Rockfact Music Club, Münchenstein,  Switzerland -  24.05.2024

„Unseen“ is the name of the new album by Swiss power thrash metal group tHOLA from Valais. A great live spectacle that thrills the spectators everytime. Two concerts were anounced to baptize this opus. Münchenstein with the venue Rockfact Music Club was chosen as premiere and their home Valais the day after. King Sable and Steam Revolt were added to the program as other groups. There was no better way to celebrate the weekend with this top notch program. Supporting local bands is very important. That's why I was at this concert. The doors opened at 6 p.m. and there were drinks and sausages from the grill, which was a successful culinary introduction and increased the desire for the upcoming live event. After paying the entrance fee, you went down a flight of

stairs and reached the indoor area with bar. The first band of the evening was Steam Revolt at 7:45 pm. Looking around, I immediately recognized that most of the members were from the local band Dizzip. It soon turned out a new cover band was born. Their performance began with the party hit “It's so easy” by the legendary Guns'n'Roses. Lead singer Heike with an elegant appearance left the stage during “Long Live Rock'n'Roll” to walk through the audience and to return again. Guitarist Cris shone with guitar solos. He sought contact with bassist Fidel and second guitarist Alex to rock out. It looked really cool. Moreover, Alex could support Heike with vocal parts from time to time. It continued with „Rock’n’Roll Outlaw“ and „Born to be wild“ before drummer Elias was allowed to play a solo. Heike walked trough the crowd again before „Panama“ by Van Halen sounded. That’s my favorite song and you couldn’t stand there. Alex and Cris alternated guitar solos on the Iron Maiden hit „The Trooper“. Lemmy Kilmister was paid tribute then with „Ace of Spades“. Some „No“ shouts from fans followed when the statement „we’re now in the final stage“ was made. “Crazy Train” by Ozzy Osbourne and “Nighttrain” by Guns'n'Roses were the last songs. The 50 minutes playing time flew by. The verse sung by Heike “Loaded like a freight train, flyin‘ like an aeroplane, feelin’ like a space brain, one more time tonight” stuck in my mind. The live premiere was good. Setlist Steam Revolt It’s so easy – Guns’n’Roses Long Live Rock’n’Roll – Rainbow Breaking the Law  - Judas Priest Lil Devil – The Cult Rock’n’Roll Outlaw – Rose Tattoo Born to be wild – Steppenwolf Elias – Solo Panaa – Van Halen The Trooper – Iron Maiden Ace of Spades – Motörhead Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne Nighttrain – Guns’n’Roses Then it was tHOLA’s turn at 8:55 pm. The lights went out and Plastic Betrand with „Ça plane pour moi“ sounded as intro. That was a surprise to us because we thought they would perform as headliner. Drummer Sven Imsand came on stage as first member, sat down and started to play. The screens showed a place with a lot of destruction and people running away. The other members appeared on stage one after the other. “Needles” opened the gig. The club was packed to the back and the sound was taken up by the fans. Pictures of the themes of the songs were shown on the screens, which provided a nice illustration and you learned more about the background. Singer Thomas Rauch received a clear “YES” as answer when he asked „Is what we do really good?“. He reacted with delight and surprise at their determined tone. The electrifying energy of the five-piece was transmitted. A short break occured after „Killer of the Beast“. The band members of Steam Revolt and King Sable entered the stage with a coaster full of small, white plastic cups filled with a dark liquid. King Sable singer Andy Iten took the microphone and announced a CD launch was taking place tonight and this had to be celebrated properly. For this reason, all band members took a cup in their hands and the coaster with the cups was passed to the audience. Each member of the audience had to take a cup. They toasted and drank by order and it turned out the dark liquid was herbal licor. Very tasty. Unfortunately Thomas had to announce, although the album “Unseen” was being baptized today, it hadn‘t been delivered from the pressing plant and couldn’t be purchased from the merchandise stand yet. The members of Steam Revolt and King Sable left the stage then and “Tenderness” was played. The hit “Parasite” was celebrated and you went into the outer space in a spaceship around the earth with „Atmosphere“. In “Storm”, everyone had to move closer to the stage at Thomas' request. This happened without hesitation. “Last Man Standing” was about the fact that if you don't do anything, the others won't do it either. The audience had to sing along the word “aheyhey”. This increased massively and for a moment, Thomas reminded of the legendary Freddy Mercury, who did something similar at Live Aid 1985. „There’ll be good times again, that’s certain“ was the bridge to „Good Days“. Thomas said „now we’ve two posibilities, one is that we leave the stage or we play another song. Do you like that?“ after „March of the Lost Generation“. The reaction came immediately and the encore „Bloody Game“ about the fallen in wars with pictures of Mao Zedung, Josef Stalin etc. on both screens. The show ended then and singer Thomas Rauch, guitarrist Rodo Studer, guitarrist Patrick Ambord, bassist Thommy Ambiel und drummer Sven Imsand were adopted with much applause. It was an audio-visual treat. Setlist tHOLA Intro Needles Ashes and Ghost Heroes Killer of the Beast Tenderness Parasite Morning Light Atmosphere Storm Last Man Standing Good Days March of the Lost Generation Bloody Game It was 10:45 pm and the members of King Sable entered the stage. It started with „Demons we Feed“ after an intro. Singer Andy Iten did a great vocal performance and announced that two new songs will be played from the new album „Nothing but the truth“ that night. It sharped the curiosity. Lead guitarrist Rob Matthys was allowed to shine with guitar solos. There was a lot of movement with side changes. Rhythm guitarrist Alexander Lorenz laid the foundation for the groove with drummer Mario Righetti and it felt wonderful in every second. Heavy Metal is the cornerstone of their music and the brew converts into modern metalcore with ingredients of thrash metal and alternative rock. The harsh guitar riffs with catchy melodies and effects were integrated flawless. Rob sought contact with bassist Martin Arnold and Alexander for guitar duels. Andy wore a red baseball cap with the slogan „Make America Great Again“ for a short moment in „I own the world“. It seemed cool and after this track came „Nothing but the truth“ as title from the upcoming record with release date September 5, 2024. The show was over after „My Ghost“ and the members bowed down to the fans. Setlist King Sable Demons we Feed Mistake to Make Ain’t this Life Lie to me Aim 4 the Chin Bury the Pain I own the World Nothing but the truth My Ghost Stefan Walker mixed Steam Revolt, King Sable and cared about the light. Mario mixed tHOLA. The only negative thing about that night was the fact the album „Unseen“ wasn’t available at the launch. Livereport by Dominic Latscha