Photographs by Olivia Leung.
Usually I would leave a paragraph or two separate for each artist that performed at a specific event, but there are so many similarities between the two bands that opened for Sonata Arctica that it’s pretty difficult not to compile both analyses into one piece. Simply put, both bands did a sterling job. The first band, Xandria, came and conquered in such a similar fashion that the following band, Delain, did, that it’s no wonder that these two were paired together to start the show. While variety wasn’t offered, I doubt that this audience was full of people expecting a spectrum of musical breadth. Everyone was there to have fun. At many times, both Dianne van Giersbergen (of Xandria) and Charlotte Wessels (of Delain) commanded the audience to shout “hey” to the beat of their respective songs. I sense that the crowds would have done so without being asked to, yet it never hurts when lead singers show initiative towards their set.
Both sets were this theatrical at all times, in fact. One band member would walk on stage at a time at the start of both bands’ sets, and each and every single band member of both bands expected a rounding applause from the crowd. They deserved their praise, whether it be before or after their set, because everyone involved in this night was overflowing with talent. With every difficult run being pulled off with the goofiest faces being pulled, nothing felt strained (which is interesting, considering the focus on theatrics) and everything felt natural. The mixing the entire night was a little bit off, where the bass guitar in every band was on the low end and the kick drum overruled quite a few moments. However, everyone had a great time on stage, and the pause in between both Xandria and Delain felt like an intermission and not the shrugging off of the music that had just filled the entire room. Both bands were flashy and with the chops to deserve to be, and that’s all a room full of psyched metalheads really needs.
