ZEROMANCER. A name not familiar to every devotee of industrial music. Especially in our country. And quite wrongly, because the heirs to SEIGMEN make quality music combining elements of alternative rock and industrial. The long-awaited arrival was occasioned by the release of the new album Sinners International, released after a 6-year studio hiatus — their previous album Zzyzx had come out way back in 2003.
The concert was opened by the bands Revelate and [T.3.R]. Throughout the latter's entire set there was a persistent sense of "I've seen this somewhere before" — the influence of DEATHSTARS is clearly traceable throughout their output.
After the supports, the audience faced 40 minutes of agonising anticipation of their favourites. Discontented murmurs rolled through the hall from time to time. At last, it happened. Shortly after 9 p.m. they appeared! The frontman, vocalist, and quite simply a striking figure — Alex — was the last to descend to the stage. And at that point the hearts of most of the female audience began to pound furiously.
They opened with "Sinners International", the title track of the new album. The sound problems became immediately apparent. But they were more than compensated for by the energy emanating from the band. What was happening on stage captivated from the very first minutes. Alex's mesmerising voice, the tricks with the microphone stand that he demonstrated tirelessly, the half-darkness in which at times one could make out only the shadows of the performers, the demonic gaze of guitarist Dan Electro — all of this created an utterly unique atmosphere.
Three songs flew by as if in a single breath: "Doppelganger I Love You", "Need You Like A Drug", "Chromebitch". Then came a brief pause during which drummer Noralf replaced a pedal. Throughout this time Alex and bassist Kim did not stop apologising and promising to delight us with a surprise they had in store. Immediately after Noralf resolved his problems, the surprise itself followed: a new song, "Industry", which left a slightly stunned hall uncertain how to react.
Then the band unleashed a veritable blast wave of hits upon us: "Die Of Broken Heart", "Clone Your Lover", "Neo Geisha", "Cupola", "My Little Tragedy", "It Sounds Like Love (But Looks Like Sex)", "Stop The Noise", "Ammonite". I want to express enormous gratitude to the band separately for "Cupola" and "My Little Tragedy". During "Cupola" something unreal happened to everyone at the concert. "Hit me! Hit my nerves!" — the entire hall screamed it together. And for dessert (for devotees of SEIGMEN), Alex performed a line from "Metropolis".
After "Ammonite" the band departed, but everyone in the hall sensed that the best was yet to come. And they were, of course, not wrong. ZEROMANCER simply tore the hall apart with the hit "Fade to Black" (unlike their stage colleagues and fellow Norwegians APOPTYGMA BERZERK, this song is not a cover of the METALLICA hit, but simply a namesake of that famous composition). After such an emotional jolt the hall needed a pause. But the band did not give us rest, as "Fade to Black" was immediately followed by the lyrical and melodic, yet no less emotional, "Houses of Cards". For the second time that evening, as with "Cupola", the hall was gripped by some inexplicable feeling of rapture and complete dissolution into the music. Near me I could see several people simply standing and swaying in time with the music, eyes closed. "Truuust me noooow", sung together by the entire hall in unison, was probably the most vivid impression of the concert. After a cover of the DEPECHE MODE song "Photographic", ZEROMANCER departed for the second time, only to return and put a definitive full stop on their set.
"Dr. Online" — a mega-hit that has been tearing apart gothic parties since 2002. What happened to the hall defies description. For the first time in an hour and a half, one had the sensation of being at a hardcore concert. For a couple of seconds the smoke made it impossible to see what was happening on stage, and I simply surrendered to the madness reigning around me. Over the screaming of the fans, Alex and Kim were practically inaudible — though in principle that was entirely beside the point, since everyone around knew the words perfectly and sang the entire song in one breath.
ZEROMANCER's first visit to our homeland will definitely leave its mark, because what the Norwegian lads were doing on stage was astonishing. Such energy and charisma from the performers could not fail to find an echo in the soul of everyone who visited club X.O. on the 10th of October. One can only hope that the russian fans too managed to leave their impression on the Norwegians, and that this visit to the capital will not be ZEROMANCER's last.
Setlist:
- Intro
- Sinners International
- Doppelganger I Love You
- Need You Like a Drug
- I'm Yours to Lose
- Chrome Bitch
- Industry
- Die of a Broken Heart
- Clone Your Lover
- Neo Geisha
- Cupola
- My Little Tragedy
- It Sounds Like Love
- Stop The Noise
- Ammonite
Encore 1: 16. Fade to Black 17. Houses of Cards 18. Photographic
Encore 2: 19. Doctor Online
Special thanks to Angelina Kipelova for the accreditation provided