LIVE REVIEW: Enslaved + High On Fire @ Academy 2, Manchester

Out of all of Norway’s prestigious metal bands, it is fair to say that ENSLAVED are arguably the most hard-working. Since forming in 1991, the dynamic duo of Ivar Bjørnson and Grutle Kjellson have developed the band’s sound far beyond the confines of the traditional black metal. Now, in support of their fourteenth record, E, the band kick off their co-headlining tour with stoner rock champions HIGH ON FIRE in the Northern powerhouse that is Manchester.

First up though is KRAKOW and despite an initial slog, the Norwegian stoner metal quartet grow in stature. Initially, the one-dimensional riffing and monotonous vocals from Frode Kilvik, whilst heavy, felt uninspired and unoriginal, leaving a bitter taste for what remained. However, with a snap in tempo change, it was impossible to not be sucked in the band’s dense wall of sound. The dual-pronged riffs from René Misje and Kjartan Grønhaug delivered an abundance of juicy hooks and the intricate experimentation in tone, pitch and rhythm worked a treat. In a set of two halves, KRAKOW can hold their collective heads up high as they finished their set strong, but, refinement needs to be done to truly leave a strong impact.

Rating: 7/10

Matt Pike is a living legend in stoner metal. For all his accomplishments with doom metal giants SLEEP it is with HIGH ON FIRE in which he graces our presence tonight and over the course of a lengthy co-headlining set, Pike and company deliver a plethora of fuzz-drenched riffs to wonderful effect. Armed with a wall of Orange Amps, Pike and bassist Jeff Matz combine effortlessly to deliver riff after riff that pulls the head into banging across a 10 track set covering a wealth of material from their consistent discography. New cuts from the fresh Electric Messiah sound even more enormous in the live setting, with Spewn From The Earth being a wonderful highlight. Vocally, Pike is on good form with his gruff vocal tones holding their own against the fuzzy block of noise.

It’s not a perfect performance though and when there’s so much fuzz swirling, technical gremlins are bound to rear their ugly head and HIGH ON FIRE are not exempt to these issues. The main issue here is with Pike‘s lead guitar lines as they struggle to stand firm in the mix, especially in the set’s opening moments. It’s slightly frustrating as it dampens their initial impact somewhat but once resolved, stoner metal’s answer to MOTORHEAD plough forward and deliver a set of riffilicious quality.

Rating: 8/10

Where HIGH ON FIRE have built their career on being consistent in their musical style, ENSLAVED have done quite the opposite. Whilst their roots are bathed with the classic Norwegian black metal style, records since the turn of the century have been a more expansive affair with splashes of progressive rock thrown in for good measure. And tonight is a celebration of ENSLAVED‘s musical journey as the set is packed with a variety of material from across their back catalogue.

Roaring into the monumental Roots of the Mountain from 2012’s acclaimed RIITIIR as an opening track is a bold move given it’s expansive nature, but see it as a statement of intent if you will, and it becomes instantly apparent that ENSLAVED are performing at the top of their game tonight. Ivar Bjørnson combines effortlessly with Arve Isdal to deliver ice-tinged riffing throughout the set and Grutle Kjellson executes his rasping vocal shrieks brilliantly. As they progress through the set, the band rarely dip in quality. Storm Son, taken from last year’s E, sounds even more epic live and the inclusion of Isöders dronning and Allfǫðr Oðinn harkens back to their primitive black metal days, which is a nice touch and sends the crowd crazy. As Viking-esque chanting rolls out like thunder as Havenless kicks off the second half of their set, there is no question marks surrounding ENSLAVED‘s capabilities in 2018. They may be rapidly approaching three decades as a band but judging from their run of form in the studio and their live presence here in Manchester, there seems to be no stopping this Norwegian juggernaut, and we’re perfectly fine with that.

Rating: 9/10

Check out our photo gallery from the night’s action in Manchester from Sabrina Ramdoyal Photography here: