When attending a concert by a band whose live programme rests heavily on theatrical elements and show effects for the second time, a certain apprehension sets in. Will it be the same programme, the same staging, the same effects — the same polished, carefully rehearsed spectacle? Though in some cases the charisma and talent of the frontman push everything else into the background. The obvious example is KING DIAMOND, whose unique acting and vocal gifts make you forget any possible shortcomings in the show.
After the UMBRA ET IMAGO concert the previous year, the conclusion was clear: the main emphasis was deliberately — even forcibly — placed on the show, with the musical side left in second place. Certain imprecisions creeping in as evidence of corner-cutting were possible, since the audience's attention was concentrated on the spectacle. Mozart had completed the previous tour in the role of a mad medieval scholar, covering his famous bald head with an enormous hat, and released a DVD. And now the band had returned.
This time far fewer people came — likely connected to the fact that the previous concert could not be called a full success: those who had expected an interesting musical programme were disappointed by the maximisation of theatricalised eroticism at the expense of the music, the result being that eroticism was supplementing the music rather than the other way around; there was also rather mediocre and poorly balanced sound. I can say with certainty that all fans of the collective who had not come this time for those reasons had made an enormous miscalculation. But let us proceed in order.
Time: 20:20. In the Tochka club hall the lighting is already concentrated at maximum on the stage; not many people — around 300 by the look of it, no more — and to most people's surprise the concert begins with so little delay that many attendees of that evening's show arrived late as a result. The Intro sounds; the drummer appears on stage, followed by the bassist and guitarist. Bassist Lutz Demmler bestows his broad radiant smile on all present, while the intro flows into the keyboard-sampled introduction to "Marchenlied" from the 2004 album — during which two girls appear on stage, the same ones as eleven months ago. They hold a black curtain; the music grows louder and... drums, bass, and guitar launch the concert. Synchronised with them, the curtain falls, and the entire hall greets with ovation the figure in the fur cloak with a shaved head from which two long locks hang — no hats this time. Compared to the previous visit, Mozart was wearing a simply enormous quantity of makeup; stylistically it resembled the corpse paint of Galder from DIMMU BORGIR. It looked incredibly pompous, pretentious, and simultaneously magnificent. At the same time the most pleasant aspect was immediately apparent: the cleanest and phenomenally balanced sound — beyond any criticism whatsoever. The brilliant song rang out; excellent vocals — the quality of which was receiving considerably more attention than during the collective's last visit. Regarding the set list: there were virtually no departures from the previous one; apart from this song only one more piece had not been played last time — "Pralat" — and furthermore, throughout the rest of the set even the order of performance was completely preserved. The same fast "Dunkle Energie" in second position, where Mozart switches to a roared vocal; "Egoismus" following it; and so on.
If the girls appeared less frequently this time and their programme was reduced, the hall participated considerably more actively. But first about the girls — the same blonde and brunette; the blonde's role was unchanged — she is the victim; one fact to note is that this particular victim was visibly several months along in pregnancy, which immediately prompted whispers and speculation throughout the hall. As for the brunette, she was as before a backing vocalist in a number of songs, though her primary role is of course visual.
During one song Mozart helped one of the girls from the audience climb onto the stage; once this was accomplished, Mozart picked her up in his arms and said into the microphone: "Good Bye, Thank You" — at which point from the adjacent microphone came the treacherous voice of Lutz: "Mozart, wait — it's not time yet, we need to finish the concert first." Shortly afterward another girl from the audience appeared on stage, and the first began to undress; having undressed to her underwear, the process concluded. Nothing of that nature occurred again during the rest of the concert. With the following songs one could enjoy the brilliant music in peace. Honestly, in many ways it is a shame that the band — or rather Mozart, who determines all creative decisions — has completely abandoned the gothic element of the music. I want to emphasise I am speaking purely about the music. The band's first hit "Gothic Erotic" was entirely in the tradition of gothic rock: no riffs, monotonous rhythm, dark, sometimes whining, sometimes shrieking vocals, lots of keyboards. For many years now the band has worked exclusively in the metal genre. On the other hand, the most recent album from a metal standpoint is very interesting, melodic, and varied. Moreover, as is often the case with many bands, the live sound is considerably heavier than the studio version. It should be noted that the absolute foundation of the set list is the band's most recent album: of the 12 songs in the pre-encore section, eight came from the 2004 full-length Memento Mori. The other albums were touched upon only fragmentarily. An effective exception toward the end of the main set was the performance of "Sagt Nein" — a quite harsh and blunt caricature of Hitler; at the end Mozart removed the tunic and cap in which he sings this song, having first shouted "Love and peace over the world! Fuck the military!" This time, thankfully, no underdeveloped primates were found in the hall raising their arm and unfurling Nazi symbols. Last time it had looked absurd, since the caricature is quite obvious and unambiguously directed. Pacifism, tolerance, and maximum freedom are among the chief philosophical slogans of the band's concept.
The first encore — during which Mozart came out with an entirely serious video camera, filming the hall — opened with "Mea Culpa"; as last year, this madman leapt into the crowd, and at a run. Getting back, however, he had to manage on his own; practically the entire song — a sort of parody of death metal — was performed by the bassist. "Machina Mundi" from the 1998 album concluded the first encore. The second began with "Kleine Schwester" which, alongside "Horst Du Mein Rufen" — included in the main set — is the oldest song from all those the collective has been performing at concerts recently: both are from the 1996 album Mystica Sexualis. The concert was crowned, naturally, by "Rock Me Amadeus." To a chorus of communal singing the ninety-minute concert concluded, leaving exclusively pleasant impressions.
P.S. A small amusing fact: at the entrance to the club I was asked for my passport; as it emerged later, they were verifying that visitors had reached the age of 18. Evidently the security guard was not particularly good at estimating people's ages, as the majority of those asked had long since passed both the 18- and 20-year marks.
Report by Alan
Special thanks to SPIKA MERCHANDISING for the accreditation provided
Setlist: Intro Marchenlied (Liebeslied) Dunkle Energie Egoismus Lieber Gott Schlag Mich Horst Du Mein Rufen Sweet Gwendoline Stalker Pralat Sagt Nein Memento Mori Ein Letztes Mal
Encore 1: Mea Culpa Machina Mundi
Encore 2: Kleine Schwester Rock Me Amadeus (Falco cover)