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Motionless In White roll into Wales for the very first time and bring Dayseeker and Make Them Suffer with them on there Afraid Of The Dark European/UK tour, so lets get to it and see what went down at the Utilita arena in Cardiff last Friday.

Its a very cold night in Cardiff but by the time Make Them Suffer (6) come to the stage everyone here is warmed up and ready to get there mosh on, the band start the night off with plenty of heavy riffs and pits opening up almost immediately. 

Me being old and on a journey of discovery of new bands I am not going to lie I have never heard of this band before a few weeks ago, so checking them out on record I was looking forward to seeing what they could bring to a live setting, while not really being a band I would normally listen to myself they actually have a good stage presence and have a good connection with the crowd who show there support and enjoyment by in mass jumping to almost every song and breaking out pits left right and centre. 

Musically unfortunately for me their was not much to stand out that really got me going but I am not the controller of any music just another person with an opinion, there are plenty of people that love this band and it shows tonight as the band go down really well and get plenty of love sent there way. I see lots of people coming away from the set very happy and smiles say to me that this band is very much loved, liked and left wanting more. As for me I just didn’t find anything that made them stand out from any other band that is doing things in this generation of music.

The buzz around the next band is high not just in the building tonight but everywhere online, Dayseeker (5) come to the stage to the biggest roar of the night so far and the crowd go wild as they walk out. I feel lonely in my opinion once again after a few songs as the crowd here are loving the music and show that this band is putting on, me however I just cant get into it. 

The backing tracks are strong and really makes this whole set seem like someone just pressed play and the band are going through the motions on stage. This proves to be an issue as you can clearly hear the band is talented and do have a heavy yet electronic softer side with some really good singing and screaming mixes with some really decent break downs in their songs but for me it really feeling like everyone on stage is letting the backing tracks do most of the work.

I know a lot of bands use backing tracks that add depth and atmosphere to there songs, also with harmony’s it can add a lot to vocals but this just feels way too much. Layer upon layer of effects and added substance to every single song I just felt like you could close your eyes and just be listening to one of there albums, that is sometimes a good thing but not when your eyes are open and everything coming from the stage feels like someone pressed play on a playlist. 

Once again though let me be clear this is just my opinion and that does not take away from the reaction the band gets from the majority of people here, they get big roars and cheers before during and after each song and after the set is finished and I can definitely see there were a lot of people that loved them and were actually here to just see them also so don’t be put off by what I say, go check them out for yourself and make your own decisions.

A short break doesn’t last long and we are bang into the now famous intro for the headliners, the noise is deafening as the band walk to the stage and we get underway for Motionless In White’s (8) first ever gig in Wales. 

We kick off with the now famous spinning cat meme which goes straight into Meltdown from the bands 2023 album Scoring The End Of The World which sets the bar for the rest of the night, high energy and lots of bouncing and moshing is had by all here. Having a sneak peak beforehand of the band live you can tell they certainly know how to put on a show with amazing pyro, a great video wall behind them and to top it off they have The Cherry Bombs doing what they do best, dancing and playing with fire and the angle grinders, a spectacle that you have to see first hand, go check them out as they do many other shows and events as well as tour with bands. 

Getting back to the band we get a barrage of songs from the bands back catalogue like AMERICA, Thoughts And Prayers and Voices before vocalist Chris Motionless slows things down to speak to the crowd and thank them for the amazing welcoming they have gotten so far and to say he is so happy to finally be playing in Wales due to hearing how good the crowds are here. He then introduces the next song and thanks anyone that downloaded it or purchased it for it to get to No1 on the hot hard rock songs chart, the bands first in 20 plus years of existence which is testament to hard work and persistence over the years to finally get their.

Afraid Of The Dark goes down great with this crowd and the roars and screams get significantly louder for this song. Like I said previously the stage show is spot on and very entertaining with the band having a good stage presence and interactions with the crowd. A good bit of fan service comes out at one point with the band flaying the Welsh flag high throughout a number of songs but I mean we do have a sick dragon on it so its understandable. 

We get more from the bands last release with Werewolf then we go back to the bands 2017 album Graveyard Shift for Necessary Evil which is followed by the pulsing heavy song that gets thing even more sweaty, Slaughterhouse, to which the crowd is going crazy for. As we get close to the end of the night the band pull out some classic and newer songs in the shape of Cyberhex and Another Life from the bands 2019 album, Disguise. We end the night with the huge song Eternally Yours from 2017s album Graveyard Shift which brings this crowd to a climactic end of what was a very entertaining and fun first live show in the Welsh capitol. 

While not being a band a listen to often myself having heard and seen bits of how entertaining they are live I am glad I got to witness this for myself, so I do very much recommend you get out there and see them for yourself, fan or not.

At The Gates have announced details of their new, eighth studio album The Ghost Of A Future Dead.

The follow-up to 2021’s The Nightmare Of Being, the Swedish melodic death metal heroes are paying tribute to late frontman Tomas Lindberg with their latest LP, following his death from cancer last September.

Due out on April 24 via Century Media, the band reveal that it’s coming out ​“more than two years after it was completed in the studio”, and fulfils all of Tompa’s wishes.

“As you all know, Tomas Lindberg passed away last year due to complications from his cancer treatment,” say the surviving ATG members – guitarists Anders Björler and Martin Larsson, bassist Jonas Björler and drummer Adrian Erlandsson. ​“Over the past few years, we worked closely with Tomas, discussing and refining every detail to ensure nothing was left to chance.

“In accordance with Tomas’ wishes; including the album title, sound mix, track order, artwork and overall presentation The Ghost Of A Future Dead remains true to form. It combines the ferocious energy and hard-hitting powerful melodies that is the essence of At The Gates. This album is Tomas’ legacy.”

At The Gates have also just dropped opening track The Fever Mask to coincide with the news, along with a powerful Tomas tribute video.

“The Fever Mask was one of the final songs written for the album and quickly stood out as the natural choice for both the opening track and the first single for The Ghost Of A Future Dead,” they share. ​“It perfectly captures the essence of At The Gates, blending raw energy, strong melody and beautiful lyrics by Tomas.”

Check it out below:

And see the full The Ghost Of A Future Dead tracklist:

1. The Fever Mask
2. The Dissonant Void
3. Det Oerhörda
4. A Ritual Of Waste
5. In Dark Distortion
6. Of Interstellar Death
7. Tomb Of Heaven
8. Parasitical Hive
9. The Unfathomable
10. The Phantom Gospel
11. Förgängligheten
12. Black Hole Emission

Read this next:

• 11 bands who wouldn’t be here without At The Gates
• At The Gates’ Tomas Lindberg: ​“The death metal scene was stagnating. We thought, ​‘Let’s make something important’”
• The 10 best songs where someone yells ​‘Go!’