SEPTEMBER 7th 2026
DEVIN TOWNSEND

 Review by:Evan Dahl
 Photos By: Polina Kulikovskikh
Full Gallery:
http://www.metaltitans.com/concertpics/devin-townsend/

I had missed Devin Townsend a couple of years ago and went this time. Looks like this was a punishment for my previous missed gig - my friends told me it was absolutely fabulous. I went unprepared. As a huge fan of Strapping Young Lad and a few records of Devin Townsend Project and Devin Townsend, I was really curious. 

The seated audience is the first surprise. Is it a rock show? 
All the ceiling is moving with lights - lights before the show. The stage is almost empty, - very minimalistic. 

And soon we are to discover why. Devin comes alone with an acoustic guitar - it all starts with the tuning and quite a lengthy speech about a difficult year. This year. It is very natural and definitely not made up, just a flow of thought. 

The concert is nothing close to the previous arrival of the master. It is an unconventional spoken word show with acoustic guitar arrangements of Townsend’s career. The first part starts not even with the playing but with drawing of the picture. The very first song, Funeral, is about the killed friend. Now when the playing finally starts, I just gasp “Damn, what a voice”. 

It is a very intimate evening, despite having so many people in. The lights change, there are some moments with backing tracks or with bizarre oddly loud effects on guitar. The second song, Love, is very recognizable, despite being played just on one acoustic guitar. 30 minutes passes with only three songs played, this is due to long monologues of Townsend. 

It is a very interesting experience to hear all his career in such a setting, and also, surprisingly, very diverse, despite having essentially just a bard concert. 
 
I am happy to hear my beloved SYL songs (also S.Y.L., AAA, Almost Again, Aftermath), and even Coast, - something from my favourite project’s record Ki, and within the two acts it is a 27-strong song setlist, but this show is way too avant-garde for me. One gets immediately why Steve Vai himself had chosen Townsend to sing for him. I strongly recommend visiting if you are a hardcore of everything that Townsend delivered. Great to see that a number of shows are sold out, - so chop chop!