Apart from seeing the name somewhere at some point, I wasn’t at all familiar with the Belgian speed metal band Evil Invaders before this show. They had come highly recommended from friends however, and we decided to give them a try. Why not, you know?

“Metaldays, are you feeling motherfucking crazy?! Are you ready to be insane?!”
- Johannes ‘Joe’ Van Audenhove (vocals/guitar)

Honestly speaking, straight off the bat – Evil Invaders is insane! We’re talking about a band that is so bad-ass, they got a moshpit going for their soundcheck! A circlepit, nay, THE circlepit was installed from the first powerchord that distortedly rang out over Tolmin.
Evil Invaders may not have had the largest crowd at Metaldays this year, but it was without comparison the wildest one, rest assured on that. That circlepit I mentioned? It just kept on going, sometimes changing in character and inhabitants, but never letting up in intensity. Hell, at one point someone even let a giant inflatable duck loose, and even more merriment was to be found! If the messed-up weather the previous day had held the crowd back (and let’s face it, it had), that very crowd was ready and willing to take all the pent-up energy out here at the Boško Bursač stage, where the sun was finally making a long-awaited appearance.

That sun made the special stage gear gleam like well-polished chrome. Evil Invaders had a rather minimalistic setup, but those microphone stands made to look like chains and knives went perfectly with the ferociousness of the music the band was delivering.
The band members themselves looked like they had stepped into a cryo-chamber in the mid ‘Eighties, and had only now come out again, and of course refusing to conform to modern style and society. They also had some extra lights, and smoke. Lots of smoke. Smoke enough to make it difficult to see Senne Jacobs (drums) at times. Joe and the other two at the front though, Joeri van de Schoot (bass) and Max ‘Mayhem’ Maxheim (guitar), they were not to be missed. All three completely lived up to the wildness of the music and the crowd in front of them, breakneck headbanging and generally just tearing up the stage. Breathtaking and mesmerizing all at once.

“This will be the last song for tonight! I wanna see people die! On my fucking command, you bastards kill each other!”
- Joe (vocals/guitar)

Admittedly, not exactly something I’d put on at home, which should purely be seen as an expression of personal preference, but Evil Invaders blew my mind with their performance! Apparently, this was nothing surprising to those friends who knew the band beforehand, but I must say, that if this is the band’s general level of energy, then basically every other band have something to learn here. Cheers!