Meshuggah -- Montreal, Quebec -- May 20th, 2012
 

Venue: Olympia

I don't have much time to write this, but I'm going to start off by saying that the Olympia is probably my favourite venue in Montreal. It's a huge and beautiful theater and it's got a very spectacular look. The sound is also the best I've witnessed at any concert. Speaking of sound, Decapitated sounded like a fucking hurricane. The drum and guitar sound were absolutely blistering. In terms of sound and performance quality (but not crowd reaction and setlist), this is the best of the three times I've seen them play. The crowd seemed to like them, but the pit only got violent when they started "Spheres of Madness". "A View from a Hole" was also really fun to hear live, it sounded massive. The band also seemed to fully embrace the large stage of the venue; they moved a lot. It was the perfect opening act.

Then came the band I was psyched to see: Baroness. [I]Blue Record[/I] is one of my favourite albums of all time. You just never get bored listening to it. I was so happy to see them: I would have never thought that they would play here after so many years of absence (the last time was on the [I]Red Album[/I] tour I believe, but I didn't know them at the time). Well, they absolutely killed live. They had tons of energy, especially Peter Adams. He had some kind of rockstar/epic stage presence that added a lot to the show. Something that also impressed me was the improvisation that they added to their set. There were a lot of atmospheric passages in between the songs, and "Steel the Sleeps the Eye" was completely transformed: it was extended, it had drums and the guitar work was far more complex. The vocal duo was emotionally phenomenal; it gave me chills at some points. The new songs were fantastic too, I can't wait for the new album!

Finally, Meshuggah gave one of the most spectacular performance I've seen. Their stage set was massive (they had huge banners of Koloss artwork and a backdrop with the album cover) and so was their music. The songs were extremely low and heavy. The light effects also gave a new dimension to the show. It created an eerie ambiance and it fitted with the rhythms in the songs, which was really cool to watch. The crowd response was huge. There were violent circle pits to fast songs like "Combustion" and "The Hurt That Finds You First" and energetic moshs to more groovy songs like "Future Breed Machine" or "Lethargica". My highlight was the masterpiece "In Death - Is Death". The pits were savage, the riffs were enormous and the light effects were at their best. The show as a whole is a serious candidate for the best one in 2012.

At the end, I bought a Baroness t-shirt, that came with a [I]Yellow & Green[/I] sticker, and Krimh gave me a singed [I]Carinval is Forever[/I] poster. I would have elaborated a bit more, but I have to run to school and there's Nasum tonight. :rocker:

[B][U]Decapitated[/U][/B]

The Knife
Pest
Mother War
Post(?) Organic
A View from a Hole
Spheres of Madness


[B][U]Baroness[/U][/B]

A Horse Called Golgotha
March To The Sea (new song)
Steel That Sleeps The Eye
Swollen & Halo
The Gnashing
Take My Bones Away (new song)
The Sweetest Curse
Isak


[B][U]Meshuggah[/U][/B]

Obsidian (intro)
Demiurge
Pravus
Combustion
Glints Collide
Lethargica
Do Not Look Down
The Hurt That Finds You First
Minds Mirrors (intro)
In Death - Is Life
In Death - Is Death
Bleed
New Millennium Cyanide Christ
I Am Colossus
Rational Gaze

--------------------------------

Future Breed Machine
Dancers To A Discordant System

anyone get a pic or at least a good look at the merch on this tour? heard there were a few shirts, hats, and a hood, but haven't seen any designs. especially interested in what the hoodie looks like. thanks :rocker:

[QUOTE=octopus;467341]anyone get a pic or at least a good look at the merch on this tour? heard there were a few shirts, hats, and a hood, but haven't seen any designs. especially interested in what the hoodie looks like. thanks :rocker:[/QUOTE]If you don't get an answer in this thread, check [URL="http://www.metalsetlists.com/showthread.php?t=20424&highlight=meshuggah"]here[/URL] in a few hours (hopefully).

EDIT: They did have a hat, but I forgot what it looked like. The hoodie was fifty bucks, and had the word MESHUGGAH across the front in gold "script-ish" block letters, the same way as it appears on the new album. There was a design at the bottom of the back that was also in gold / brown, I think, and it had a reference to the new album as well. There was a bit of design to the back, but the front was rather plain as I remember. Nothing on the sleeves if I recall correctly. Kinda expensive for a plain black hoodie that just happens to say "Meshuggah" on the front, if you ask me :D (and I'm a huge fan of the band).

None of the Meshuggah merch was really anything I had to have... most of it featured Koloss artwork (meh) and a few other things that just had the Meshuggah logo.

^ Yup. :agree:

Still got the tour shirt, though - because fuck it. It's Meshuggah. :D

[QUOTE=TonyD;467355]None of the Meshuggah merch was really anything I had to have... most of it featured Koloss artwork (meh) and a few other things that just had the Meshuggah logo.[/QUOTE]
yeah I 100% agree with this, I was fucking dissapointed this time around for Meshuggah merch. Ive seen them 5 times now and this was the worst they've had so far. ANYWAY, I bought a Catch 33 zip-up the first time I saw them back in 05' and I dont think I need anything else.

On another note, this was the most brutal set ive seen Meshuggah play. In Death - Is Death was PULVERISING.

[QUOTE=bigguytoo9;467395]yeah I 100% agree with this, I was fucking dissapointed this time around for Meshuggah merch. Ive seen them 5 times now and this was the worst they've had so far. ANYWAY, I bought a Catch 33 zip-up the first time I saw them back in 05' and I dont think I need anything else.

On another note, this was the most brutal set ive seen Meshuggah play. In Death - Is Death was PULVERISING.[/QUOTE]

Troof

Was at this show as well, Baroness were fuckin awesome, even better than when I saw them last time for the Red tour (support on that was Genghis Tron and Bison BC so tough acts to follow lol).

The sound was great, which surprised me cuz I saw Kyuss Lives there last year and I wasn't too impressed with the sound. Steel That Sleeps The Eye/Swollen & Halo was definately the hilight for me.

Meshuggah were great as well, awesome light show, felt like I was at a rave at times lol.