Opeth -- Chicago, IL -- October 28th, 2011

[jd091]

At the Vic theater. Heritage Tour 2011.

KATATONIA:
Forsaker
Liberation
Soil's Song
Onward Into Battle
My Twin
The Longest Year
Ghost of the Sun
Leaders
July
Without God
Murder
(pretty sure this is what they played, with help from setlist.fm. Correct me if I'm wrong. DEFINITELY closed with Without God and Murder. )

OPETH:
The Devil's Orchard
I Feel the Dark
Face of Melinda
Porcelain Heart
Nepenthe
The Throat of Winter (acoustic)
Credence (acoustic)
Closure (acoustic)
Slither
A Fair Judgement
Hex Omega
------
Folklore



REVIEW:
Man, awesome show. My first time at the Vic in Chicago, which is this super nice venue with a tiered-like standing area. Pretty interesting, and perfect atmosphere for this type of Opeth show. Huge stage also.

Showed up at 5:45 to check in with my early access, met Daimonos, and proceeded to wait until 6:30 to get in the doors. LOOONG wait. Garagemetal showed up and chatted with us too, so the wait went by super fast. We got in, and the only people in the venue were the VIP guys who got to meet the band earlier, so I easily got a spot front center on the rail! Venue filled up fast soon after, since the show was sold out.

It was my first time really hearing Katatonia, and they were great! My only complaint would be that their sound was off, especially with the guitarist on the right (I was so close I could hear the acoustic twang of his guitar strings more than what was coming out of the speakers ) and that I felt like a lot of their songs sounded similar/blended together. But overall it was great! Almost reminded me of Tool, if that makes any sense. Everyone went crazy when the singer and guitarist traded off and did Without God/Murder. Highlight of their performance for sure.

Waited a good half an hour until 9:00 when Opeth finally came out. I'd come to terms long ago about what I was gonna see from them, and was fine by it. From the opening notes of The Devil's Orchard until the last haunting riff of Folklore, I was completely blown away by their performance. Due to my position in the venue and the songs they were playing, it felt incredibly intimate, like Opeth were playing just for me. I didn't have a single gripe with their performance. I actually think the song I was least looking forward to (Porcelain Heart) ended up being one of the best parts of the night: they approached it almost like a jam band, extending the passages, and letting Axe do a good 5 minute drum solo in the middle. It was probably the best, smartest, most tasteful drum solo I've seen live.

My personal favorite part of the night is the 3 song stretch where Mikael and Frederik busted out the acoustics. Pure bliss. A lot of the time I felt like they weren't strictly following the song structure, a la old rock/jam/prog bands. It reminded me a lot of my love for Phish, Widespread Panic, etc., and why I loved being in a jam band back in my high school days. The performance was unique, intimate, awesome, and musically perfect. I loved it. Not to mention Mikael is hilarious! Anyway, this just gives me an excuse to see them again someday for the heavy stuff. I felt like this tour was really unique and special, and might not happen again for a long time.

[jd091]

Some pics I took:

[False_Light]

Thanks for the set list. It was indeed a great show, but I think it certainly helped knowing they weren't going to play any of the death stuff. The majority of the crowd was very quiet and respectful during the lighter parts, although you could tell some folks were frustrated with the lack of distortion and growls. I would imagine they'll go back to heavier stuff on their next tour.

The only issue I noticed with the Katatonia set list is the song "Wait Outside." They actually played "Ghost of the Sun," the first song from Viva Emptiness. Otherwise it looks correct.

[jd091]

Originally Posted by False_Light

The only issue I noticed with the Katatonia set list is the song "Wait Outside." They actually played "Ghost of the Sun," the first song from Viva Emptiness. Otherwise it looks correct.

Thanks!

[bigguytoo9]

Without God and Murder are fucking AMAZING live!!!! Wow, glad to see other show's got this as well as mine.

[dimmudan]

Katatonia setlist is off. I have it from last night but not with me. I can post later. I believe they opened with Leaders but was pretty drunk. Will post later with pictures.

[dimmudan]

By the way, jd how do you get your pictures to go directly into your post? I would like to be able to do the same. Thanks in advance for helping me.

Anyone else concerned about how skinny Mikael looks these days? I have never seen him so skinny. I hope he doesn't have a drug problem. His arms were crazy skinny. Anyone else notice that? I would hate to lose another great musician but I am probably totally jumping to conclusions. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders but you never know.

[mankvill]

Originally Posted by dimmudan

By the way, jd how do you get your pictures to go directly into your post? I would like to be able to do the same. Thanks in advance for helping me.

[IMG] your picture url goes here [/img]

[ravenheart]

So... I could go see Opeth for free in about two weeks. I'm going for Pain of Salvation anyway, so my option is either stay and watch Opeth, or just go home.

Currently leaning towards "just go home". Several reasons for that, but the main three are are don't really dig 'Heritage', I've seen Opeth seven times, and transport is a bitch on a Sunday so it will take around two hours to get home.

[ravenheart]

Originally Posted by mankvill

[IMG] your picture url goes here [/img]

But if you photos look like the ones above, you probably shouldn't bother