We arrived in front of club Fabrica with 10 minutes to spare before the doors officially opened for the event. Access for the public to the event was granted at 19:30, but everyone had to wait for more than half an hour because the soundcheck was not done yet, although the first band was announced to come on stage at 20:00. The reason for the delay was that the band Ucigan was not allowed to play on the same drum set on which Gaahls WYRD and Ritual Day were suppose to play afterwards. Let’s blame the delay on the weak communication between the sound tech of the two bands and on the organization of the event, because it should not be normal that you tell the opening act that it does not get access to the entire backline of the stage. 
The first band, Ucigan, went on stage at 21:00. The sound was good and the music even better, but also fans that matched the performance of the band. Even though the band has just recently been formed, with only one studio album and two live appearances, this one being their second appearance, they have managed to show that something good is still happening in our underground scene. I would also add that it’s difficult to add them to a particular genre thanks to the influences that that can be discovered while listening to them, but also watching the show which had very cool visuals. As a first impression, Ucigan is the sort of band that makes you leave home with a couple of riffs and lyrics still stuck in your head, and my personal opinion is that this band is a promising one. 
Ritual Day, an ‘exotic’ band, did not really succeed in impressing me with anything, even if it was their first performance in Romania. I could say that the sound was a bit too loud and you couldn’t really make out much of what the band was singing because of that. A “common” sound which was aided by traditional Chinese instruments at various parts of the show; their stage performance was the “touch of color” that was missing throughout the night, and which they provided. Like always, I can recommend this band for the fans of the genre or for the people who think black metal can only be done in Norway.
Gaahls WYRD, the headlines of the evening, made a very good show and the sound was impeccable. Alongside songs from their album, the public could easily recognize songs from other projects in which Gaahl took a part in, so you could say that you actually took part in a show of several bands at once. For the fans of the genre, it was definitely an unforgettable show, and you can rarely see such a good live performance these days anymore. 
As a conclusion, although there were delays which caused some negative reactions, the event was a good one to which we are glad we attended.
See you next time!
pictures by Gheorghe Paraschiv.
a full gallery will be found on our Facebook page
