Live Review : Soen + Lizzard + Oceanhoarse @ Rebellion, Manchester on September 26th 2022

Lets cut to the chase. Soen (and their impressive undercard of Oceanhoarse and LizZard) have managed to between them to attract a more than respectable horde for a Monday. Rebellion is healthily busy, and this reflects well on those of us who like our metal with more intelligence and melody. All three acts seem intent on pushing the boundaries of what our music entails, not in a “lets add a Venezuelan nose flute” sort of a way but in their attention to detail and their desire to add more light and shade than your average screamo outfit.

Openers Oceanhoarse are from Helsinki and either already have a sizable underground following here in Manchester or have instantaneously manged to capture their audiences imagination, as the response they elicit is bordering on Beatlemania. Whilst they might describe themselves as meat and potato metal, there is actually a lot more going on here. They may have a host of driving riffs but there is also feel of polished procession. This isn’t heavy for heavy sake and instead their approach is measured and really rather immaculately produced. There is a primal energy at play here, but it is tempered and channeled meaning that you feel like you are witness a well-rehearsed production as opposed to something raw and visceral. Whether they were aware of their existence or not, the crowd really take to them and there seems to be plenty of people in the front who would happily take singer Joonas Kosonen home with them. “Do you want to boogie” he screeches as they slam into a cover of ‘Them Bones’ and to be honest the audience don’t need much more encouragement than that. Well received and well-constructed

Well, it’s another day and a another French act playing with Metal’s conventions. There seems to be something written in the contract that every French Metal band has to have a go at deconstructing metal’s barricades. There is a real emotional fragility to LizZard’s approach. They create beautiful melodic soundscapes, delicate and full of emotive foreboding. There are similarities to countrymen Alcest in their ability to build layers of exquisite sonic textures, but also their approach feels definitely unique as they walk the tight rope between commerciality and experimentation. LizZard seem to have found a perfect sweet spot of songs that you sing along to but also make you think. Mathieu Ricou’s exhibits a huge amount of musical dexterity, looping his riffs over and over to create an ornate patchwork of interlinking sound. Artfull but also still catchy enough to become effective earworms. As already discussed, this is a connaisseur audience as they take LizZard to their heart. Diverse, driven and highly distinct, very much one to keep an ear out for.

Soen long stopped being a supergroup or side project. They have become a fully formed entity in their own right, and from the reaction that they are afforded tonight, they have successfully developed their very own dedicated fanbase. We are five albums into their lifespan (“Imperial” dropped last year and made an impressive 37 on our TOP 100 Albums end of year list) and they are still evolving in the sound and style. Tonight, the watch word is luscious. Luscious sound, luscious production and luscious performance. There is something utterly gorgeous about what they are doing. Yes there are shades of Opeth in the texture changes but whereas Martin Lopez’s former band have decided to major on seventies prog, he and his new bandmates have found a rich seam of inspiration to be minded in the shape of eighties prog. There is feel of “90125” era Yes, “Momentary Lasp of reason” era Floyd and “Abacab” era Genesis. All of which are meant as heartfelt compliments, as whilst none of those albums have any level of street credibility, they are all sumptuous baths of luxurious quality.

Tonight is a case of standing and letting the music wash over you in waves of sublime excellence. The musicianship is faultless, and they expertly steer it through the perilous straits of prog.

It is expansive enough to have different shades and aspects but manages to avoid becoming overblown and overwrought. The vast majority of the set comes from the last two albums (the aforementioned “Imperial” and 2019’s “Lotus)” and you get the distinct feeling that this is band whose best work is ahead rather then behind them. What was meant as a temporary distraction seems to have gelled into something quite extraordinary. They own the stage tonight, coming across as regal and majestic. Everything feels effortless and the band glide as opposed to crunch through the set.  There is no actual encore. Instead ‘Lascivious’ blends into the ‘Sectarian’ and finally into ‘Lotus’. It just drips with quality. Beautifully rendered and wonderfully elegant, this is metal at its most opulent and abundant. But this is not lavishness in some gregarious, nasty and over the top manner. Instead, everything here is painstakingly hand crafted. Pure and utter class.