I only found out about this show a few days ago, when flicking through a copy of Kerplunk! rag in the local Asda (not gonna buy the thing, not when the only thing worth bothering with IS the gig guide!) The Italian metallers were here as part of a short series of low-key dates; usually they're seen in larger venues such as the Manchester Apollo, so it was a pleasant surprise to see such a band in a small venue at this end of the East Lancs.
I was later than intended getting to the venue, by the time I'd finished all my chores for the day and had my tea, it was already 8pm. So it was a dash into town with the Pugmobile, and I was almost there when I ran slap bang into a parade that was passing through at the exact moment I got to the junction. Two minutes earlier and I'd have missed it, as it was I was stuck while a procession of dubiously-dressed characters (slowly) made their way past. I was conscious of the time ticking on as this seemingly endless parade sauntered its way across my intended route, so I decided just to forget it and do a quick U-turn. It wasn't quite as quick as I'd hoped, since by this stage traffic had built up behind me and almost everyone else had the same idea! By the time I'd worked my way around the parade and rolling roadblocks, it was close on 9pm. I parked up and hurried through the streets to the Barfly, entering the venue to find it already very full. I'd no sooner got myself a halfway-decent spot, than the band hit the stage.
I'll be honest here; I'm not very well up on this band at all. When Evanescence broke big some years ago, this was one of the bands they were compared to and it was easy to see why when watching this gig. Their material does sound somewhat 'nu'; lead solos are at a premium and most songs are built on rhythmic drum beats. Of course nobody was here for guitar shredding; they were here for lead singer Cristina Scabbia. Undisputably the star of this band, she sounded in great voice live; she elevates this band almost single-handedly to something far above the alt-metal norm. The packed crowd were in her command throughout, though co-vocalist Andrea Ferro played his part in getting the crowd involved it was Scabbia who held the attention. They played for just over an hour, and at the end Ferro probably hacked off half the crowd when he held up a Liverpool FC scarf over his head, but there was little dissent. The band were very well received by the Barfly crowd.
All things considered, it was a good night, with the rare opportunity to see a 'name' band play a small club gig. I wasn't totally convinced by the out-front sound, the guitars were audible but not exactly prominent, but on hearing that voice you can forgive almost anything. They left promising to play a full UK tour next year with the complete production; it is unlikely to be at the Barfly but at least they made the effort to come to our city on this occasion.
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