In Extremo:

This was our second time getting to see the mighty In Extremo and we were very excited by the prospect to say the least.

Our first experience was at Doomsday 2000 and coverage can be seen via the link at the end of this year's coverage. While In Extremo went on fairly early in the day and for an outdoor set the previous time we saw them, this time the were one of the dual head-lining acts for the final day of the festival and would be on the primary indoor stage at the Agra. In the time spanning our last live show of theirs, they had put out a new full-length album which was excellent in every way.

In Extremo have not really changed their style, only perfected their recording methods so the impact was even more full and awesome than before (which still only captures a fraction of their greatness on stage).

In Extremo were our first experience with the genre of medieval style instruments combined with guitar and electronics and even though we have encountered many similar bands since, they still are one of the all-time best and really have the entire package down when it comes to talent, performance, looks, and attitude.

Everyone was present once more (I was particularly glad to see Die Lutter playing bass because he had a fairly scary health risk and had not been touring for a while).

The band had a slight redo of their look, being mostly hair-cuts all around....I kind of like their longer hair but no harm done. Their costumes had some slight changes as well but kept their medieval flare.

I really like the songs where Dr. P plays the harp live but also when he joins in on bag-pipes and all three pipers spin around Van Einhorn, these were some of my highlights personally.

As always the crowd was entirely enthralled, loving every moment and singing along to nearly every chorus. They did an appropriate number of old favorites off their previous albums but also focused a lot of time on their new material which was really great.

I really appreciate the power and fullness of their band with that many members on stage, it truly is entertaining to watch, you never know who to look at next as every one of them is doing something impressive musically.

It seems I can never really get enough In Extremo and even though they played a very lengthy set, I could still have heard another full set of their material. These guys rank up there with best of bands to see live.

It is an unrelenting musical experience but they don't let it ride there. They throw in acrobatics and tumbling by one of the pipers, they have fire spitting and pyrotechnic displays to add a little heat to the already hot hall, and they also laugh and smile and draw the audience into their show, including you as if some member of the court, sitting around the mead hall enjoying the antics of the most elite of traveling minstrels as they take a moment to remove the troubles of the lands you oversee and reduce the pain of living in these extreme times. Yes, their most powerful quality is the ability to transport you to another musical world.

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In Extremo