UK gothic doom band Paradise Lost return to Australia as part of their world tour supporting the latest offering in “Medusa” which sees the band bring back a lot of the doom elements that helped forge Paradise Lost’s signature sound. A debut performance in Perth saw the band embraced by the crowd as they came to perform through a back catalogue stretching over 25 years.
Local support acts Tempest Rising and Deadspace are well recognised bands within the Perth scene, a mix of high energy heavy rock and a darker, gothic based sound respectively brought some diversity to the night with both bands nailing performances for a crowd that was already packed in barely right after doors swung open to the public. Surely either a testament to both band’s rising star status or just a set of dedicated Paradise Lost fans keen to see their favorite UK band tear it up, either way it was a good sign for things to come.
The Yorkshire doom metallers stepped on stage a few minutes after schedule and proceeded to launch straight into new material with “From The Gallows” giving the Perth fans a quick glimpse into the live sound of Paradise Lost. It was pretty much a mixed bag for the rest of the night with several tracks from the new album “Medusa” seamlessly making it’s way onto the set with a healthy mix of later and early material also popping up sporadically through the show.
A lot of the late 90’s/early 2000’s albums were skipped to make way for a fairly vast back catalogue but admittedly, some of those albums were quite experimental in style and sound which didn’t always sit well with some fans over the years. Surprisingly though, some of those experimental electro/industrial stuff like “Erased” went over extremely well with the Perth fans, the dance-like rhythms seemingly a good fit for a crowd who embraced all of the styles Paradise Lost have incorporated over the years.
Of course the older material like the gothic “As I Die” and the doom groove of “Embers Fire” were highlights and certainly the older and more long time fans took to those songs more than anything else. Sometimes familiarity is easier to deal with for some people and it’s a trait which most bands who have been around for as long as Paradise Lost have tend to have to deal with. That being said, there was very rarely a dull moment through the show as for the most part, every song the band pulled out was met with a gleeful and enthusiastic embrace all the way through to the final track of the night “Say Just Words“.
For first timers, Paradise Lost surely made some new fans tonight but there was definitely a sense of nostalgia here too which mixed well with the gothic atmospheric sounds Paradise Lost pull off. Heading to 30 years on and these guys don’t leave much wiggle room for mistakes or flaws, they sound as well as they did on those brilliant early records which is no mean feat in this day and age.
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Jessica Vaini at JV Photo Film
