillity played a 14-song set, and they set it up similarly to the Ultima Ratio Fest Tour, with a 3-part set dedicated first to “The Gallery,” then three songs for “Character,” and finally a selection of other fan favorite songs. In Europe, Parts 1 and 2 had five songs apiece, whereas for this tour they only had three apiece (which did overlap with the songs played in Europe). I am not sure why the band chose to do less of the older album songs for this tour, but it still provided the opportunity for fans in North America to hear deeper cuts they had not heard live previously. And wow did they sound good! One of my favorites, featured below, is “The Emptiness from Which I Fed” from “The Gallery,” which Mikael also said is his favorite track from that album but one they had never played live prior to this set of tours starting with the Ultima Ratio Fest Tour. The final batch of 8 had a good spread from their other albums, including personal favorites “Atoma” and “Unforgivable.”

The setlist was:

1. Punish My Heaven
2. The Emptiness from Which I Fed
3. Lethe
4. The New Build
5. My Negation
6. Lost to Apathy
7. The Last Imagination
8. Nothing to No One
9. Not Nothing
10. Atoma
11. Unforgivable
12. Terminus
13. Phantom Days
14. Misery’s Crown

This was such a great show. Persefone was so impressive, and their incredible live performance plus meeting them and experiencing their sweet down to earth personalities made me like them even more. Soen’s new material is great live, and their show is always amazing. And Dark Tranquillity is such a blast, melody and heaviness entertaining from start to finish. If you get a chance, you should absolutely attend this tour, and the pre-show VIP comes highly recommended.

This was also the first time I attended a show at the Hawthorne Theatre in Portland, and I was quite impressed with the sound. I would definitely see a show there again.