Gigantour in Louisville, Kentucky
The Annual Traveling Metal Festival Delivers an Impressive Lineup
Apr 23, 2008
Despite an unexpected intermission during the third act, the behemoth of a traveling heavy metal festival Gigantour lumbered through Louisville, Kentucky Saturday, April 19. The tour, launched by Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine in 2005, is known for employing acts that have a reputation for being at the top of their game musically.
Children of Bodom
Bodom, a melodic death/thrash metal band from Finland, play music that is loud, aggressive and intense. However, they are influenced strongly by classic and power metal, relying heavily on melody and tempo changes. Singer and founding member Alexi "Wildchild" Laiho displayed an impressive level of musicianship at Saturday’s show.
His fingers danced across his guitar’s fretboard effortlessly, which he often demonstrated to the audience by holding the guitar high in the air during his solos, leaning threateningly into his mic between solos to belt out his lyrics. Keyboardist Janne Warman is worth noting as well.
Say what you will about keyboards in metal; Warman’s contribution to the band isn’t just atmospheric background music or a cheesy interruption to the “real” music. His solos are on par with the guitar solos and shred as intensely as any stringed ax would.
Broken barricades can't stop the music
Halfway into Bodom’s third song, the band stopped abruptly and left the stage. After the intrusion went on a bit too long, the crowd began to show signs of irritation, chanting vulgarities in unison at the individuals looming near-motionless on the stage, watching the crowd intently. Occasionally, someone would come to the mic and ask the crowd to back up.
Fortunately, Bodom returned to the stage before things got too hairy, thanking Megadeth for allowing them and In Flames to play their full sets. Eventually, it was explained that the delay was due to a broken barrier, although rumors proliferated regarding possible violence. No information appears to be available as of this writing regarding any injuries or violence.
In Flames
Swedish melodic death metal act In Flames was next to take the stage. Although comparisons to Bodom and In Flames can be drawn, In Flames provides more of a straightforward death metal approach, albeit with highly melodic, almost anthemic bent. The band employs harmonized guitar melodies in the style of classic metal bands such as Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Accept, and mixes clean and growled/screamed vocals.
However, their music also verges on metalcore, and has influenced several bands in this genre. Dreadlocked lead singer Anders Fridén is a consummate showman, screaming/singing his way through each song with an impressive level of intensity. The rest of the band definitely displayed their chops as well, putting on a highly entertaining show.
Megadeth
The real reason many fans came to the show was yet to come…Megadeth, one of the founders, and some would say, the current kings of thrash metal. Megadeth rarely disappoints, as Mustaine is known for being a perfectionist, often firing members of his band without prior notice if he feels they aren’t living up to his expectations.
Whatever one may feel about this policy, the result is top-notch, near-perfect musicianship. As usual, Mustaine gave his fans what they expected and more, shredding through classics such as Holy Wars, Hanger 18 and Peace Sells. Disappointingly, they didn’t play tracks such as Mechanix, Lucretia, or Devil’s Island. With such an impressive back catalog, it would be impossible for them to play a set that would satisfy every fan.
The excellent musicianship was complemented by an impressive light show and outstanding sound, despite a few issues early on. Louisville Gardens is certainly one of the better large venues at which to catch a concert. Its relatively low ceilings don't allow for the echo that can be heard in most arena-style venues, and appear to be padded, allowing for a crisp, warm sound.
View Megadeth’s setlist.
View the tour schedule.
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