The OGs of progressive extreme metal on the big stage!
Opeth recently completed their second leg of the “Last Will and Testament” Tour, supporting their 2024 release “The Last Will and Testament,” with tour support from Katatonia. They wrapped up the tour in the Pacific Northwest, with final stops in Seattle, WA, and Vancouver, BC. Floor tickets sold out quickly for both, though thankfully I was able to get a reasonable resale ticket for the floor (I mean, who sits for metal shows anyway?). Based on how things worked out for me, I decided to drive up from Seattle and see this show on the last night in Vancouver at Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre. It turns out this was a fortuitous decision, as Katatonia had bus issues and could not make the Seattle show. I had seen Katatonia once before but had never seen Opeth, so I was looking forward to experiencing them live for the first time.
Katatonia
Sweden’s kings of melancholic progressive metal, Katatonia, opened things up. I saw them for the first time in London back in December on a headlining tour with Evergrey and Klogr. It was a smaller stage, but the biggest thing I noticed is that lead vocalist Jonas just kind of did his thing and wasn’t super interactive with the crowd, which I found unusual at the time. The opposite was true this night, as Jonas was quite chatty with the audience and animated on stage. He egged on the guitarists during guitar solos, headbanged and did karate kicks throughout, and sang his heart out with his melancholy croons. The band members were fantastic, creating great atmosphere that alternated between softer dark melodies and heavier crushing passages. The fog and light show was fantastic and helped with the mood, bringing the songs to life with cool visual effect. Transparently, I was disappointed after the show in London, but I had no disappointment this night. Katatonia delivered a fantastic set and got the audience ready for the headliner.
Setlist:
Katatonia played an 11-song set, featuring songs from across their broad discography. The setlist was:
- Thrice
- Soil’s Song
- The Liquid Eye
- Austerity
- Dead Letters
- Old Heart Falls
- July
- Lethean
- No Beacon to Illuminate Our Fall
- In the Event Of
- Forsaker
Opeth
Swedish extreme progressive metal band Opeth headlined the night. I was quite excited to see them considering I never had, a fact that surprised so many who knew me. The arena had slowly been filling up, and though it was not a sold out show, the floor was quite packed with many of the seats around the arena filled. The crowd erupted when the lights dimmed and the intro began, and rest of the night was something to behold.
The multimedia aspect of the show was striking, adding a lot of character to the live set. I love it when bands coordinate with the music, and the backdrop effects did a great job complementing the given song and enriching the overall experience. Mikael Åkerfeldt is a fantastic frontman, knowing how to engage the crowd throughout the set in a variety of ways. He was quite chatty this evening, telling loads of stories ranging from a few sentences to paragraphs worth of material, usually getting a laugh from the crowd while giving a peek into the band’s rich history. His vocals were pretty spot on, the growls aggressive and the cleans anthemic, with great backing vocals from keyboardist Joakim Svalberg and guitarist Fredrik Åkesson. Speaking of keyboards, Joakim’s setup was impressive, circumvented by them as he demonstrated his mastery. Fredrik complemented Mikael well on guitar, and both deftly navigated guitar solos, post rock melodies, power riffing, and more. Bassist Martín Méndez was an absolute beast while treating the audience to his icy focused facial expressions that were a lot of fun to watch. Waltteri Väyrynen showed everyone how to tame a drumkit, slaughtering every technical fill, hit, and blast while keeping each song stitched together perfectly. The band was a marvel to watch and hear live. Their compositions can be quite complex, full of dynamic and tempo shifts filling up deeply technical passages, and they played them like it was second nature. Each song sounded larger than life, particularly when paired with the fabulous lighting and backing multimedia effects, and I was so happy I got to have this experience. There is zero question I would see them again if given the opportunity!
Setlist:
Opeth played a 10-song set with a 1-song encore, featuring 3 songs from their latest album, “The Last Will and Testament,” and songs spanning their vast discography. The setlist was:
- §1
- Master’s Apprentices
- Godhead’s Lament
- §7
- The Devil’s Orchard
- To Rid the Disease
- §3
- Demon of the Fall
- The Grand Conjuration
- The Drapery Falls
- [encore] Deliverance
Final Thoughts
One thing that was cool about this tour is that Mikael and Jonas have apparently been best friends for a very long time, making the pairing of Katatonia and Opeth a no brainer. Musically, they are big foils to each other, really living on opposite sides of the metal spectrum in many respects. The progression from the moodier and slower paced Katatonia to the more complex and mixed tempo sounds of Opeth worked quite well. It is a bit ironic that I would have missed this dynamic (and in my opinion, an improved Katatonia set from the one I saw in London) had I attended in my normal stomping grounds of Seattle. Sometimes things just work out nicely! It was a fantastic concert, and I am quite happy I got to experience it this way.