I was never a fan of EPICA's music since I was considering them as a copycat of NIGHTWISH. This opinion started to change when I watched them live in the 'March Metal Day' where they gained a significant number of new fans due to their powerful performance. The moment I reviewed their latest full length album The Divine Conspiracy I decided that there is something going on with them. So, I did not complain to watch them for the second time having in my mind the previous night show of Mrs Tarja.

First of all, I have to say that I was really impressed with the venue Cine Kerameikos; it can host at about 2000 metalheads in the pretty large arena and in the upper circle where people who want to just watch the show can stand having an excellent view of the stage. When I entered the venue I found myself among almost 300 metalheads that chose to spend this cold night with EPICA. This weak attendance was a second surprise taking into account their recent and most successful album. Maybe the Greeks are getting tired with all this live concerts or getting broke with this ticket prices (although the price was reasonable for this venue).

The stage was already occupied by the woman fronted Greek band BARE INFINITY. This was my first acquaintance with this band and I can assure you that they are pretty good. The band was in a high mood despite the technical in the drums and received something more than the warm applause of the small in number audience. Christiana was rather stationary for a front woman but did a good job in the vocals; personally I think that she could work more on the high pitches that sounded almost out of tune sometimes (I am not a professional musician and this is a personal opinion).

Some of EPICA's members did the last minute's soundcheck arrangements just before they enter the stage as full band. This happened after almost half hour when the lights went down and the first musical notes of the intro Indigo awaken the Greeks. Of course the first track of the night was the uplifting The Obsessive Devotion. The beautiful Simone enter the stage with her operatic vocals looking slightly weak due to her latest health problems. The audience responded to her presence and things got pretty enthusiastic.

The rest of the band was in an excellent mood enjoying every minute of their success. The second track Sensorium came from their first album and was followed by the groovy Menace Of Vanity. Having watched Tarja the night before I turned into a severe critic for some minutes until I remembered that Simone is just 22 years old! And yes, she does an excellent work on-stage not only with her ethereal presence but with her strong and crystal clear vocals. Mark Jansen was really enthusiastic with the crowd's response and flawlessly performed his almost Death Metal vocals. Speaking of Death Metal somewhere in the middle of their setlist the band left Simone to catch her breath and did a cover on Crystal Mountain that originally belongs to the mighty DEATH.

The only complain I can make is the poor lighting show that covered only the essentials. Apart from the DEATH cover the band added two more songs in the setlist that they used in the other Greek concert in Thessaloniki proving that the weak attendance did not affect them.

Yes, EPICA gave another excellent performance upon Greek soil underlining the fact that they have more to give in the Metal scene and why not claim the crown from NIGHTWISH who already face some criticism on Annete's vocals.

BARE INFINITY photos

EPICA photos