Touring in support of its new album Underworld, released in July 24, 2015, progressive metal stalwarts Symphony brought their co-headlining tour with Overkill through the Marque Theater in Tempe, AZ on October 7, 2015. Founded in 1994, Symphony X demonstrated that after a full 20 years they can still bring it.
Russell Allen, often credited with have the best voice in progressive metal, demonstrated that he can consistently delivery whatever a song requires, whether it is sheer power or melody or a combination of the two. As strong as Allen’s voice is, however, Michael Romeo’s guitar solos provided a terrific counterpoint – Allen peak for peak. (continued below photos)
Photos © 2015 Fred Kuhlman
The crowd was not disappointed, especially during the second half of the set when Symphony X moved from songs from Underworld to favorites from their previous albums. The first seven songs of the show were the first seven tracks of Underworld in order. Beginning with Of Sins and Shadows, however, the band finished with five crowd favorites that included Serpent’s Kiss, Eve of Seduction, Set the World on Fire and Iconoclast as the encore. While the audience clearly enjoyed the entire show, the audience’s reaction definitely went up a notch when Symphony X moved past Underworld to older songs from its catalog.
Symphony X demonstrated that after 20 years, there is still a lot of life left in these veteran rockers with potentially many more good years ahead of them (set list below photos).
The set list included:
- Overture
- Nevermore
- Underworld
- Without You
- Kiss of Fire
- Charon
- To Hell and Back
- Of Sins and Shadows
- Serpent’s Kiss
- Eve of Seduction
- Set the World on Fire (The Lie of Lies)
Encore:
- Iconoclast
- The Imperial March (John Williams)
