Presented by Rockfact Music Club & IRON-T21

Rockfact Music Club, Münchenstein,  Switzerland – 11.11.2023

A proverb says „anticipation is the greatest joy“. In this case, that was 100% true because it feels great when famous bands perform in areas where they hadn’t toured so much before. The two Swiss metal legends Excelsis and Pertness from the beautiful canton of Bern visited the canton of Basel-Country for a show and chose the Rockfact Music Club in Münchenstein as venue. Delusion of Mankind from the city of Basel was added to the program as support act. It seemed so exciting that I absolutely had to be present at Rockfact Music Club. True Swiss metal isn’t often on

stages these days. It started at 8:30 pm and support Delusion of Mankind was ready to fill the venue with sound. I was really looking forward to their performance, as I hadn't taken any notice of the group before and it changed at that moment. „Notions Of Dreams“ sounded after an intro. The musical direction was melodic power thrash metal. The two guitarists Florian and Sascha showed their dexteriorities with guitar solos and it looked brilliant. Bassist Francisco provided the great rhythm and groove in the sound with drummer Nuno. It sounded awesome, catchy and guitar tunes found their way into the heads of the spectators what reflected in headbanging. The band enjoyed every second on stage and used the opportunity to promote debut „Stay in Silence“. A ballad followed with „Amorphous“. However, it wasn’t a ballad you normally hear on the radio, but a mix of hardness and calm in balance. That was pretty cool and it was coming to an end with  „Far Away From“ and the song „They Live!“ where I remember the movie with the same name with WWE Legend Roddy „Rowdy“ Piper. „Stay in Silence“ finished the performance of the five-piece. Applause occured and the members left the stage. Setlist Delusion Of Mankind Intro Notions Of Dreams Faces In The Crowd Save Me Dead End Amorphous Far Away From …. They Live! Stay In Silence It was Pertness turn after a short break. The Bernese Oberlanders and their "Swiss Highland Metal" celebrated their 30th birthday this year. It's really cool that a Swiss band has been on the national music scene for so long and don‘t let anything get them down. The band about singer Tom Schluchter in kilts came on stage like a speed train and started to perform. Full throttle was the motto because there were practically no announcements, just a lot of sound to the ears. Guitarist Tom Zurbrügg often sought contact with bassist Mars Bühler and both often changed sides of the stage to present themselves to the audience. The two also engaged in a competition to see who could play the instruments better with their fingers. A stand-off from my point of view because both were great. Singer Tom said last time they had performed at the Rockfact Music Club was seven years ago, but it wasn't as good as that night. He received much applause and praise for this. Songs from various stages in their career were played, e.g. "Seven Times Eternity", "From the Beginning", "Foggy Dew (Irish Traditional Cover)" and "My Prophecy". Tom shone with guitar solos and stage presence. There were calls for an encore after „Decline“ and the band played the encores "Frozen Time" and "Star of the county down". There were no more songs, as the complete set was played. The Bernese Oberlanders were seen off with loud applause for their excellent performance. Setlist Pertness Intro Words of Lies Cold wind of death Fortress Foggy dew (Irish Traditional Cover) From the Beginning Farewell to the past My Prophecy Metamorphosis Seven times eternity Decline Frozen Time Star of the county down Another break followed and the stage was rearranged. Excelsis was the last band to take to the stage at 11 pm. The Emmentalers from the municipality of Koppigen have been around since 1996 and sing in Bernese German. You don't hear and see that every day and it increased curiosity. The music was folk metal with a power metal flavor and instruments like bagpipes and flutes created a great sonic brew. After an "intro", they started with "In Taverna" from the current album "Bluetmond". The lyrics in Bernese dialect added a cozy touch to the songs. Well, there was no pop, but real metal, which was characterized by the hard guitar sound of Oli and Münggu. Lüku provided the noticeable folk element with bagpipe and flute sounds and came across casual and confident. Despite tight space conditions of the venue, the band's late-night sound generated a lot of enthusiasm and the many spectators weren’t tired. Fans of the band in the front row roared and sang along to several songs with passion and determination. After "Brueder Tod" and "Chrieger", they left the stage. All members returned as the front row was still singing along to the verses of "Chrieger“. The encores were "Gwaihir - The Name of a Bird", "Dragonslayer" and "Guntram". All good things come in threes and the bolt was shot. That's why the  Excelsis members said goodbye to the enthusiastic audience, who adopted them with a lot of applause. Experiencing such a band live felt special because their lyrics are in local dialect (with the exception of "Dragonslayer" and "Gwaihir"), but that also gave them a certain charm. Setlist Excelsis Intro In Taverna Münnebärg The Fear (Intro) Uechtland Wissi Bärge Maimond Chräjie Drei Brüeder Chrieger Gwaihir – The Name of a Bird Dragonslayer Guntram Conclusion: It was a successful evening with great commitment from the present metalheads, who really put their heart and soul into it. A big thank you to the sound mixers behind the controls. Delusion of Mankind was mixed by Tobias Schäublin, Pertness by Cede and Excelsis by Stefan Walker. Livereport by Dominic Latscha