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Up first were DarkRise. Not much to say about them. A fairly mediocre band, if not the better end of mediocre. They weren't a particularly mind-blowing band, although they did the job of opening support just fine.
Zonaria followed DarkRise, and they certainly turned the atmosphere up a notch. They were far more skilled musicians, and they certainly put a lot of effort into the short set that they had. Admittedly the audience was small for the band, but considering they were one of the lesser-known bands of the night, that was sort of to be expected. Overall, the band were a good melodic death metal band with some brilliant songs that they played as best as they probably could.
After Zonaria were Dew-Scented, a brilliant German metal band. They played a few songs from their fantastic albums Invocation, Issue VI and Impact (which, on a side note, are definitely worth a listen). In the time they had on stage - which was not long - they produced a live performance which was top-notch, and almost every song that they played was played with accuracy and precision. Indeed, Dew-Scented's set was arguably one of the best of the night, although obviously they got nowhere near to outshining Nile. It is a shame to say that the audience for Dew-Scented was somewhat on the lacking side, especially considering how well they played and the effort they put into their performance.
Melechesh were on before Nile, and what a show. Their music complimented Nile's set perfectly, what with their Middle Eastern and Mesopotamian style and lyrical themes. Although their live performance this night wasn't one of the best performances ever, they definitely deserved some merit. They played their instruments well, and vocalist Ashmedi was in top form for their set. They played songs including Grand Gathas Of Baal Sin, Triangular Tattvic Fire and Ghouls Of Nineveh, and every song they played was done so to a high standard. Melechesh's music is a beautiful combination of extreme metal and Middle Eastern folk, which makes for a superbly stunning live show, even when they're not playing at their best. The musicians seemed energetic and enthusiastic, and they were certainly worth seeing.
Afterwards though were the band that everybody had come to see: Nile - that Egyptian- and Lovecraft-inspired band that we know and love. For those of you who have never seen Nile live, do. Quite frankly, it doesn't matter how you see them, whether it's at a concert or at a festival, you just have to see them. At this show, they were absolutely, to use a word a little overused in the metal community, brutal, and of course enjoyable - how enjoyable indeed! The entire band - Chris Lollis on bass, George Kollias on drums and Karl Sanders and Dallas Toler-Wade on guitars - seemed like a lovely bunch on guys who truly enjoyed playing their music. One could literally see the concentration on their faces; it was quite something. As the minutes flew by, they never seemed to get tired or weary - they were a mean metal machine. They just kept going and going and going, determined to entertain their audience as much as was humanly possible, although their act possibly went beyond human limitations at times.
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