Live Review: Combichrist – KK's Steel Mill, Wolverhampton
25th April 2023
Support: Priest
Words: Cat Finch
Photos: Tim Finch
KK’s Steel Mill can do no wrong, as the premiere music venue in the West Midlands it gets some of the best tours going, and tonight they mix things up with industrial metal beat combo Combichrist headlining with the support of the interesting Priest.
As the clock strikes eight a darkness descends across the stage. A lone masked figure takes his place behind a podium atop which sits a MacBook. His mask akin to that of a plague doctor, but seemingly made of PVC, some kind of plague doctor/gimp-mask hybrid. As a beat starts to emanate from the Mac a second masked figure appears, it points at the receptive crowd and takes his place behind a keyboard. The two of them build the atmosphere, bathed in a deep blue light they start to play some downtrodden electronica before the third member of this trio appears. The vocalist in black jeans, black shirt and leather jacket topped off by a Priests dog collar and of course another gimp-mask.
Two of this trio are of course former member of another infamous masked outfit… Ghost. But if you are expecting a clone of said band think again. Between laptop, keyboards and vocals they conjure up a cacophony of sounds. Pet Shop Boys meets Marilyn Manson would be the best comparison I could come up with. Electronic beats with a heavy backbone. The beat throughout their forty-five-minute set is mesmerising, it draws you in and does unspeakable things to you whilst you are there.
Combichrist are musically and visual different from anything you have ever witnessed. The last time this outfit crossed my path they were five piece industrial metal machine, featuring two drummers, a stunning light show and an industrial metal sound like nothing else. Today however, the outfit switches back it’s roots, one where vocalist Andy LaPlegua was its only member.
With just a man on another MacBook as backing, Andy LaPlegua towers aover the adoring crowd. The industrial beats throb, pulse and reverberate through to your very soul. Andy sets a vocal tone, haunting in delivery that encapsulates the performance. A majestic offering throughout the tireless hour plus set.
Kicking off with ‘At The End of It All’, Combichrist will spend the evening fixated with the earlier half of the bands career. All songs tonight are taken from their first five albums, dating from 2003 through to 2010. Melding the styles developed across the bands early albums into a defining live performance which is closed by ‘Like To Thank My Buddies’
Combichrist may not be the top of your list when thinking about who you want to see live in concert, but they should be! They are one of those lesser known bands you need to take a gamble on, because they do not disappoint!
All photo credits: Tim Finch Photography
