2024-03-01 | Leprous, Nordic Giants | Rock City, Nottingham |
After a couple of missed reviews of frankly brilliant gigs (The Bros. Landreth and Spanish Love Songs), I’m trying to put Gigregator back on the straight and narrow with the first review of 2024.
I first discovered Leprous a couple of years ago. Despite never going particularly deep on any of their albums, I always appreciated their variety and off-beat rhythms, with Einar Solberg’s vocals immediately recognisable from his work with his Norwegian metal virtuoso Ihsahn.
After developing an unhealthy obsession with the haunting beauty of Castaway Angels, I had no reservations about booking, even without knowing British Post Rock journeymen Nordic Giants would also be in attendance. Either Leprous are far more popular than I realised, or I’m getting on a bit and feeling the effects of inflation/becoming accustomed to smaller venues, but I was a little surprised at the ticket cost for this one. One nice incentive was the opportunity to catchup with friend and ex-colleague, The Proggy-Programmer, a big Leprous fan who makes their first appearance on Gigregator.
In the build up to the event, I spent a few days with Leprous. While re-exploring Aphelion I was taken aback by the subtle brilliance of On Hold and spent most of the afternoon dealing with chills from the soaring falsetto that kicks in for its chorus.
Despite joining the queue after doors, I was surprised to see some scrambling around the tour buses which would be explained later. I met The Proggy-Programmer and a couple of other ex-colleagues which made for an enjoyable reunion. I had seen months prior that Nordic Giants would be playing, but this had completely slipped my mind so I was delighted when I found out mere minutes ahead of their appearance.
Compared to my first experience with Nordic Giants, the small pop-up projector screen really didn’t do the band’s films the same justice as when I previously saw them at The Contemporary. I believe their tracks were exclusively from their latest album and the performance was solid if slightly drum-dominated. The duo were attired in their typical tribe-like costumes, with even less audience acknolwedgement than the first time I saw them. Despite what felt like a compressed set (one of the films to an unplayed song continued after the band had departed the stage), the audience seemed to appreciate the introspective tunes.
Norwegian group Fight The Fight took to the stage, explaining they were too delayed traveling from Berlin to perform. A shame, as they seemed liked a gracious bunch who seemed keen to explore Nottingham, but given the curfew to clear out for the Rock City party-goers, two bands worked well enough for me.
Leprous kicked into their performance with little ceremony, starting off with the recognisable yet creepy Have You Ever. I was immediately impressed with how they’d setup the sound, no mean feat for a band with the mixed dynamics of Leprous. Throughout the night, the band consistently demonstrated their technical prowess, pumping great grooves among the crazy time signatures. Nighttime Disguise was very well received, and I was interested to learn about its origins as a collaborative effort with the band’s fans on livestream. From The Flame and Alleviate were also met with appreciation from the somewhat less than packed-out Rock City.
The band are certainly a mobile bunch, rotating around the stage in almost ritualistic fashion, led by Einar’s signature stalk. Speaking on Einar, his stunning vocal lines were executed to perfection and I was delighted to hear On Hold and Castaway Angels back-to-back, as heard on the album. The staccato guitar work was impressive all night, underpinned by the frankly insane drum beats coming from the incredible Baard Kolstad, shirtless as fans from the internet have come to expect. As the set drew towards its conclusion, Baard was able to showcase his skills, leaving the crowd in awe in Slave and The Sky Is Red.
All-in-all, an excellent performance and a band I’d definitely seek out again. I met a poker pal and guitar legend in his own right in the foyer, promising to see his band soon, so perhaps more proggy goodness to be found on Gigregator soon.