Amenra
Factory Theatre
Sydney, Australia
November 16, 2018
Slow and doomy build-ups that cascade and are eventually unleashed not unlike a ton of bricks: Amenra have taken the DNA of what made Neurosis the ground-breaking, envelope pushing mavericks they were at the height of their powers, condensed it to its essence and infused it with their own interpretation of spiritually nourished avantgarde metal and hardcore roots.
While the sonic representation in recorded form are exercises par excellence in cataclysmic ebbs and flows, in a live environment, things take own another dimension as Amenra’s commitment to channelling their alchemy becomes not only apparent but palpable.
Vulnerability.
Chaos.
Pain.
Passion.
Transcendence.
Release.
Catharsis.
A mere collection of the few nouns that come to mind yet in their singularity do not do justice to what the Belgians are about, after having been bulldozed by the crushing outbursts of chief ritualist Colin H Van Eeckhout and his worthy constituents.
Amenra dominate in a realm they have created for themselves and refined over the years. Once you enter, you are at their mercy – an experience that the audience was too eager to be immersed in.
Atavistic and borderline tribal in nature, the performance evoked hypnotic and meditative states, nuances of which are usually rare to be found in the genre Amenra resides in as most bands attempting something similar tend to use a far too broad brush thereby sacrificing sustainable and lasting impact for mere gratifying impact.
Despite being set in scene in an orchestrated manner via lighting and monochrome video projections, it was refreshing to see a lack of fabricated theatrics and feel the raw emotional delivery as it poured out of them.
A band that commands attention whose dedication to their vision you want to experience, feel yourself firsthand and surrender to.
