Lowen are in blistering form tonight, and sound like they are indeed ‘Waging War Against God’. Such is the ferocity with which they hit the stage here at Boom. Guest bassist Faust tonight bolsters an already world-destroying sound as the four-piece crushes us all with the epic ‘Najang Bah Divhayeh Mazandaran’, a track that truly showed the world they were taking all of our attention. This band’s unique evolution is a marvel to witness. On ‘Corruption On Earth’, Nina is ferocious, and Shem seems to have fully ascended to his true rock god form. As the band bow out of the immense ‘Ghazal For The Embrace Of Fire, ‘ we pick our jaw back up off the floor, and it’s clear that the evolution of Lowen is natural but startling in equal measures. Simply put, no one else does this like this at all!
God knows it’s good to have Earthtone9 back! Tonight, they are every bit the returning warriors launching into ‘Polyphony Of Animals’ from this year’s exceptional (don’t call it a) comeback album, ‘In Resonance Nexus’. ‘The Etiquette of Distortion’ and ‘Oceanic Drift’ follow and decimate the place, underlining that this is no nostalgia session. The new tracks bristle with the same energy and vitality that drew us to this extraordinary band in the first place. ‘Under The Snake’ weaves, winds and completes the four-part kicking out of the new jams, and we are blown away by how a band can be this consistently shit-kicking and progressive simultaneously. Old favourite ‘Evil Crawling I’ gets sung back to the band by the Leeds faithful. Many here are ecstatic to have this band back here, and we’re included.
Going back to 1999, the band pulled out ‘Grind And Click’ from their ‘Off Kilter Enhancement’ album, which thrills the enraptured collective. The fact that they can pull it back seamlessly to 2024 with Black Swan Roulette is a testament to their incredible discography and the reason why this band is so revered. Earthtone9, like Lowen, are a total one-off, living in a league of one. The physicality of tracks like the hyper speed ‘Navison Record’ next to those trademark chorus sections is the magic that drives this sound. Earthtone9 signed off in spectacular fashion with a double blow of 1998’s ‘Withered’, with a massive sing-along and the classic ‘Tat Twam Asi’, and to see this band in this venue is something very special indeed. You really had to be there!
Review & Photography By George Miller – https://www.facebook.com/oneflamemedia
Subscribe to DeVlog – The Video Home Of Devolution Magazine –https://www.youtube.com/@devolutionmagazine
Lowen
Earthtone9
