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The King Live In Paris – Century Media Records
When you crawl home after a night of live music with two new piercings, an aversion to bright lights and the inability to cook, let alone stay awake to eat the meal your long-suffering husband lovingly hands you, you know it was a goooood gig. One of the bands? Nickelb… Noooo, Citizens – Avatar! The King-hailing, heavy metalling, growling, screaming, marvel. And now we can all be part of their live freak show on the daily. Or however often you choose to play ‘The King Live In Paris’ (recorded at Download, France, 2018). Few things are as certain as this – if you’re an Avatar fan, it WILL be often. You’re not? Dude! What are you playing at???? The set kicks off with ‘A Statue Of The King’. Not even five minutes in, but can we just stop for a second and salute Johannes Eckerström’s vocals? And the musicianship? Yep, be upstanding for that also. For. The. Duration. Of. The. Album. It delivers an all-encompassing live experience. So much so, that you get a sad, sinking feeling as the set draws to a close. Whether you’re listening in the car/cooking/running/writing/being walked by your dog, your mind’s eye is at Download. It’s an awesome set. This album is kinda like all their best songs in one place. We’ve got ‘Paint Me Red’, ‘Bloody Angel’, ‘The Eagle Has Landed’… There’s a lot of Avatar fans in da house too. Song after song, on the very first notes, the cheers of recognition are clear, and the crowd’s participation in ‘Let It Burn’ and ‘Avatar Country’ are heartbeat-skipping to hear. Johannes’s sweet speech before we all lose our minds to last track ‘Hail The Apocalypse’ is a joy. This album is majestic.
Review by Jo Wright