Eternal Champion @ Jailbreak 2024
Champion of monotony, if anything
(Review + photo: Magnus Jørgensen)
Back at the wonderful Jailbreak. The rain has stopped, and despite the early hour, there are quite a few people ready to kick off the weekend with Eternal Champion. I have heard a lot of praise for the Texans, their backdrop is tastelessly awesome sword-and-sorcery artwork, and they use "Fighting the World" as their intro song. In other words, everything is pretty close to perfect when the band hits the stage
And the band presents us with galloping drums and riffing, Michael Moorcock-inspired lyrics, singer Jason Tarpey's chainmail mask, and pretty much everything you'd want from a heavy metal show. Well, except for one pretty damn important thing: songwriting.
Where the fuck are the catchy riffs, the hooks, the goddamn CHORUSES? You know, those things that make us feel like we are standing, swords in hand, against the oppressors/orcs/people who hate metal? The singing is capable but so outrageously boring in its one-octave limitation that I feel like going on stage to improvise some sort of explosive vocal melody. And I'm close to sober.
The excitement of seeing Eternal Champion wanes way too quickly, because there's not a lot to get excited about apart from the cool gimmicks. I don't know if the guys aren't serious enough about their music to dedicate themselves to writing great songs or if they simply lack the skills. And I'm not sure if those two things aren't pretty much the same.
It takes more than this to defeat the lich and seize the treasure.
Rating: 3 out of 6
Genre: Heavy metal
Venue: Jailbreak, indoor stage
Date: Fri., Aug. 16th, 2024
Setlist:
- Skullseeker
- Ravening Iron
- The Last King of Pictdom
- The Armor of Ire
- Coward's Keep
- Worms of the Earth
- I Am the Hammer
- A Face in the Glare