Abigail was the opening act for Antimatter, but this time they had an acoustic show. It was the first time that I saw the band in the current line-up, but it did not impress me, and it rather gave me the impression that the band is very tired. Maybe it was also because of the fact that the band had two previous shows before Bucharest, but this is not necessarily an excuse, because there are bands out there that have two month long tours and don’t seem this tired. The guitar was probably the element that sounded the worst, being totally unsynchronized with the violin, cello and voice. I can only praise the girls for giving it all they had to give a good show. I hope to see them well rested next time.
Antimatter is a band I truly appreciate a lot. The first time I saw them at Metalhead Meeting in 2015 the sound was awful and the location as well. This time in an indoor location with a much better sound, Mick’s voice elevates each and every song in a way that a weaker singer would have missed entirely. It was a great performance, with a very touchy sound of guitars, professionalism and dedication. It’s nice to see a band you appreciate in front of your giving their best, communicating with the audience which was pretty good for a Thursday evening. 
Their latest album stays true to their thing, but I think the material is more complex and it’s noticeably dialed up for intensity and dynamics. “Black Market Enlightenment” is more of a journey into the darkness of drugs and addiction. Darkwave electronics and progressive rock elements are combined masterfully.
For those who aren’t familiar with the band, Antimatter is easily recommendable to fans of post-metal, post-rock and prog metal, their two most recent albums containing a sound akin to Anathema, Porcupine Tree, Katatonia and many other rock groups with atmospheric overtones.
Thanks to Quantic for holding a nice event again, to Final Step Productions for making this event possible and to all the people involved.
Until next time!
