The performance of “Bewitched” in Thessaloniki was one of the most highly anticipated concerts in the city. Following their explosive show in Athens last year, Krisis Productions had announced a unique additional appearance of Bewitched in Greece. It’s important to mention that for last year’s concert in Athens, a bus trip was organized from Thessaloniki. This time, the people who had travelled back then were given the opportunity to see this year’s concert for free.

This meant that the turnout would be significant, and the audience would mainly consist of dedicated fans. Already, some humorous Greek phrases were circulating on social media about the event, such as “metal would become a threat again” and that the concert would be a so called “tavern-fight”.

So, I found myself at the Eightball very early in the evening. The night began with the Athenian underground thrash-black metallers “Necrochakal.” Heavy riffs and even heavier vocals were on display. The frontman was constantly headbanging while growling, and the other band members also gave their best performance.

Especially the drummer and the guitarist were exceptionally talented. Their performance was solid. It was the best way to kick off this night, raw, blasphemous, and brutal.

Next up were the thrashers “Convicted” from Volos. There was a slight delay due to technical issues with one of the guitars, but that didn’t hold them back. At that moment, the venue began to fill up, with the majority of the audience being 35+ in age, thirsty for mosh pits like in the ’90s.

During “Convicted’s” show, the first circle pits started, and the crowd was thoroughly enjoying it. As the frontman put it, “We are a playground for 40-year-old adults.”

The band got everyone pumped up in the venue, with mosh pits only pausing 2-3 songs before the end, just to let the crowd catch their breath for the next ones.

And now, the moment for Bewitched had come. I haven’t seen so much chaos and aggression at a concert in the last decade, and I’m not exaggerating at all. I didn’t witness such intensity even at concerts of the most famous German thrash metal bands in Greece.

From the first song to the last, the crowd didn’t stop pushing each other and stage diving. Venue staff were constantly on the stage with the band, helping people who were crowd-surfing. The band’s setlist was clearly from their first two albums, “Diabolical Desecration” and “Pentagram Prayer.”

The whole venue was moving left and right, and beers were flying everywhere. The atmosphere distinctly reminded me of the ’90s, something you rarely encounter at concerts these days. It was fantastic.

Review and Photos: Sotiris Zikas