Electric Wizard at Club Seata, June 15th 2018



“This dying world gasps its last breath as we turn off our minds. All hope is lost, there’ll be no new dawn and all of your dreams will die… Die”. That’s the chorus for See You in Hell from Electric Wizard’s latest album Wizard Bloody Wizard. On paper this misanthropic sentiment might look depressing, but actually on record, and especially performed live, it’s quite exhilarating. The bass and guitars that went in unison up to this part of the song, open up with different lines, inducing in the listener the unavoidable head banging motion.

It’s paradoxical how sometimes in art and entertainment these moments that embrace humanity’s impending outcome end up being uplifting. This reminder of one’s inevitable fate is a source of pathos. Electric Wizard is full of these kind of moments. They’re not to be confused with cheesy power metal, their stuff lies deeper, it’s way sludgier, slower and darker. It resonates stronger.

It was cool to prove that in a live setting, as I suspected, they wouldn’t disappoint. Another cool thing was the fact that the venue was not so far from where I live, which meant a 10 minute train ride to get there. The club was small, so I tried to get a spot up front to the side, as I usually do for metal shows, to avoid the pushing, shoving and potential mosh pits in the middle. I found a decent one on the right side, about 3rd, 4th row.

The opening band was Nox Vorago, from Sweden. They played death metal sparkled with a bit of industrial and wore masks and black robes on stage. They were actually quite good, the audience were really into them. Personally I think that lowering the volume would have benefitted their set, they were way too loud, exhausting at times. Overall, it was a nice opening to the show

The second band was not my cup of tea. Church of Misery has lots of fans, some people were even chanting their name before appearing on stage. I found them to be a bit too gimmicky for my taste. The tunes were not memorable, mostly sounding like rehash riffs from The Stooges, Sabbath and the band they were opening for tonight.

After a twenty minutes wait and with the curtains still drawn shut, lights were dimmed as Celtic Frost’s Procreation (Of the Wicked) blasted through the sound system in its entirety. They couldn’t find a better way to set up the mood. Afterwards the band walked on stage, the audience pumped to the max.

For the following ninety minutes they handpicked and played some of their best songs from their catalogue. Behind them a screen projected some throwback evil imagery from a time when Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing would show up in satanic softcore porn. The Hell’s Angels, Anton LaVey and a half naked Ann Margret shaking her hips, were all part of the montage projected throughout the show.

Humor is an intrinsic part of Electric Wizard. I think what’s brilliant about it is that it’s not ironic or self-deprecating, they seem to be somewhat committed to their occult leanings and seventies fetishism. If their approach would have been bloated and serious, they could have turned into a joke. Being funny makes them authentic.

And the tunes are there, each lasting no less than five minutes, the minimum length allowed to let the doom driven riffs pound and expand into that unique epic Electric Wizard sound. Interlaced with Jus Oborn’s solos, the band will usually locked into a tight groove at a steady pace, ensuing constant head banging. Songs like Witchcult Today, Return Trip and The Chosen Ones were among my favorites performed at this show. They closed with an over 10 minutes rendition of Funeralopolis from what’s considered their magnum opus: Dopethrone. They walked out of the stage and the audience clapped for an encore that didn’t come.

Like Celtic Frost was played at the beginning, we left the venue with Slayer’s Seasons in the Abyss being played through the sound system at full volume. What a way of closing an amazing show. 

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