The Prodigy might not be everyone's cup of beer, but Soni have you covered with the doom-merchants Electric Wizard on the Bohemia stage.
Bringing things to a close over on the Bohemia stage are British stoner doom legends Electric Wizard. Having created a miniature whirlwind of controversy after the sudden departure of sticksman Mark Greening just as they announced their new record, Time To Die, the core trio still carry on stoically. You wouldn’t think that The Prodigy’s being on at the same time would have robbed them of that many fans, but the crowd they’re playing to tonight is looking distinctly sparse, and rather static – not that the sprawling, crushingly heavy doom played by this lot really inspires any kind of movement apart from a slow nodding of the head, but a lot of people seem to be glued to the floor. Though playing at night in the darkness suits them well, to the more casual listener the oppressive noise and funereal pace probably aren’t doing all that much to hold their attention after a day of headbanging.
That said, the small gathering at the feet of Jus Oborn, Clayton Burgess and the effortlessly cool Liz Buckingham are ardent, utterly transfixed by the hypnotically slow chugging guitars and Jus’ tortured wails. As they delve deeper into tracks from Come My Fanatics… as well as the seminal Dopethrone, among hazy green lights and clouds of smoke from the audience (no comment as to what kind), the fans’ energy picks up, and it becomes clear why these guys are cult heroes. At one point we’re sure we can see HIM guitarist Linde Lindström watching from the side of the stage, basking in those riffs. Then again, it could just be a hallucination…
