Dark Intimacy – LACRIMAS PROFUNDERE in Leipzig

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A famous quote by E.T.A. Hoffmann says „Music begins, where language ends.“ and it’s incredible how wonderfully fitting this quote sums up the LACRIMAS PROFUNDERE concert in Leipzig. As part of the How to Shroud Yourself with Night tour, we were graced with a concert that is sure to remain in the mind of those who saw it for a long time to come.

Before I go into more detail about that, I want to express my deepest gratitude to lightinmirror.de! She really applied all the skills imaginable to bring you the pictures featured in this article! Thank you so much for that!

But back to the topic at hand: Leipzig is known for its dark scene, which is prominently manifested in the Wave Gothic Treffen (WGT). There is hardly any place that is more perfect  for a band that is as rooted in the Gothic scene as LACRIMAS PROFUNDERE are. Through their latest record, How to Shroud Yourself with Night, they once again proved that they’re truly the masters of their genre.

The meeting point for their Leipzig show was the Moritzbastei, right in the centre of the trade fair city. It was my first time in this cultural centre which is also, according to my research, the last remaining part of Leipzig’s city wall. The red brick are quite the sight, even though the inner parts of the building are quite confusing. I wouldn’t have found my way out on my own. But it fit the atmosphere extraordinarily well! The concert itself was held in some sort of vault(ed cellar), which was appropriately developed for such purposes.

The room was filled well and at around 20:30 the anticipation finally payed off. After a short intro, the first notes of To Disappear in You filled the Moritzbastei. The first song always sets the expectations of the audience towards the commencing set. By that standard, it really was the perfect song to start with because it combines everything that makes this band (and their latest album) so great: honest enjoyment of the music, consequent, catchy melodies, perfect coordination of every musical style element and the amazing vocals of singer Julian Larre.

Normally, I’m not the type for singling out individuals from a band, because music is a collaborative project that doesn’t live with just individuals, but I just have to do it in this instance! I’ve thought long and hard, but I arrived at the conclusion that I’ve NEVER!! experienced a singer that manages as (seemingly) effortlessly perfect as Julian does. I’m at a loss how he switches so seamlessly between different kinds of vocals! Don’t you have to breathe to do that?!

I was also overwhelmed by the tone of his voice. His voice sounds like black velvet feels or dark chocolate tastes. I thought it was captivating while listening to the album, but hearing it live really gave me goosebumps. In general, Metal vocals tend to be a bit darker anyway than in other genres but this was just exceptional talent!

A recurring thought I had was that Julian manages to deliver, what I always wanted but never got from HIM.

Something that worries me in the long run, however, is Julians drive to do reckless movements on stage… Seeing him jump, run and disappear into the crowd really has me scared that he could fall and hurt himself. Nothing serious happened that evening, so he apparently has enough experience doing that! But still: be careful, please!

With all this praise for Julian, we shouldn’t forget that LACRIMAS PROFUNDERE are not a backing band for a talented singer. It was fascinating to see the joy with which each member performs the songs. Ever band has that of course, but here it’s deeper! In addition to the „Yes, we can perform!“-joy, there is an honest „These songs are so much fun!“-joy that really got to me. No matter who you looked at, they were either smiling or singing along the songs. In the 12 years I’ve been going to concerts and festivals, I have never seen or felt anything like it.

LACRIMAS PROFUNDERE were also quite ambitious in terms of their set list! Over a time frame of more than two hours, they played 22 songs and 3 intros (please correct me, if I’m wrong). Among those was my personal favorite An Invisible Beginning, as well as „older“ songs like My Release in Pain. Songs that really convinced me live were Celestine Woman and Mother of Doom. While listening to them beforehand, I tended to skip them, but they were just an experience in this atmosphere and with this performance! Other bands are free to take a page out of LACRIMAS PROFUNDERE’s book. It was the perfect proof that there’s no need for an overproduced stage show in order to deliver an outstanding performance. Taking joy in your own music directly translates into the joy the audience is experiencing!

And this audience had all the fun! It didn’t take long for the people to start dancing and to just feel the music. Of course, they were also animated by Julian, but the audience has to be willing participate in this kind of animation. It’s almost priceless to have an audience that is ready to open up towards the feeling displayed in the music.

What I noticed, however, was that almost everyone in the fron row was filming the entire concert with their phones. Naturally, everyone is free to do as they please, but after two years of no live events it’s time to put the phones away and just enjoy the music. I don’t want to argue about the pros and cons of social media, smartphones, etc. From my point of view, a concert evening is more enjoyable than some video on a phone where you can’t even see everything.

But no matter in which shape or form this concert was experienced, it was just too short (despite the long setlist). It could have been twice that long and it wouldn’t have been enough for me. There was this temporary (dark) intimacy between band and audience in which I would’ve loved to dwell in a bit more. But, as always in life, we can’t have everything, which meant Father of Fate really was the last song of the evening. 

It was a bit unfortunate though that the building’s security decided to close the concert hall just 15min after the concert had ended, which meant that everyone was crowded in the bar and merch area. That could’ve been done a bit later, I think…

Looking back on this evening, I can say without the shadow of a doubt that this was the best concert I’ve seen this year and that this gig made it into my Top 3 best experienced concerts ever. If you’re thinking about going to see this band live, then do it!! Get a ticket and let’s go!

And don’t be sad, if you want more content: In the next weeks, I have exciting interviews planned with a plethora of bands! Stay tuned!