Cathedral – ULU 2010

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In the same week as their new double album was released across Europe doom pioneers Cathedral made a long-awaited return the UK live scene for the first time since the 2007 tour for their last album, The Garden of Unearthly Delights, and entertained a much bigger crowd this time.

Support for the whole tour came from The Gates of Slumber, who had cancelled all European dates prior to this tour because of the infamous volcanic ash cloud which had shut airspace over much of Europe, and Church of Misery, who’s European touring is usually limited at best. A suitable support package for sure, but both bands’ sets were destroyed by horrible sound. The Gates of Slumber are not the most active band on stage at the best of times, so without a good mix their wall-of-noise carried no impact at all.

A few die-hard fans at the front enjoyed everything all the same, but most people simply didn’t pay attention. On top of this all the bands had arrived very late to the venue following the previous night’s show and it was The Gates of Slumber’s set which suffered the most, starting twenty minutes late and only finishing ten minutes late, giving them just twenty minutes on stage. By stark contrast Church of Misery are explosive on stage and this helped take up most of the slack where the appalling sound was concerned. At the very least, even when most of their songs were indiscernible, their energy and enthusiasm made for a thoroughly engaging set.

Cathedral didn’t suffer quite as badly as the openers, but still had to contend with a disastrous sound mix. At the front of the stage far too much bass and drums drowned out the guitars and vocals almost completely, and at the back too much guitar detracted from the heaviness of some of the songs. Even so, it can be remarkable what a difference a crowd of almost entirely your own fans can make. Even though the new album was just a few days old, the crowd’s enthusiasm and knowledge of the new tracks was impressive and even with the questionable inclusion of Cats, Incense, Candles & Wine an eleven song set containing as many as five new songs didn’t seem to upset many people.

The band didn’t look or sound as rusty as they would have had a right to be after so long off the road, and hard-hitting older songs like Ride, perennial closer Hopkins (Witchfinder General), and surprise picks Serpent Eve and Carnival Bizarre alongside a couple from the last album helped break up the stream of new tracks. There were still too many new songs however, and limited themselves to perhaps three in a normal set, replacing the other two with another couple of surprises would probably go over even better.

Either way, very few people seemed to leave disappointed and with their new material being amongst some of the most adventurous and possible best they’ve ever penned, their 2010 touring activity looks set to be some of their most interesting to date. They return to London in July for the High Voltage Festival, and after that the attendance this time would certainly indicate another UK tour would not be implausible, should they want to do it all again.

“ had to contend with a disastrous sound ”

Setlist: Funeral of Dreams / Painting In The Dark / Ride / North Berwick Witch Trials / Carnival Bizarre / Death of An Anarchist / Cats, Incense, Candles & Wine / Serpent Eve / The Casket Chasers // Corpse Cycle / Hopkins (Witchfinder General)

Photo(s): Andy Lye

Written by Andy Lye
More: Doom Metal, Gigs, Cathedral