This was wild.
Until recently, I hadn’t listened to Imminence that much. It was mostly because my girlfriend started listening to them more and more that I added them to my playlists as well. When they announced their tour, we were still a little hesitant and wanted to wait for support. When the support acts were announced, we were still hesitant, because we didn’t know Aviana and Allt either. It was two things that made us buy tickets in the end: a) seeing Aviana at Free For All and b) seeing the photos and videos of Ilona Gerasymova.
So to be honest, I didn’t really know what to expect. The closer the show, the more excited I got. And then the evening before, my girlfriend announced that she had the next day off – and we very spontaneously bought VIP upgrades although we still hated them, but we wanted to be as close to the stage as possible 😂 Surprising enough that they were still available, but I guess not many people can make the early entrance on a regular working day.
And as a little spoiler, let me tell you it was probably the best concert experience in a whole I’ve ever had.
I am quite sure I’ve already said a bit about the venue before because this isn’t the first time I’ve been to a show at Carlswerk Victoria, so I’ll skip this for now. Let’s move on straight to the VIP experience.
VIP Experience
The VIP upgrade was 75€ and included early entry to the venue, a meet & greet, an individual photo with the band (digital and polaroid), some give-aways (signed poster, tote bag, a pin), early access to merch and an acoustic session. So except for the early entry / merch access, it was quite similar to the package Illumishade had offered.
The organisation was different though. First of all, queuing early didn’t give you an advantage, as people were let in by order of purchase. Inside, you first picked up your giveaways and then had the time to buy merch. Let me mention for a moment that I’ve hardly ever seen designs as beautiful as those of Imminence, I could’ve bought almost everything. It was quite pricy (shirts 45€, hoodies 75€), BUT at least the hoodies were cheaper than if you buy them in their online shop (and obviously you save the shipping costs as well). All merch is of a high quality, shirts and hoodies are by Stanley/Stella and super soft, comfy, fair trade and altogether nice. The hoodies are comparably small, most shirts rather big (the tour shirt is smaller than e.g. the ones with the violincore-print). At the merch, they didn’t sell CDs, only vinyls.
After buying merch, people started queueing for the meet & greet – which was an ACTUAL meet & greet! Every single person had the time to talk to every single member of the band, they signed stuff, you could take photos with them and if you were too nervous to talk to them, they would keep the conversation going. It was the most welcoming, well-organised and wholesome VIP situation I’ve been in so far. The last ones made me anxious as hell because you were always in a group and I feel uncomfortable talking in front of other people, especially knowing that there’s usually people who’ve already attended other meet & greets with the band and will act like they’re the band’s buddies. But since you could have your own „private“ conversation with every band member, it wasn’t awkward at all. And all of them were super nice!
Next up was having your photo taken (which didn’t go well unfortunately because the venue was simply too dark, so all the polaroids I’ve seen from the group were almost pitch black with a few lamps in the background and occasionally Harald’s glasses reflecting the flash 😂We noticed that in the light, there was a bit more visible, so we might try to scan ours, but I’m happy that there’s also a digital photo taken by their amazing photographer Ilona Gerasymova) and then the people who were done could choose their spot in front of the stage. So once again, if you bought your upgrade early, it’s most likely you got in early and if you didn’t spend much time at the merch, it’s likely you ended up early in the queue for the M&G and photo, which means you’ll get free choice in front of the stage. (Thankfully the front row at Carlswerk Victoria is relatively wide, so there was enough space).
And finally there was the little acoustic session, which was absolutely beautiful. They played two songs on stage (but I think it was only Eddie, Harald and their live pianist if I remember correctly). Stunning performance. I personally was blown away and had my first teary-eyes-moment that evening (I had a damn lot of them. I LOOOVE violins and excuse me, but some of their violin soli are just …Â sigh).
Also, tiny addition that fits quite well here: What added massively to the atmosphere was that they burned incense sticks, so the scent in the venue was an extra component that made the whole experience even more complete. You could also smell them during the beginning of the set. I don’t know if they burned more throughout the set, but it was very pleasing. It wasn’t a strong scent either, at least not given the size of the venue. Nothing too … hm … flashy? It was nice. Even those of us who said they’re prone to headaches said it was okay. If your lungs are a little sensitive though you should be prepared for that maybe.
Then general access started, we picked up something to drink and waited for Allt to begin.
Allt
Allt are a fairly new metalcore band from Sweden (founded in 2020). I hadn’t seen them live before, but in preparation of the show I had listened to a few of their songs and liked them so much that I ended up adding their latest album to my playlist. So all in all I was very excited to see them. And they delivered! The light was difficult though, so the view was mostly shadows in the fog. But their stage energy and performance was great. I had the impression that they really got the crowd warmed up. I personally enjoyed their set a lot. The thirty minutes almost felt a little too short and it was really nice.
Except for Paralyzed, all songs were from their new album From The New World. It was definitely a good selection of songs and I was more than pleased to hear that they’re playing a headline tour next year (bummer that I had ordered concert tickets just that day, I could’ve saved shipping costs 😂).
Aquila
Emanate
Echoes
The Orphan Breed
Paralyzed
Aviana
Not kidding, I was super excited for Aviana. I loved their performance at Free For All so damn much that I truly couldn’t wait for them to hit the stage. And I didn’t get disappointed: Their performance was as haunting and energetic as back in July. Not gonna lie, their lights (lots of stroboscopic lights) were harsh on the eyes. Thankfully I was wearing a cap shielding them off a little and the rest was solved by excessive headbanging. But if you’re sensitive to light, be warned that their light show is difficult.
Yet, it adds to the atmosphere of their performance. Given that the guitarists and the drummer are dressed completely in black and wear masks, the lights coming from behind make their silhouettes stand out. I’m still so damn in love with how expressive they are on stage.
Also Joel Holmqvist is an incredible vocalist. Songs like Obsession or Anomaly went straight to my heart and I had them stuck in my head for days after the show. Just like at Free For All, Aviana were a pleasure from beginning to end.
I ended up buying some merch after the show. Just like Imminence, Aviana use Stanley/Stella for most shirts and I think the hoodies. The prices are okay given the quality. The shirt we bought turned out to be quite big though (just like the Imminence shirt we bought), so if you’re a woman who enjoys a tight fit you might not find anything to your liking.
Setlist:
DELIRIUM
Illuminate
Transcendent
My Worst Enemy
Retaliation
Rage
Oblivion
Anomaly
Obsession
Imminence
Finally Imminence. My anticipation was big since I had consumed every single video and photo from the shows before. The stage set up was impressive although comparably simple: four big windows like those of a church and old lanterns created an atmosphere like a monastery. The incense sticks added to the effect and to round everything up, Eddie entered the stage wearing a hooded black coat. So did their crew by the way. Visuals: 10/10
Since I went to Frankfurt two days later I also saw the show on a smaller, a bit tighter stage and I must say I was lucky to see the show from the front row in Cologne because the fairly wide stage at Carlswerk Victoria helped the whole show to unfold its full potential. It was absolutely stunning to see. That goes out especially to those who justify high ticket prices of arena shows with the need for pyros and massive LED screens. Imminence can teach you that you need neither nor for an incredible performance with a unique atmosphere.
They opened with Come Hell Or High Water, followed by Desolation and it literally took me two songs to be in tears again. As I’ve mentioned before, I hadn’t listened that much to Imminence before, so I was barely able to sing along. Yet, hearing everyone else around me sing along at the top of their lungs was touching.
Also urgh, every single violin solo broke me. I’m still a sucker for violins, maybe this is why their latest album hit me this hard, it feels like there’s significantly more focus on the violin. I can’t count how often that night my heart broke and was put together again 😂
Their stage energy and presence is amazing. I guess everyone knows the videos of Harald playing the guitar with the bow of Eddie’s violin. Scenes like that are obviously choreographed, but they still send a chill down your spine. I also loved watching Christian sing along. I loved everything.
I’ve attached a photo of the setlist we caught after the show. They played for about 1h45min, which is one of the longest sets I’ve seen recently. It didn’t feel as long though. Time went by way to fast and when Eddie started playing Le Noir and I knew it was almost over I felt the happiest and saddest at the same time.
All in all… 10/10. Would see them again and again and again.
I took a few photos at this show with my point and shoot, yet I decided not to publish them this time because I heard the band is very careful with photos being released and I respect that, so I’ll keep those as a memory to myself.
