19 March 2024

24-10-2019 Moonspell

Co-headliner: Rotting Christ
Support: Silver Dust
Location: Markthalle, Hamburg (DE)

The metal crowd in Hamburg was in for a nice treat on a Thursday evening as the famous Markthalle hosted Moonspell and Rotting Christ as co-headliners. There was a lot to be celebrated as both bands had some nice surprises for the set.

The evening started with the support act Silver Dust. Hailing from Switzerland, the band was formed in 2013 and their style can be described as power rock with electronic loops, classical influences and tribal percussions. The latest album “House 21” was released last year. This tour was also quite the highlight for the band, as it is their biggest tour up-to-date. As we were about to see them for the first time, we didn’t know what to expect so a bit of anticipation was there. The venue was also packed for a warm-up act so a good show was guaranteed.

The band started their set in an unconventional way as a short animation was played on the billboards on both sides of the stage. This surprised the audience but the ice quickly melted, as the band started with a theatrical and powerful performance. Surely this was quite different from what the headliners were about to deliver, especially when the style and the performance of Silver Dust is considered.

Nevertheless, we could see that the crowd was really enjoying themselves; some were clapping along while the others were just taking in the highlights of the stage, such as the fantastic energy of the frontman Lord Campbell as well as the overall stage decoration. As a matter of fact, it was quite impressive how the band made a huge effort with the animations and the overall theatrical aspect of their performance. All in all this is their strength and the crowd could see and feel the magic in their show.

A legendary band like Rotting Christ needs no introduction and this was obvious from the fact that the venue was packed as fuck! Their latest album “Heretics” was released earlier this year, so it was time to celebrate the latest album but also the classics of the band. My first encounter with the band was when they opened for Watain last year and so I was quite curious to see if they would top that performance and the answer was: Hell yes!

What I really like about the Rotting Christ shows is how the music is amplified through the live performance and this was the case with this show as well. The performance was satanic and dynamic and had a dark atmosphere, so much so that even someone who wasn’t a fan beforehand, surely became one afterwards. It was not only the music, but the overall performance, the message that the band is delivering, as well as the amazing interaction between the guys and the audience. It was also quite impressive to see the dedicated fans in the front row singing along to every song and especially knowing where to shout and where to clap.

When it came to the setlist, the band played some songs from the recent release (like “Fire, God and Fear”) but some highlights such as “666”, “Nemecic”, “Grandis Spiritus Diavolos”, and “Non Serviam” were also played. It is hard for us to describe this amazing performance as  everything was perfect and you could tell that the band was very happy to play to such a passionate audience on the first day of the tour!

By the time Moonspell took over the stage, the energy was high and the die-hard Rotting Christ fans were replaced with the die-hard Moonspell fans. There was a lot to celebrate with Moonspell, as the band is getting ready to release “Sin/Pecado” and “2econd Skin” on December, so it wasn’t only the songs that were going to be played live from the latest release “1755” but some surprises from these classic releases and much more was waiting for the audience.

Despite some technical problems in the first moments of the band’s performance, the guys kept it professional and cool, and didn’t allow this to break the magical atmosphere, and delivered a fantastic set. The audience was taken to a trip down the memory lane with newer songs such as “1755”, “In Tremor Dei” and “Desastre” but also some classics like “Opium”, “Awake” and “Night Eternal”, which made the show one of a kind!

Apart from this amazing trip down the memory lane, the show also had some highlights, such as the outfits of the charismatic frontman Fernando Ribeiro and the red shining cross that he brought on stage during the performance. This added another dimension to the show and once again proved that it’s not just the music when it comes to Moonspell’s performance, but also the whole package with the dynamics between band members or the interaction between the audience and band. We could also see that the guys were quite relaxed and warmed up for the first show of the tour in Hamburg. 

Surely a Moonspell performance is not complete without some classics such as “Alma Mater”, possibly the favourite of the fans. As a matter of fact, the frontman also stated that when they first released the song they did not expect that it’s going to become the ultimate Moonspell song. Another highlight, which was the last song of the set, was “Full Moon Madness”. With this show I realised once more how progressive the band’s style is; regardless of whether the band delivers new or old songs, their innovative spirit and vision keep the music and the performances fresh and alive. Each song created different emotions and was celebrated differently. We were also pretty sure that each fan had different highlights and this is what makes Moonspell so unique.

Overall this was a great night full of different styles and three different performances:  A trip down the memory lane with Moonspell featuring the classics and the new songs, the dark and satanic atmosphere with Rotting Christ and the theatrical power rock with Silver Dust. Kudos to all three bands and the amazing audience for this fantastic night!

Text by: Basak G
Photos by: Heavy Harlequin

More info on:
Moonspell Facebook
Rotting Christ Facebook
Silver Dust Facebook