Now, I don’t listen to Cult of Luna very often, but the last time they came to town with Julie Christmas, it was an epic experience — albeit a somewhat abbreviated one, as they played their 55-minute Mariner album in its entirety, and nothing more. Clearly, they left me wanting more since I shelled out to see ’em again…and they definitely didn’t disappoint!
Long-running L.A. post-metal outfit Intronaut opened the evening, and set the tone with their soaring, melodic sounds and cinematic backdrops. They were, however, playing a man down — their bassist needed emergency surgery and had to leave the tour, so they put his face on a blowup doll to show that he was there in spirit. Coincidentally, the last time I saw Cult of Luna live, their supporting act’s frontman took a tumble and needed major surgery afterwards. Maybe there’s a Curse of Luna? 😛
Emma Ruth Rundle put on a solo set, just her and an electric guitar, which kinda reminded me of the time I saw Scott Kelly play solo between Yob and Sleep, many moons ago. Only this time, the chattering masses didn’t drown out her performance — in fact, a lot of folks at the front of the stage seemed to really dig it.
Cult of Luna put on an all-out show, playing for 90 minutes without so much as a water break between songs. The Swedish septet features no fewer than three guitars and two drummers(!) in its current touring lineup, making for an absolutely massive sound. However, between the constantly changing light show and a copious amount of stage fog, I’m afraid these pictures don’t really do their performance justice…
