Live-Metal.Net - Concert Reports - Cradle of Filth

Like the darkening skies and severe storms that Count Dracula brought with him when he sailed from Romania to England in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, British extreme metal legends Cradle of Filth stormed into Baltimore, Md., amidst a near-monsoon and a cold, grey dusk on its Creatures of the Abyss tour. It was fitting.

Touring on their 2010 album, Darkly, Darkly, Venus Aversa, Cradle of Filth had support from Finnish battle metal band Turisas, U.S. black metal punks Nachtmystium and Daniel Lioneye, which features Linde, Migé and Burton from the popular band HIM.

Rather than write out some long and boring recap of the entire show song for song, let’s just list a few observations and facts following the show:

I missed Turisas’ set, but with good reason. I was on Cradle’s tourbus (and almost got trapped when it was time to leave) interviewing guitarist Paul Allender. You can check that out here.

There was an average-size crowd on hand, but what do you want; it was a freakin’ Sunday night.

Dani Filth looks like a dark, evil elf jumping around stage, but in a good way. If anything, the new short haircut and makeup for this album make him look even more disturbing. I didn't think that was possible.

Dani Filth has a unique way of holding the mic up above his head, about a foot away while he sings—I’m not really sure why.

He likes to scream, so much so that he’ll sometimes just screech over any part of any song whether it was ever part of the song or not.

Much like Shagrath of Dimmu Borgir, Dani Filth’s between-song banter is done in his evil, growling voice, same as he sings.

Cradle of Filth’s stage setup wasn’t what I expected. Though it featured a backing movie screen, and Dani’s mic stand of bones, among a few other minor stage props, it was more of a stripped-down show and all about the music.

By my count, “Lilith Immaculate” was the only song played from Darkly, Darkly, Venus Aversa.

“Her Ghost in the Fog” was the standout performance of the show. It was probably already my favorite Cradle song, but after hearing it live, I had to go replay it again and again.

“Honey and Sulpher” from Godspeed on the Devil’s Thunder was a close second.

“Nymphetamine Fix” was also great, and damn, does it still remind me of a Type O Negative song.

Keyboardist/vocalist Ashley Ellylon performed and sang very well and seems like a great asset to the band, replacing longtime member Sarah Jezebel Deva.

Cradle of Filth setlist: (Humana Inspired to Nightmare), Heaven Torn Asunder, Funeral in Carpathia, Honey and Sulphur, Lilith Immaculate, Her Ghost in the Fog, Nymphetamine Fix, The Principle of Evil Made Flesh, Under Huntress Moon, Ebony Dressed for Sunset, The Forest Whispers My Name, (encore) (Ave Satani), Cruelty Brought Thee Orchids, From the Cradle to Enslave, (Summer Dying Fast)

Daniel Lioneye’s latest album, Vol.II, is a “new version” of the band. Apparently they’re now a black metal band. I guess that explains why they didn’t play their only hit song, “The King of Rock 'n Roll,” the theme song for Viva la Bam.

It kind of sucks that I missed Turisas. My brother, Greg Maki, saw their set, though, and said it was the best of the night, even if Olli Vänskä's violin parts got a little repetitive after a few songs. The Finnish folk metal act had the stage presence the other bands on the bill lacked, he said.

Nachtmystium was punk-crust-black-metal at its finest and sounds to me like a hybrid of Enslaved and Ministry.

Nachtmystium didn’t evoke much of a crowd reaction (probably because no one there had ever heard of them, and no one can pronounce their name), although they seemed to be appreciated overall.

Nachtmystium once was accused of being a National Socialist black metal band—in other words, Nazis.

The band has said the name Nachtmystium is meant to mean “Encompassing Darkness.”

“Hellish Overdose” is badass.

If I have to type Nachtmystium one more time, I’m going to cry. (I guess I could have copied and pasted. Hindsight is 20-20.)

And one last thing: If you’re going to come to a show wearing red-and-black Turisas face paint, it's probably a good time to go with contacts instead of glasses.