ALBUM REVIEW: Live In Ghent – Brutus
For a band with a sound as ferocious as BRUTUS‘, the lack of live music during this god awful year was devastating. Watching BRUTUS live was the way many of us were first introduced to the band – whether it was on one of their many support slots during the years touring their show-stopper of a debut, Burst, or follow-up Nest, or on their nearly-at-one-million-hits live studio version of War. But would they be able to translate this live power and passion into album format?
The short answer is yes. Live In Ghent exhibits a band at the absolute top of their game, returning home after several years of triumphant touring. There is minimal interaction with the crowd and the songs flow almost entirely seamlessly into one another. It’s all about the music and the intensive experience that is to listen to BRUTUS’ fervent performances. The reaction from the crowd is electrifying at the end of each track, and it’s a mood which clearly spurs on the musicians, Stefanie Mannaerts [drums, vocals]’s larynx-punishing vocals sounding even stronger and more brutal than they do on record.
It’s a fitting show to pick from the tour of album Nest, one which reflects the themes explored on the album – family, separation, home, touring. A sold out show back in the band’s hometown to show to their friends and family why they do what they do is the perfect way to honour an album cycle which will forever remain interrupted and unfinished, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. A tantalising offering from a band whose reputation as a live act precedes them – it’s both a comforting reminder of the before times, but also a bittersweet reminder that this sort of event won’t be happening again for a while
From the brutalistic battering of drums and wall of sound guitar noise on Child to the sublimity of the sparse Space, the production and execution of the music is as near-perfect as any live music could get. Vocal highlights include the fan-favourite War, in which the raw grit of Stefanie’s voice really comes into play, and Julia, which shows off the more forlorn side of BRUTUS’ emotionally-wrought post-rock.
Live In Ghent manages to harness the power of an unstoppable band on a steep upward trajectory, celebrating and sharing their newfound success with the hometown they had been parted from for several years. It’s the sound of the absolutely triumphant return of a band with something to prove – that staying away and honing their craft on the road for so many years had absolutely been worth it.
Rating: 10/10
Live In Ghent is set for release on October 23rd via Hassle Records.
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