Tonight's show was initially scheduled for the Thursday but following the passing of guitarist Ricardo Amorim's father Portugal's most popular metal band Moonspell bravely postponed the concert by just a single day. The fans understood and appreciated this, evident by tonight's show still managing to sell out on the door. This is not surprising given the storming performance they put on at the same venue back in 2013.
Sole support tonight comes from Germany's Lacrimas Profundere, initially conceived as a death doom metal act in 1993 before metamorphosing into a modern goth rock troupe. With a rock 'n' roll attitude, their glum rock affair excites the audience essentially from the get go. Brimming with icy yet melancholic guitar leads and an archetypally goth deep voice, the five-piece hammer through a selection of songs from the latter end of their discography, including 'Dead to Me', 'Remembrance Song' and 'My Release in Pain' all from 2013's 'Antiadore' with a more pop approach. The audience's excitement ultimately escalates towards the end of the set when they play a three-pronged attack of the catchy 'My Amber Girl', the lengthy 'My Mescaline' and closer 'Ave End' highlighting the stronger tenants of their goth rock stylings and this certainly intrigues the audience more convincingly than any of the songs earlier in the set.
The Underworld is heaving as headliners Moonspell take the stage, launching into the opener of brand new album 'Extinct', namely 'Breathe (Until We Are No More)'. In spite of this release only being out for less than a month, there is no shortage of Moonspell adherents vocalising each word of the chorus. This release dominates the setlist tonight with all but two of its songs aired out. This release manages to summarise Moonspell's lengthy career trajectory on a single disc, dabbling with atmospheric, orchestral, folk and rock soundscapes alongside their usual goth metal. The punchy title track, the Eastern melodies of 'Medusalem' and the modern goth rock 'Last of Us' beautifully represent their latest studio effort and these songs translate particularly well in the live environment.
Selections from beloved albums 'Irreligious' and twenty year old debut 'Wolfheart' are heavily represented on the setlist with the likes of the decadent 'Opium', the seductive 'Vampiria' and the folk metal anthem 'Ataegina' which seems plenty of celebratory response from the fans. Another highlightis'Scorpion Flower' with the guest vocals of Anneke van Giersbergen taped but still making for an enchanting inclusion. The quintet is on top form with a dramatic stage presence, particularly frontman Fernando Ribeiro who maintains the audience's attention effortlessly. His stage banter is light but informative and he shows bottomless gratitude to the country that also hosted Moonspell's first show outside of their native Portugal. The heat in the Underworld is close to unbearable but this does not deter sizeable mosh pits erupting throughout the evening. Closer 'Alma Mater' sees Moonspell vacate the stage only to return with a formidable encore of 'Mephisto' and of course 'Full Moon Madness' with an impassioned audience singing along before being forcibly removed from the venue in light of the Underworld's weekend curfew.
With over two decades of experience under their belts, Moonspell's professionalism, drive and creativity is rewarded with a sold out show tonight. In return, the crowd are treated to a non-stop rampage of melodic dark metal that will entice the same attendees to return to another Moonspell show in the capital, hopefully at a larger venue.
FUTURE GIGS
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