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Electric Wizard, R.I.P.: live at Roseland Ballroom Portland, Oregon (USA), 2nd May 2018
Well, I finally scratched “See Electric Fucking Wizard In Concert” off the old bucket-list. Living in the USA when most of your favorite bands are from Europe means you catch a show whenever they happen to hit your town. For me, this was one of those times.
Portland’s own R.I.P., one of Riding Easy Records’ stable of sativa-stained artists, was tapped to open for the Roseland Ballroom’s capacity crowd. (I would venture the maximum occupancy limit of 1,410 customers was far exceeded.) Current scene darlings beloved by stoner rock crazies, R.I.P. has the 70s wasted longhairs look locked-in. Considering this was a hometown show, the crowd went wild with the smell of weed, sweat and doomy crust-punks.
Incense straight from the local Catholic Church then announced Electric Wizard’s ascendance to the stage. From the opening track of “Witchcult Today” through “Black Mass” and “Funeralopolis” Wizard played all the fan favorites and lived up to its reputation for providing a standout live show experience. Jus Oborn (vocals/guitar) was true to the songs, and engaged the audience more than I anticipated. Liz Buckingham (guitar) was Liz Buckingham: a true doom icon whose Gibson SG siphoned sounds straight from Laney/Marshall hades. Clayton Burgess (bass) and Simon Poole (drums) laid down a solid back-beat. (I do hope they get the opportunity to record another album.) However, Wizard being Wizard, after a while it was hard to differentiate one song from the other, but that’s a minor criticism.
The true standout performace was by the light and projector show that accompanied the music. Deftly incorporating 70s Jess Franco and other euro-sleaze and horror movies as the thematic background to the concert soundtrack, it almost took on a life of its own and was a crowd-pleaser. The 60s psychedelic lightshows would be jealous of what they spawned.
My recommendation: If Electric Fucking Wizard is playing your area, go!
Set List:
Witchcult Today
Black Mass
Return Trip
See You In Hell
Incense For The Damned
Satanic Rites of Drugula
Dopethrone
The Chosen Few
Funeralopolis
Live report written and all live photos taken by: Russell Orchard
Grade: 8/10
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