Just one year ago, Blind Channel was opening for I Prevail at the Turbinenhalle in Oberhausen. On March 21st, they kicked off their own Exit Emotions headline tour in the same exact venue, with Rock Band From Hell and GHØSTKID as openers. This tour is dedicated to their latest album EXIT EMOTIONS, which came out on March 1st.
Starting off the evening, Rock Band From Hell went on stage at 7:45pm. Being on this tour gives them the chance to win fans outside of Finland, as they have never played outside of their home country before. You could see their excitement, and they did a great job hyping up the crowd. The set lasted a short 30 minutes, and it was an amazing start to the show. It is not often that you see an entire venue clapping along and moshing to the opening act, but Rock Band From Hell knows how to get the crowd involved. Songs like ‘Fed Up’ and ‘SEX IS ON FIRE’ made the people jump, scream and have a great time.
Then, their second opener, GHØSTKID, came on stage at 8:30pm. With them being from Germany and singer Sushi formally being in Electric Callboy (still named Eskimo Callboy back then), a big part of the crowd already knew them prior to this show. They as well got the crowd hyped for Blind Channel, and they initiated some huge pits in the crowd. Their guitarist Jappo van Glory and bassist Stanni Czywil jumped down from stage to join the crowd and their mosh pits. They ended their set with their well-known song ‘SUPERNØVA’.
At 9:45pm, it was finally time for the main act. Blind Channel opened their set with ‘DEADZONE’, one of the singles from their latest album EXIT EMOTIONS. While the crowd was already hyped, there was still a huge increase in energy once Blind Channel started their first song. Their setlist was a mix of their new album in full and hits from their older releases. With a special live version of ‘Deja Fu’, they even brought back a song from their very first album. Their set mostly consisted of songs to make the crowd jump, mosh and scream, but songs like ‘PHOBIA’ and ‘DIE ANOTHER DAY’ also created a more emotional mood every once in a while. Since ‘DIE ANOTHER DAY’ is originally a collaboration with singer RØRY, her parts were taken over by guitarist Joonas Porko. Percussionist Alex Mattson also got to show off his vocals when they played a cover of ‘B.Y.O.B.’, a song originally by System Of A Down.
Between songs, the band repeatedly expressed their gratitude for being able to play shows away from their home country, Finland, and headlining in venues way bigger than on their FLATLINE Tour last year. Throughout the entire set, Blind Channel brought an impressive amount of energy to the table. Not for a single second did their performance get repetitive or boring, they were always giving it their best to give the crowd an amazing night.
Blind Channel are one of the bands that sound amazing on their records and even better live. They know how to get a crowd hyped and moving, and the setlist is the perfect mixture of new songs and older classics. This tour is a must attend for every metalfan.
