Gig review: Voyager & IHLO, Boston Music Room, London, 20 April 2023

I became a Voyager fan some time between 15:17 and 16:05 GMT on Monday the 13th of March 2023.

According to my WhatsApp messages, 15:10 is when a friend of mine from choir posted a link to Austria's Eurovision entry. Having listened to that (it's good!) the YouTube algorithm decided to follow it immediately with Australia's entry, Promise. I had autoplay enabled, and was concentrating on a work task, so the song started without me really realising. I only paid proper attention when the bass dropped together with the first appearance of distorted metal-style guitars in the first chorus. I immediately re-started it and watched the whole video from the start. 3 minutes later, I was a Voyager fan, and digging through their back catalogue looking for more. By 16:05 I was back on WhatsApp raving about them.

I have fanboyed out to the max ever since, so when I found out Voyager had just one proper live gig ahead of the actual Eurovision Song Contest, I had to get a ticket. I planned my trip to North London as cheaply as I possibly could and made my way to a gig venue I'd never heard of: the Boston Music Room in Tufnell Park.

IHLO only have one studio album to their name but filled the support slot very nicely - really not that different in style from Voyager and another great example of "come for the headliner, become a fan of the support". The tune that sticks in my head is Reanimate, which reminds me, I need to go and buy their album... Also notable for me was that Ash and Scott from Voyager both came to the back to check IHLO out and join me in some appreciative head-nodding. They know what's up.

From the start, all 5 Voyager members appeared to be absolutely ecstatic to be playing a "proper" gig, after all their appearances on the Eurovision promo circuit. That is to say they got to perform a full 1-hour-plus set, with no miming involved (as is required for the non-vocalists in Eurovision nowadays). They used backing tracks for most of the synth work, which I always find a tiny bit disappointing, but knowing that Devin Townsend does it, well I guess that's just the way it has to be. (Although the time Devin did hire a huge tour band in order to avoid using backing tracks was amazing - I just wish the economics of it weren't so prohibitive).

Voyager: Euro-glam sequin edition. Photo: me.

 

The whole band initially appeared dressed like they had been for the recent Eurovision pre-party appearances - literally shiny and sparkling. That lasted maybe one or two tunes, after which the whole band stripped off to their black metal-band t-shirts and vests. This was a small venue, it was packed and hot, and the band stripping off a layer felt somehow significant, like coming closer to their (sweaty) fans. As bassist & vocalist Alex remarked: "sequins are *not* breathable, guys!".

Existing Voyager fans will be familiar with what makes their sound so appealing, but I'll try and summarise here. I appreciate the combination of sound musicianship and some complexity in composition, plus the contrasts: between clean pure lines on synths and vocals and down-tuned djent-y distorted stabs on guitars; between uplifting moods and crushing metal breakdowns.

Danny and Alex's vocals were pleasingly accurate and carried well, along with the backing synths and Danny's keytar. As a mostly classical choral singer who's sung a couple of gigs with my brother's metal band, I'm always nervous about the sound mix at metal shows, particularly whether the singers can hear themselves properly, and whether the audience can hear anything at all other than the kick drum and the distorted guitars. Thankfully the mixing and monitoring was obviously up to scratch and everything came across really well.

Everyone on stage performed technically brilliantly as well, though honestly this was expected, given the mountain of evidence online of how good these 5 musicians are together, live. (As an aside, I've found it adorably amusing when Eurovision interviewers have asked the band how nervous they are, as if they don't have a decades-long history of performing together professionally.) I'm no guitarist, but I can certainly appreciate the rhythmic punch from Simone and Scott on guitars, perfectly aligning with Ash's drumming. That for me is just metal heaven. As a bassist of sorts, I also appreciated that Alex plays finger style and slap (as opposed to using a pick) which I typically find correlates with independent basslines I actually want to hear, instead of just being the dull background for everyone else.

Voyager: getting the job done. Photo: me.

With Voyager having 7 strong studio albums to pick from, plus a couple of singles, it wasn't obvious to me as a rookie fan what the setlist would be. I was particularly happy that we got to hear Submarine and Promise, given there's basically no good footage online of either tune being played live, as they're so recent. Both tunes had an amazing impact in person, Alex nailing his final tuned scream in Submarine, and the wordless chorus in Promise being sung along to by everyone in the room it seemed.

I really appreciated that they placed their two big Eurovision bangers (Dreamer & Promise) in the middle of the set. The crowd lapped both of them up, and the band still got to signal that they haven't somehow sold out or lost their edge by finishing with two fan favourites: Lost (including a keytar-led excursion into a well known trance tune) and the so-cheesy-it's-amazing White Shadow.

This must have been the happiest metal show I've ever experienced. I think this fan-recorded snippet gives a really good impression of how it felt. I was reminded of a YouTube commenter who described Voyager, alongside Devin Townsend, as "life metal". I like that.

I later discovered that their 3rd-last tune, Runaway, was also an earlier entrant to Eurovision, which didn't quite make it to the Australian final in 2019, and this fact only makes me admire Voyager's tenacity even more. They have steadily been making high quality music for a couple of decades, keeping at it while holding down day jobs, and now they have a truly well-deserved chance to play to an audience of millions, represent their country, represent heavy music, and put some smiles (and possibly a few shocked gasps!) on people's faces. I can't think of more worthy winners of Eurovision, and wherever they place, I am unbelievably excited about their upcoming 8th album. Best of luck, Voyager! \m/

Voyager setlist:

1. Hyperventilating
2. Colours
3. Breaking down
4. Submarine
5. Brightstar
6. Misery is only company
7. Dreamer
8. Stare into the night
9. Promise
10. Meaning of I
11. Ascension
12. Runaway
13. Lost (including Sandstorm by Darude)
14. White Shadow

 

I'm in there somewhere! Photo: Voyager's Twitter account.