Orange Goblin

support Doublestone
author AP date 05/08/13 venue Beta, Copenhagen, DEN

Given the success of the "Dirty Days of Summer" series of events last summer, it was only naturally that our favorite Copenhagen venue Beta was going to attempt a repeat of their success again. This year, however, one of the days had been shaved off - presumably due to appropriate bands not being available around the dates - with the first day headlined by the iconic Orange Goblin, who, as it turned out, provided a stunning conclusion to the day of DJing, feasting on delicious barbecue and drinking cold pints of beer in the sun that Monday the 5th of August turned out to be for myself and my fellow writer Bo 'BV' Kastaniegaard Vinberg. Read on to find out in detail what we thought of the evening's live entertainment.

All pictures courtesy of Philip B. Hansen

Doublestone

As Doublestone entered the stage the crowd was already at a quite vibrant state obviously induced by the brilliant weather, the alcohol and the barbecue. Although some credit will definitely have to be given to Doublestone’s instant grasp on the audience as well. As Doublestone smashed their way into a veritable barrage of groove-laden stoner tracks, I was already feeling energetic and infatuated with the simple, yet dense sound of this peculiar trio. The barrage of tracks seemed to be of a newer date, possibly from their upcoming studio album, as I had a hard time recognizing tracks and singling them out. It didn’t matter though, as these presumably new tracks are probably the best I’ve heard from Doublestone as of yet. Most of these songs were delivered in an extremely focused format that was quite unlike what you’d currently expect of the stoner scene, as the excruciatingly long jams had been stowed away in favor of short, concise riff-based hard-hitters vastly reminiscent of Greenleaf or Mos Generator to name a few, where guitar effects were obsolete and all that really mattered was the intensity and dynamics of the almighty riff. Add to that the characteristic and powerful howls of front-man Bo Blond and you’ve got yourself a memorable act.

Indeed, the steady and infectiously groovy rhythm section quickly seemed to have the crowd in their grasp, and not long passed before the good people at Beta were headbanging away to what seems to be a band with great potential. Despite their stage personas being relatively still-standing save for the occasional headbanging, the constant onslaught of focused riffing without much chit-chat in between songs seemed more than enough to keep the crowd entertained throughout 30 minutes of songs revolving around classic themes like the end of the world and Satan himself. - All in all a great support choice for the night in my opinion. BV

8

Orange Goblin

Ten years have passed since British stoner metal legends Orange Goblin last graced Danish soil with their presence, and the sheer amount of people here tonight and vis-à-vis the suffocating heat inside Beta's concert room is a strong testimony to how much they've been missed. I tend to think that this type of music is best experienced in a setting resembling a Sauna, the thick groove of songs like "The Filthy & the Few", "Cozmo Bozo" and "Round Up the Horses" having all the sonic equivalence of steam sizzling off hot stone and enveloping the predominantly bare-chested mass of testosterone in a searing, yet strangely soothing mist. Indeed, Orange Goblin play stoner rock of the highest calibre, and noticing the enthusiasm with which they are received tonight, stage an absolutely unforgettable performance, the like of which I can't remember since Church of Misery delivered a similar master-class at Loppen two years ago.

In the live setting, amplified in volume as well as depth, the music of Orange Goblin is mesmerising and otherworldly in a way that requires not a single puff of leaf. The sound mix is gorgeous, courtesy of the always perfectionistic sound guru of Beta, Rasmus Toftlund; touched in all the right ways to ensure a sea of grizzly headbangers persists from start to end. And the band, spearheaded by the towering goliath of a vocalist Ben Ward, provides the icing on the cake with a presence oozing confidence. Orange Goblin know how good they are, and this reflects in a most excellent way in the authority with which Ward and his colleagues - stand-in guitarist Neil Kingsbury (of Blackstorm), bassist Martyn Millard and drummer Chris Turner - command the proceedings in this near sold out crowd. To put it simply: what we witness here tonight is the perfect lesson in how to perform the stoner rock genre live; a show which requires neither gimmicks nor chimpanzee antics by virtue of the sheer quality of the music, and the prowess with which it is delivered. AP

9

Setlist:

  • Scorpionica
  • The Filthy & the Few
  • Made of Rats
  • Blue Snow
  • The Fog
  • Cozmo Bozo
  • Stand for Something
  • The Ballad of Solomon Eagle
  • Cities of Frost
  • Your World Will Hate This
  • Round Up the Horses
  • Some You Win, Some You Lose
  • Quincy the Pigboy
  • Red Tide Rising

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