As Avatar hadn’t done anything positive really for me the one time I saw them, the prospect of seeing them again didn’t exactly thrill me, but I had to admit that finding a band better suited to support Rob Zombie, at least in the styling department, would be hard.

“Boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen, Scanians – this smells like a freakshow!”
- Johannes Michael Gustaf Eckerström (vocals)

To my surprise, the large hall at Vega was already well filled when the time came for Avatar to take the stage, and an even bigger surprise came with the greeting shouts the band received when they appeared. This surprise, positive as it was, was aimed more at the Copenhagen crowd, which is notorious for showing up late and not giving a crap about support bands, than the band itself, mind you.
Avatar, and especially frontman Eckerström, was quick to pick up on it though, and use it to their advantage. In fact, Eckerström did a very good job as frontman this night, and even though Avatar only had 30 minutes of stage time, he spoke to the crowd often, using every trick in the book to get people going. It worked too, and Avatar got a very nice response from the Copenhagen crowd, as well as the many Scanians who were here tonight.
While the rest of the band didn’t say anything, they were far better performers than I remember from our last run-in. They moved about enough to avoid looking static, and there was a lot of headbanging going on throughout the show. It was, for this type of band, also a plus that they were more in sync with each other in the costume department. Hell, even their roadie had some sort of bellboy costume on, and I can only love that level of commitment!

“We’re gonna fuck you till you love us!”
- Eckerström (vocals)

As I mentioned, Copenhagen (and visitors) were quick to pick up on shouting. However, that wasn’t all. The crowd could also headbang, at least up in the front, and further back fists could be seen in the air. Heck, already in song number two of the night, a small moshpit had gathered, and although it wasn’t big in numbers, it didn’t lack in intensity.
So, I’m not going to lie. Avatar and I still don’t see eye to eye musically, but they did a damn fine job as a support band this evening, nothing is going to take that away from them. Hell, I’m not even that worried about having to see them again in the future, and given how I felt about them before this night, that is one impressive lift!

Setlist:

Hail The Apocalypse
Let It Burn
Get In Line
Bloody Angel
Smells Like A Freakshow