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Fleshgod Apocalypse in Montreal
Fleshgod Apocalypes brought their “The Black Opera Across North America” tour to Montreal on Friday evening with a handful of heavy opening acts giving L’Olympia a night of heavy technical death metal.
Disembodied Tyrant
Kicking off the night was Disembodied Tyrant, a death metal band through and through. Their simple stage lighting and technical music style showed they were seasoned musicians, even if their appearance didn’t quite fit the stereotypical metalhead image. The vocalist took time during the set to switch between playing as the second guitarist and focusing solely on vocals, adding variety to their performance. The band’s genuine appreciation for the crowd was evident, a trait I always respect in a touring group.
The Zenith Passage
Hailing from Los Angeles, The Zenith Passage brought technical death metal to the stage, featuring powerful guitar solos that stood out from the start, proving you don’t need a bassist to deliver crushing breakdowns. Vocalist Derek Rydquist, with his imposing stature and flowing long hair, looked every bit the Viking, and the band’s excitement to be in Canada was palpable.
Ingested
Coming all the way from the United Kingdom, Ingested tore through their set with Jason Evans delivering mind-blowing vocals, ranging from pig squeals to gutturals that nearly resembled a clicking sound—something I hadn’t heard in death metal before. At one point, the band called for a circle pit, demanding the entire room move. Though the first attempt was too small for their liking, Jason doubled down, and soon a massive pit broke out. Another crowd-engaging moment came when the band had everyone crouch down before jumping up together at the breakdown of their song. A top-tier performance from seasoned veterans of the deathcore scene.
Shadow of Intent
The co-headliner of the tour, Shadow of Intent, brought a storm from Connecticut. As soon as they hit the stage, the crowd erupted with movement, from headbanging to crowd surfing, all fueled by their crushing vocals and intense breakdowns. They enhanced the atmosphere by setting up additional lighting, amplifying the intensity of their performance. Their lengthy set was captivating from start to finish, and just before the final song, the band recalled previous chaotic shows in Montreal, where they witnessed wild walls of death. Naturally, they requested one last wall of death for the closing breakdown, and the crowd eagerly split in half, waiting for the chaos to unfold as soon as the music dropped.
Fleshgod Apocalypse
As the crew prepared the stage for Fleshgod Apocalypse, it was clear this performance was going to be something special. The stage was adorned with a grand piano, Victorian-style mic stands, and red-carpeted stairs with piles of skeleton bones on the sides, setting the scene for an epic show. From the start, Veronica Bordacchini’s ethereal operatic vocals elevated the atmosphere to another level, blending the beauty of classical music with the intensity of extreme metal. The entire band was dressed in old-world attire, evoking a pirate-era vibe, complete with theatrical makeup to match. Francesco Paoli’s brutal vocals and the band’s thunderous breakdowns gave the whole performance a cinematic, theatrical quality, especially when paired with the grand piano. It was an extraordinary display of musicianship and stagecraft.
Final thoughts
My first time experiencing all of these bands really blew me away, and once again the Montreal metal scene showed up for a spectacular night of heavy music.
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