Review and Photos by Fred Kuhlman
Promoter: 13th Floor Entertainment (https://www.13thfloorentertainment.com/ )
Venue: Rebel Lounge, Phoenix, AZ (https://therebellounge.com/ )
Date: Friday, April 25th, 2025
Tour: Armada Over North America
My kids told me a number of years ago that I really needed to start listening to music done in this century. So, I have been looking for interesting groups that I enjoys listening to over and over. Being a huge Progressive Rock fan, I discovery a number of Progressive Metal bands that I really liked. A number of these bands were from Europe and had female singers. In my opinion Visions of Atlantis is one of the best of these bands.
I became a huge fan of Visions of Atlantis (VOA) since I saw them when they toured with Dragonforce back in March of 2020 just before the world was shut down due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Once the world recovered, I have seen them every time they came back to the Phoenix area. I saw them when they had transmitter/receiver issues and had to recover by going old school and used cords for the guitars and mics. I even saw them last year when they had power issues and recovered by doing an acoustic set for us instead of just walking off stage. I believe these 2 issues cemented my love of the band. Instead of just giving up and walking off stage, they showed their true professionalism and love for us the fans and developed work arounds so the show could go on.
Like a lot of bands these days, Visions of Atlantis does a pre-show VIP meet and greet. However, unlike other bands, they performed a 4-song acoustic set just for the VIP fans. I had never been to their VIP Meet and Greet before, so I was determined this year I would give it a shot. I also took my son to the event to expose him to something new. He is in a band and all of the other members have become my friends because we always go and meet up at the Visions of Atlantis shows. I actually knew his band mates before he joined their band. It was amazing to hear VOA do their acoustic set just for the 40 of us in the sold-out VIP group. Clémentine Delauney and Michele Guaitoli (the lead singers) also told stories. We also got our photos taken with the entire band. After that the band members would sign items for us. The only bummer for me was by the time they got to Phoenix; they had already run out of patches for my vest. Unfortunately, I was not able to talk to the band members much after the concert because they had to leave for the long drive to Salt Lake City for the next show. If you get the chance to do the VIP Meet and Greet, I would highly recommend it. Its not that expensive and you get to meet with the band one on one.
Visions of Atlantis consists of drummer and founder Thomas Caser, guitarist Christian Douscha, bassist Herbert Glos with the incredible lead singers Clémentine Delauney and Michele Guaitoli. Besides being the founding member of VOA, Thomas Caser has worked for the Austrian label Napalm Records since 2002 and was later promoted to the second CEO of the label.
Unlike most Metal bands, VOA has a unique lead singer setup. They front 2 dynamic singers in the beautiful Clémentine Delauney and Michele Guaitoli. This gives the band a unique sound where they play off each other and complement each other’s voice.
Thomas Caser usually hides back in his drum kit, but tonight I was able to finally get some really great photos of him as he pounded out the heart beat of the music. He also controlled the backing music that was used to enhance the songs. I even got Thomas smiling as he performed. Thank you, Thomas.
VOA only has 1 guitarist, Christian Douscha. Most metal bands have 2 guitarists so one can play rhythm and the other perform the lead and power riffs. But Christian lays down both the rhythm sections and power riffs. If you watch him, he makes it look so simple as he effortlessly makes his guitar sing.
The last by not least member of VOA is bassist Herbert Glos. Herbert doesn’t get the praise he really deserves. He helps pull all of the songs together by enhancing Thomas drumming while also providing some of the rhythm sections when Christian does his power riffs.
This is my 6th time seeing VOA and I believe they just keep getting better each time. The band is a well-oiled metal machine. Each member has their role and they perform it beautifully. At the same time, they also have fun performing. They had mugs of fluid (not sure exactly what) on the whiskey barrels on each side of the stage. They would stop at times and just take a swig and laugh.
Tonight’s show was in support of their latest 2 albums, Pirates and Pirates II – Armada. For me there wasn’t a bad song in the setlist. I loved them all. But the fans definitely had some favorites. They started the show with “To Those Who Choose to Fight”, a call to arms that set the tenor for the rest of the show. The fans really got into “The Land of the Free”, “Heroes of the Dawn” and “Clocks”. For “Clocks” they sang along with the band. At times, the audience was almost as loud as the band as they sang along with them. VOA ended the show with 3 of their most powerful and beloved songs, “Melancholy Angel”, “Master the Hurricane” and finally “Armada”. By the end of the show both the band and the audience were exhausted. We all seemed to have a great time.
Spiritual Suicide
The first band up was a local Phoenix Progressive Metal band, Spiritual Suicide. It consists of Adon Fanion on guitar and lead vocals, guitarist Zach Kasmer, bassist and backup vocalist Alexis Hernandez, drummer Jonny Kady and newcomer on keyboards and backup vocals Nate Green. I had seen them once before back in 2021. They were much better and tighter this time. As the first band they have the responsibility to rev up the crowd for the rest of the bands. Spiritual Suicide did a great job of this. There 5 song set was very good. If you get a chance to see them area the Phoenix area, then I would recommend seeing them.
Seraina Telli
They were followed by the 2-piece band, Seraina Telli. Seraina Telli is the female guitarist and lead singer of the group. She is joined by drummer Mike Malloth. Together they produced an amazing sound that reminded me of the Burning Witches. Later I discovered that Seraina was once part of the Burning Witches and that explains why I thought she sounded like them.
At one point in the show, she experienced a clothing issue and then joked that the next song was “Song For The Girls” that was so appropriate. She was amazing to photograph with her multi-colored hair and face painting. She is very beautiful and when she smiled it just brought joy to everyone in the audience. And she smiled a lot.
All of her set was from her 2 albums, Addicted to Color and Simple Talk. They started the show with “Addicted to Colour” and moved into “Wish You Well”, both hard rocker songs with her strong voice and amazing guitar playing. At times I can even hear a little Pat Benatar in her voice and attitude. The set was 9 songs with the strong ending song “Modern Warrior”.
Seraina Telli is touring with VOA here in the US. So, if you get a chance to see her perform, I think you will really like her. I also recommend you listen to her on any of the streaming services or even better yet, please purchase her albums. Personally, I can’t wait for her to return to the valley. I will definitely be there and hope to see you.
The Rebel Lounge was full of loyal VOA fans. I believe the next time they will need to get into a larger venue to hold all of the new fans they will have. They also really need a larger stage so they can properly setup their full stage show. It would also give them more room to move around. The reason they came back the Rebel Lounge was they had a good experience there. The last 2 times at the Nile Theatre they always seem to run into issues with either equipment or power. So, they decided to be safe and go with a location that worked for them.
If you are looking for a strong heavy metal band that doesn’t just scream at you, then VOA should be on your listening list. I have it on my flash drive in my vehicles and listen to them a lot at home while working on the computer or putzing around the house. Please give them a listen and I am sure you will become a fan. I hope to see you all at the next VOA concert here in the valley. Until then “Let the Pirates Rule the Air Waves”.
On a personal note, please purchase merchandise from the bands at the shows. This is one way they can continue to tour, because it costs a lot to tour. They need to pay their road crew, tour manager & support staff (merc person, etc), the tour bus and driver before they get anything. Ticket sales in a lot of cases don’t provide enough to cover these costs. I also recommend the VIP Meet and Greets because the band get almost all of the money for this package.
Visions of Atlantis
Social Media sites:
Website: https://www.visionsofatlantis.at/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/visionsofatlantisofficial/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/visionsofatlantis/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/VisionsOfAtlantisOfficial
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@visionsofatlantis
Twitch.TV: https://m.twitch.tv/dushi109/home
Record Label: https://label.napalmrecords.com/
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
Seraina Telli
Social Media sites:
Website: https://serainatelli.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/serainatelliofficial/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/serainatelliofficial/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@serainatelli
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@serainatellirock
Record Label: Metalville Records
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
Spiritual Suicide
Social Media sites:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SpiritualSuicide/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spiritualsuicideband/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@suicidebandofficial4642
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@spiritual_sband
Photos © Fred Kuhlman 2025, All Rights Reserved
13th Floor Entertainment Social Media Sites:
Website: https://www.13thfloorentertainment.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/13thfloorentertainment
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/13thfloorentertainment/
Visions of Atlantis Setlist: (Album)
To Those Who Choose to Fight (Pirates II Armada)
The Land of the Free (Pirates II Armada)
Monsters (Pirates II Armada)
Heroes of the Dawn (Wanderers)
Clocks (Pirates)
Legion of the Seas (Pirates)
Tonight I’m Alive (Pirates II Armada)
Collide (Pirates II Armada)
Hellfire (Pirates II Armada)
Where the Sky and Ocean Blend (Pirates II Armada)
Underwater (Pirates II Armada)
Magic of the Night (Pirates II Armada)
Pirates Will Return (Pirates)
Melancholy Angel (Pirates)
Master the Hurricane (Pirates)
Armada (Pirates II Armada)
Seraina Telli Setlist: (Album)
Addicted to Color (Addicted to Color)
Wish You Well (Addicted to Color)
I’m Not Sorry (Simple Talk)
Take Care (Simple Talk)
I Dare to (Simple Talk)
All Your Tears (Addicted to Color)
Song for the Girls (Addicted to Color)
Monkey & Zookeeper (Addicted to Color)
Modern Warrior (Simple Talk)
Spiritual Suicide Setlist:
China
Alone I Die
Idiocracy
Millennial
The That Love Escapes Me
