Heavy poetry: Evergrey live at On The Rocks, Helsinki 13.05

A week before the release of their 13th album, Evergrey started a small tour in Finland to promote the new record, playing one of those gigs in Helsinki at On The Rocks.

The band also played in Turku and Tampere, but in Tampere and Helsinki they had two opening acts, the prog/atmospheric Edge of Haze and the classic power metal Psychework.

Both bands brought a lot of enthusiasm to the stage, gathering some fans during the sets.

It was after 10:30pm when Evergrey played his intro, but a packed On The Rocks was very energetic to see the charismatic frontman Tom Englund smile wherever he looked.

The chorus of “Save Us” from the next album, is catchy and worked very well live, but the sequel after that was priceless, showing how the band released great albums in the last 5 years. “Where August Mourns” and “Weightless” are heavy, melodic and full of poetry. Also a good description of the group’s sound.

Mixing songs from Storm Within from 2016 and some more from the recent ones, the setlist was very enjoyable and brought out many aspects that make the synergy on stage work like a charm. Guitarist Henrik Danhage and bassist Johan Niemann are very talented with backing vocals, but know when to shine with their own skills as Tom enjoys what he sees with another gentle smile to his buddies.

Tom knows how to make a show. He sings great, cracks jokes, shows affection to his bandmates and tells short stories between songs, always looking genuinely happy.

Recreation Day will be 20 years old in 2023, but the self-titled song and cover of “I’m Sorry” are still ageless, making fans look back on the past with joy.

The encore is a very interesting compilation of how fresh and modern the band can sound after almost 30 years of career. Featuring another song from A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament) called “Blindfolded” and after that we had our grand finale with two songs from the classics Hymns for the Broken from 2014, “The Grand Collapse” and the hit “King of Errors”.

A show full of riffs, beautiful melodies and a band that loves to play their own music through a discography so well written and performed. I hope we can see Evergrey as soon as possible around here again, hopefully with more new hits and the amazing voice of singer and poet Tom Englund.

You can watch our video report about the show below: