Live report CULT OF LUNA, GGGOLDDD & SLOW CRUSH, Gruenspan, Hamburg – October 24th, 2023

Cult Of Luna perform today in Hamburg. In the venerable Gruenspan the band is on stage and rounds off their ‘Europe 2023 pt.3’ tour. It is the last show of the tour and with the Swedes on the road is a Benelux-based pacḱage of bands. More precisely, there are two bands joining the Swedish post metallers on this road trip; Slow Crush from Belgium and GGGOLDDD from The Netherlands.

Starting things off is Slow Crush, who were not a familiar name to me until today. However, I was quickly informed by the knowledgeable audience (right Chris?) that the Belgians have already been getting the underground in gloomy motion for quite some time and one or the other may have taken the way to Gruenspan just for the two opening bands.

Slow Crush get with 40 minutes plenty of playing time and use it from beginning to end. It is noticeable that the audience is also fully engaged. In addition, the hall is already well filled when the fog machine turns the stage into an non-transparent something for the first time. Also shying away from the light a bit, Slow Crush perform their dark shoegaze sound and get into the hearts of the fans, who follow the sounds of the Belgians with partly closed eyes, while others indulge in extensive head nodding.

After a short changeover break GGGOLDDD come on stage. I had not seen the band live for some time and a few things have changed. Back then, it was 2017, GGGOLDDD were still GOLD and opened for Solstafir in Utrecht. Back then, the Dutchmen impressed with massive walls of guitars and an intensive stage presence. The latter has remained, which is not least due to singer Milena Eva. She experiences and lives through these very personal songs at every performance. Musically, the current set goes more in the direction recently taken on records. Occasionally the heavy guitar riffs still appear, but musically GGGOLDDD went more in the direction of electonica and that’s where the focus is tonight.

Songs like ‘Silence’ and the PTSD version of ‘Old Habits’ show the new approach and are well received by the audience tonight especially when the closing song ‘On You’, a song against sexual assault, becomes the emotional highlight.

After such an intense show it’s time for the headliner. Cult Of Luna deliver a massive show and rely on the current studio album ‘The Long Road North’ which contributes four songs to the setlist. However, this is rather less important for the six Swedes from Luleâ, as it is the overall concept that distinguishes the band. Those who know the post metallers, know that here not simply 3-4 minute songs are played.

Rather, it is a hefty sound collage that pours over the listeners. The center of the show is without a doubt frontman Johannes Persson who yells out all the rage and anger Together with the brutal riffs a sound collage is created that blows you against the wall. At the same time, the Swedes have, as in ‘Beyond I’ calm and atmospheric elements built in, which loosen up tonight and offer a moment to take a deep breath.

Tonight offered a wide range of bands, which are different and yet harmonize well as a package. All in all, there should have been something appealing for everyone present and the pleased faces speak volumes.