The indomitable Polish war machine VADER has recently launched on a month long offensive over Europe, with their "Rise of the Empire Tour" having kicked off on 4th November. I had the pleasure of catching them perform in the small German town of Jena, just a few days into the tour. It was a dreary and wet Monday evening, and with another concert happening nearby, the turnout was somewhat underwhelming. Despite this, there already was a queue eagerly waiting for the doors to open at the venue when I got there, and a steady trickle of die-hard fans kept coming in drips and drabs over the course of the first couple of bands.

Starting off the evening were LORD OF WAR, a Californian Melodic Death Metal/Metalcore band. At this point, the crowd pretty much consisted of a couple in front of the stage, and a few barflies hovering in the wings of the venue. However, this didn't seem to phase the band at all, and they launched into their set with all the spunk and energy they had, quickly setting the pace for the evening. With this being LORD OF WAR's first time touring Europe, the eagerness with which they took to the stage was immediately apparent, and this energy was soon infectious. With the release of their sophomore full-length album "Suffer" earlier this year, much of the setlist stemmed from this newer work. Starting off with a heavy Core influenced sound, the songs got progressively more Melodic as their show went on, with finally more and more people coming in to listen to the band.

Following on from this was APOPHYS, a very talented Technical Death Metal band hailing from the Netherlands. Their performance was somewhat marred by problems with the bass, although the guitar work was heavy enough to successfully carry the songs for the most part whilst the issues were being sorted out. One of the things I enjoyed most about this band was the vocalist's amazing facial grimaces, making him look like a man possessed as he howled into his microphone. By this time, the crowd had swelled, filling the venue to almost half capacity; still not the best turnout, but nevertheless okay for a Monday night. With just a single album ("Prime Incursion", released last year) to their name, APOPHYS soon had heads banging and hair flying, really getting people warmed up for VADER's later appearance. If you're on the lookout for interesting new bands, this is certainly one to try out.

Up next was THREAT SIGNAL. Despite not having released a new album in the last five years, it was good to see this band still alive and kicking. Still, this Canadian Technical Metalcore band was stylistically the odd one out in the line-up, and as a result lost much of the fans' momentum. That's not to say that their performance wasn't good: it was just that clean vocals and more melodic parts were out of place in a room packed full of Death Metal fans. As a result, much of the audience dissipated outside for an extended smoke break. Unperturbed by this, THREAT SIGNAL valiantly tried to re-engage those who had stayed, but with the exception of one dedicated fan right in the front, this was mostly fighting a losing battle. Which is a pity, as the band was decent, and with the right fans, I'm sure their performance would have been a roaring success.

After perhaps the fastest sound check I've ever seen, it was time for HATE ETERNAL to take the penultimate spot. This band hailing from Florida deliver pure and unadulterated Death Metal, and were an excellent choice for opening up for VADER. Within a few minutes of being on the stage, HATE ETERNAL had the crowd coming back in again, drawing them in with their bombastic performance. With a history spanning almost two decades, HATE ETERNAL can only be described as seasoned veterans of the genre, and certainly know how to put on a good show, delivering everything one could possibly hope for from the openers for VADER: they were brutal, relentless, and engaging as all hell. It didn't take long before the first fans were moshing along, and by the end of HATE ETERNAL's set, the scene had been transformed from one of a few scattered people showing mild interest in what was going on on the stage to a seething and tumultuous crowd having a fantastic time and just enjoying the music.

And finally it was time everyone was waiting for: amid roiling clouds of fog, VADER appeared out of the mists to deliver an aural onslaught. Having just released the album "The Empire" through Nuclear Blast Records on 4th November, I was hoping that VADER wouldn't mostly be showcasing the new stuff, a trap that all too many bands fall into. But this was an unnecessary worry; afterall, it wouldn't be a proper VADER show without some of their classics like "Sothis" and "Carnal". Still, VADER managed to strike the perfect balance, throwing in some of the new songs, including "Prayer to the God of War", "Parabellum", and "Iron Reign" thereby getting the appetite whetted for the new stuff whilst also delivering much beloved classics. VADER always manage to put on a spectacular performance, and the one thing I love about their live shows is the spit-fire like delivery of their songs. With each song being a short, fast, and furious attack, seeing VADER perform is like being hit by a hail of bullets. The downside of such a rapid delivery is that all too soon we reach the end of the evening. Ending off their set to "Black to the Blind", VADER triumphantly left the stage, whilst fans remained rooted to the spot, shouting for more. With the instrumental opener "Para Bellum" from the "The Art of War" EP playing as VADER left the stage, I waited with bated breath, hoping against hope that they would play one of my all-time favourite songs of theirs. And sure enough, never ones to disappoint, VADER came back for one final encore, treating fans to one last tumultuous song: "This is the War", which instantly had everyone giving their all one final time.