Words and Pictures: Adrian Hextall \ MindHex Media
Sometimes you need to cut through all of the unnecessary fluff in life and cut straight to the chase. On a warm dry Monday night in London, Sweden’s Eclipse gave us exactly that option, with a no-frills show that started promptly at 8:15pm, lasted 90 mins with no time wasted by going off and waiting to do an encore, and most importantly, no support acts. Now I’m all for getting in early, watching what could possibly be the next big thing, thoroughly enjoying it and then telling all my music loving friends about a band they need to check out, but sometimes the ease of simply going to see a band you love, watch their set, have a couple of beers and head home humming a medley of your favourite highlights.
That time was the latest show from Eclipse. No messing around, a couple of beers and some food before the show and then down into the depths of The Underworld where, in an homage to its name, the air-conditioning remains completely broken making the evenings proceedings hotter than a sportsman’s jockstrap. A packed floor ensured that the temperature on the floor never dropped below 90 in the shade and created more sweat than an Arizona ass-crack in August.
Thankfully the music won through and with a smile and a wave from the amiable Swedes and a cheer from the passionate crowd, the started the night with a storming ‘Roses on Your Grave’ and ‘Falling To My Knees’.
Chatter was kept to a minimum with Erik Mårtensson genuinely humbled by the reception from the crowd, commenting how memorable their last headline show in London was thanks to a fire alarm at The Borderline which saw us all evacuated for some time before the show then continued. Memorable for the right and wrong reasons equally, thankfully, despite the lack of air-con and the sort of temperatures that Satan might call “cozy”, the show at the Underworld went the distance without a hitch.
The upside for us was 90 minutes of pure Scandinavian rock from the modern masters of the genre. Eclipse could play a set full of the deepest of cuts (if we ignore the first two albums which Erik refers to as ‘demos’ and ‘terrible’ in equal measure) and still produce a setlist that contains nothing but bangers. Eclipse really don’t know how to write a bad song but if I had to pick a favourite of the night then ‘Black Rain’ would be at the top of the list. A lot of people seem to favour set closer ‘Viva La Victoria’ but for me ‘Black Rain’ truly hits home. One member of the audience made his voice known for the majority of the night, being silenced only when the band finally played a stripped back version of ‘Bleed & Scream’.
The smiles from the band a constant reminder of their connection with their fan base and a packed Underworld a reminder to the band that ‘maybe’ a headline show a little more often is a good thing!
SETLIST:
Roses on Your Grave
Falling to My Knees
Run for Cover
The Storm
Anthem
All I Want
Saturday Night (Hallelujah)
The Masquerade
Bleed & Scream (Acoustic)
Battlegrounds
The Downfall of Eden
Black Rain
Never Look Back
Got It!
Twilight
The Hardest Part Is Losing You
Viva la Victoria
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