Written by:	Ernis
Published:	October 25, 2007
Event:	Rotting Christ: Baltic/Scandinavian/German Tour
Location:	Nomme Cult, Tallinn, Estonia

On September the 2nd, 2007 Greek act Rotting Christ arrived to the small venue in Nõmme, green and unsuspecting of any satanic activity Tallinn suburbs - exactly two years after having played there last time, on 2.09.2005 - to present the songs that were known before and to play brand new ones as well.

It's difficult to decide which show was better - they were both good in their own way. First time there may have been more anticipation. This year we were already prepared for something wild. And of course, ready to hear the songs from "Theogonia" live.

Crionics from Poland and Incantation from the United States were on the warm-up, doing a pretty good job - so that soon everything and everyone were ready for the return of Rotting Christ. They finally arrived, and with the first songs the temperatures of the room hit the ceiling. My attempts to take any decent pictures during the performance were rendered impossible by people making violent leaps in order to land on the backs or those standing in front of them with the obvious goal of making way closer to the stage. All in all, I was quickly pushed out of the moshpit and since I had a borrowed camera, it would've been risky to wrestle through the masses again. Plus it would've been a major challenge, as those who wish to maintain a place in the front rows during such gig must have at least a pair of friends nearby serving as proper reinforcements.



With the situation in the hall closely resembling a battle ground, the band themselves didn't seem notice it, or if the did they most probably were enjoying the havoc they were partially responsible for. Needless to say, the crowd was pleased, those in the front row, those jumping on each other behind them, those jumping and headbanging in a safer distance, those in the beer-drinking zone and even those smoking outside. The music filled every inch and corner of the area. The chanting of "Rotting Christ! Rotting Christ!" occurred every once in a while between the songs. At the same time the bandmembers themselves went into more diabolical state of mind and action with every song.

The band performed both older songs and new ones during the gig. Among the first ones were, for instance, "Athanati Este" and "Enuma Elish", both being the highlights from the last two albums "Sanctus Diavolos" and "Theogonia". "King Of A Stellar War" was one of the good older songs. All in all, every song was received warmly by the crowd, and the band members, especially Sakis Tolis, enjoyed their time on the stage. A gig played with heart and filled with energy.

Only negative things about the performance were the absence of some fine songs. For example "Sanctus Diavolos" which shook the walls of the venue last time was not performed this time. The band also didn't appear for the encore and immediately gave way to the Brazilian death metal act Krisiun. Apart from this, Rotting Christ gave a grand show and will always be welcome to return to Estonia - maybe on Sept. 2, 2009, just to keep the pattern?