May 22nd 2012
APOCALYPTICA: 7th SYMPHONY TOUR
Review by B.B.T
Photos by Peter Ruttan
http://www.metaltitans.com/concertpics/apocalyptica/

After seeing Rammstein several weeks ago I thought my metal-related concert experience was maxed out and pretty much fulfilled for the rest of my days. Well, then we went and saw Apocalyptica at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver on May 22, and it made me realize there is a different avenue of greatness in the live metal experience! Although, I don't know if you can totally classify Apocalyptica as metal, which makes seeing this band even more interesting.

This show was pretty amazing and even better than the last time I saw them in 2009. I did sort of miss the gothic high back chairs they sat in on the previous tour, but it was pretty awesome seeing them running around the stage waving their cellos around while making some pretty amazing sounds with them. These guys are very talented and have great energy. Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lötjönen and  Perttu Kivilaakso playing their cellos in "Metal Mode" was intense and I'm surprised their instruments survived the experience. Kivilaakso's solo of Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" halfway through the show was brilliant, one of my favourite moments, and Lötjönen's rock star posing added some fun to the performance.  Mikko Sirén's drumming is amazing and great to watch, and vocalist Tip Johnson's singing and personality was a perfect fit for the few songs he sang on.

Not much else to say really. These guys are classically trained musicians doing something different and pretty cool. They are definitely worth seeing live.