“YESSS! Hypno5e are coming to Manchester!”. These were my initial thoughts as I learnt that the French progressive metal act’s upcoming European tour included a stop in my current home city of Manchester. To top it all, part of a highly impressive tour package consisting of 4 post/progressive metal acts who have pushed musical and stylistic boundaries throughout their careers. Even boxing them all into the ‘progressive’ label is a stretch, with each band boasting individual and collective creativity that clearly knows no bounds.

I had been hooked on Hypno5e ever since seeing their monumental live performance of “A Distant Dark Source” via the power of YouTube. The prospect of ticking off this bucket list band and discovering 3 new similarly inclined bands had me salivating.

Despite my fanboying, Hypno5e weren’t even the headline act though. No, this honour went to Andorran progressive death metallers Persefone (yes, a metal band from Andorra), who are promoting their latest release “Lingua Ignota”. The lineup was completed with further support from North American’s Stellar Circuits and Lampr3a hailing from the Basque country to create a truly international feel to the lineup. A line up to satiate the desires of the even the most seasoned prog metal fans.

My first thoughts on LAMPR3A, as the Basque natives filled Satan's Hollow, is how could 3 people make so much noise? So much technically refined, wonderfully intricate and aesthetically pleasing noise. There was some supreme individual talent on display from the instrumentalists, that much was clear. Though it was also sadly clear how nervous the trio were. "We hope you like our songs" the band's bassist anxiously commented midway through the set. Maybe having the graveyard opening slot didn't help this.

It's a shame that the backing track malfunctioned later in their set. Those 10 seconds up there to salvage must have felt like 10 minutes up there. But they did pull it around and managed to close as a solid opening act without further glitches. Perhaps the most eclectic of the night, you’ll either love or not really care for this band. Much like Dream Theater without the vocals, I loved it!

Next up are , Stellar Circuits. Another band with a wildly eclectic style, I found myself headbanging and swaying along to some Rage Against The Machine style grooves and straight up primitive angst, whilst finding myself in awe at some splendidly intricate progressive metal passages. Don’t bother trying to place them into one confined musical genre though! They’ll make you look foolish for trying.

They are the first band of the night with a vocalist, giving them some much needed presence (as compared to the opening act). What a presence Ben was up there, commanding the audience with an admirable confidence and swagger. However, whereas his distorted vocals were mighty impressive and straight up fierce, the same sadly cannot be said for his cleaner vocals. Technique issue or was the venue’s PA to blame? Who knows. Nonetheless, this was another act enjoyed by the Manchester crowd which was now starting to fill the venue.

And then we hit my personal highlight of the night, Hypno5e. They are tight... and I mean, TIGHT. Absolutely no fat or wastage anywhere within the mix and playing with military like efficiency. Talk about genre fluidity too. They could have your bottom lip quivering from the sheer aesthetic beauty of their delicate ambient passages, especially during ‘On The Dry Lake’. All before immediately twisting this and crushing your senses with wave after wave of the most fiercely brutal and sadistic breakdowns!

Try to imagine Gojira and Opeth having an unholy child and you’re kind of sort of nearly there in imagining the force that Hypno5e were on this evening. You could genuinely feel the ground shaking at various intervals! That’s not hyperbole either.

It’s a pity vocalist Emmanuel struggled to make his voice cut through the mix, though I believe this was more of a PA issue, given that Satan’s Hollow is essentially a part-time live music venue. They were going to be a difficult act to follow in either case though. I’d personally love to see the band back in the UK, maybe at Damnation festival (hint hint)?

Time for the main event. It was clear who the people had shown up for, with those lurking towards the edge of the venue for the support acts now firmly front and centre, singing away and head banging along in appreciation. For good reason too. Persefone is an unapologetic force up there tonight, their energy contagious and justifying the headline bill even after a solid bill of talent that had preceded them.

This is an onslaught of technical death metal devastation, destructively brutal yet still retaining a wonderful melodic quality thanks largely to the band's keys player. Much in the style of Born Of Osiris.

There are times when I think we need some respite, however we do get it in the form of calmer melodic passages. After all there's only so much pulverising your senses can take and some of that early momentum was starting to wane. This is something Hypno5e had done much better with their set earlier..

Otherwise, it's hard to draw too much criticism to what was an overall solid performance. The band's vocalist extends his gratitude to those in attendance as well to the venue's staff. A touch of class really!

A night of eclectic progressive metal with some misses and some clear home runs. Some of these misses may have been down to the limitations of the venue, though I came away feeling smug having discovered some new bands and my band merch collection growing ever so slightly.

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
Persefone, Hypno5e, Stellar Circuits, Lampr3a