Opeth @ Royal Albert Hall

What an awesome experience.

We arrived at the Royal Albert Hall about 20 minutes before the doors opened to have a bit of a stroll around and take in the atmosphere and the outside of the venue, it's just a big, elaborate piece of artwork the outside really, there's a few different statues and monuments outside and the whole top of the outside of the building is covered in carvings of artists and performers.

Then the doors opened.

The first few things that hit you as you walk in is that it is not any old ordinary concert venue, it's ultra classy. The gentleman at the door asked you how you are and takes your ticket, pointing you up the gold trimmed, red carpeted stairs towards the highest level of seating in the place.

As you walk up the stairs you head past the Grand Tier, at which stage I mentioned to Melanie
"Now that is the most classy of areas in any concert hall in the world... that's where the Queen sits when she's here" then you head past the Second Tier and up to the Circle.

We walked out of the stairwell and over to another gentleman who was outside where our seats were taking people's tickets and he asked us "Is it just you two?" We nodded our heads and he said "Would you like a re seat?" We nodded our heads a little faster. The he said "I can give you one of our boxes on the Grand Tier" and sifted through his tickets and stopped at one "Have these ones, they're the best in the house."

Wow. We couldn't believe it. We hurried downstairs to see where our new, very special seats were, and another man greeted us at the stairwell, took our tickets and said "Wow, you've got the good ones, follow me" and walked us down the hall, past pictures of some of the amazing events that had been held there, unlocking the door to our own box.

As we sat down both of our jaws dropped, it is without a doubt the most awe inspiring venue you could ever imagine. The huge ceiling, the massive pipe organ across the back wall, the sheer grandeur of the gold lace trimming, red seats and curtains, and we.... two young aussie's had two of the best seats in the house... only a few across from the seats where the Royals sit. It was impossible to think that it could've got any better.

With a few warnings from a lady over the loudspeaker, the lights went down for the start of the show, and instead of the usual Opeth introduction music, there was the gentle rise of a piano swell, signalling the start of the show.

Opeth then proceeded to play my most favorite of all their albums, Blackwater Park in it's entirety, including all the mellow guitar and piano interludes, and no talking in between songs, just the whole piece played flawlessly.

And that was only the first set. The second set included a song from every other album in chronological order. with Mike stopping to talk and joke with the crowd in between songs as always, and one stage proclaiming "We're bringing Death Metal into the fine halls of culture."

You could really tell that the band was as excited to play at Royal Albert Hall just as much as everyone else was to see them, which made it even more of a great night.

Full Setlist and a few of our pictures below:

1st Set - Blackwater Park

1.The Leper Affinity
2.Bleak
3.Harvest
4.The Drapery Falls
5.Dirge for November
6.The Funeral Portrait
7.Patterns in the Ivy
8.Blackwater Park

2nd Set - Evolution XX

9.Forest of October
10.Advent
11.April Ethereal
12.The Moor
13.Wreath
14.Hope Leaves
15.Reverie/Harlequin Forest
16.The Lotus Eater