<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Emperor on DVD wins!
Review: I don't quite understand how one gentleman claimed that the video suffered from a "bootleg quality" transfer, though he was reviewing the VHS version. The DVD version is crystal clear, and the sound is many times better than on any of Emperor's studio recordings! Every instrument shines in the mix. While the material is presented very well, Emperial Live Ceremony is still a one-take, full performance. Ihsahn's vocals waiver off-key during his cleans, and some transitions stagger throughout. Of course, the problems aren't significant enough to keep myself as well as other black metal fans from enjoying the video.
Rating:
Summary: a must for emperor fans despite a few things
Review: I still consider Nightwish's DVD to be the most perfect Concert DVD from a metal band ever. Compared to the entirely professional feel of that disc, or even the Vader dvd, this dvd's production feels a bit less pro than those, but the sound quality is perfect and the video quality is mostly perfect except for a few seconds before one song they use one of those filter effects that makes it look like it was shot on some ancient camera. And the last track "loss and curse of rev" isn't performed; its the same one as on the "Anthems" disc which, to me, isnt a bad thing. It does seem to look better on the dvd though, and sound a bit better. I bought this dvd partially for the music video because I love it...one of the most atmospheric videos I've ever seen (once you forget about the "I" shaped border still surrounding it.) The camera shots are like the main reason I say this feels less professional than those other 2 dvds mentioned. I'm a big fan of Trym, and there are several shots of him doin his thing, but there could have been a few more, especially during the breakdown of "Ye Entrancemperium", which is when he does the fastest blast of the concert. Yea I too have mixed feelings about the MTV-style video overlay montage during that part as well. I think it would have been preferable to just show the raw video, ANDD THE DRUMMER!!! RRGUGMFHGHGHR!!!!. Oh yea, last nitpick: I run my sound through the Klipsch 5.1 system (intended for PC use) where the amp is built into the sub, and I had to crank the volume all the way to max (80db) to get reasonably good sound level. I guess if you have a different setup with a real amp you can go higher and get it good and loud, but yes, the production level is a bit low, even for a DVD. Just turn the sucker up and it should be fine. Overall, if you like Emperor, this is a worthy dvd that you should enjoy. (And on a personal note: I think it's cool how they have custom Emperor logo'd garbs so they all match up and look like they are serious. That's also what I like about Vader's concert dvd--the appearance they give...no stupid jumping around and running around the stage like idiots, or mismatched clothes. They are color coordinated (black!) and are positioned in a diamond formation like so:
...................................drummer............
...................guitar............................bass..
................................vocal/guitar.......... and are focused on their playing rather than being "showy", a la KISS (bleh).
Rating:
Summary: a must for emperor fans despite a few things
Review: I still consider Nightwish's DVD to be the most perfect Concert DVD from a metal band ever. Compared to the entirely professional feel of that disc, or even the Vader dvd, this dvd's production feels a bit less pro than those, but the sound quality is perfect and the video quality is mostly perfect except for a few seconds before one song they use one of those filter effects that makes it look like it was shot on some ancient camera. And the last track "loss and curse of rev" isn't performed; its the same one as on the "Anthems" disc which, to me, isnt a bad thing. It does seem to look better on the dvd though, and sound a bit better. I bought this dvd partially for the music video because I love it...one of the most atmospheric videos I've ever seen (once you forget about the "I" shaped border still surrounding it.) The camera shots are like the main reason I say this feels less professional than those other 2 dvds mentioned. I'm a big fan of Trym, and there are several shots of him doin his thing, but there could have been a few more, especially during the breakdown of "Ye Entrancemperium", which is when he does the fastest blast of the concert. Yea I too have mixed feelings about the MTV-style video overlay montage during that part as well. I think it would have been preferable to just show the raw video, ANDD THE DRUMMER!!! RRGUGMFHGHGHR!!!!. Oh yea, last nitpick: I run my sound through the Klipsch 5.1 system (intended for PC use) where the amp is built into the sub, and I had to crank the volume all the way to max (80db) to get reasonably good sound level. I guess if you have a different setup with a real amp you can go higher and get it good and loud, but yes, the production level is a bit low, even for a DVD. Just turn the sucker up and it should be fine. Overall, if you like Emperor, this is a worthy dvd that you should enjoy. (And on a personal note: I think it's cool how they have custom Emperor logo'd garbs so they all match up and look like they are serious. That's also what I like about Vader's concert dvd--the appearance they give...no stupid jumping around and running around the stage like idiots, or mismatched clothes. They are color coordinated (black!) and are positioned in a diamond formation like so:
...................................drummer............
...................guitar............................bass..
................................vocal/guitar.......... and are focused on their playing rather than being "showy", a la KISS (bleh).
Rating:
Summary: Just because it's a must-have doesn't mean I can't nitpick
Review: I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with the professionalism of this disc -- anyone labeling it a bootleg is an unadulterated moron. As others have noted, the sound and video quality rule, the musicianship and performances rule (well, except the clean singing; there are a few moments where Ihsahn starts out trying to hit a high note and then transitions to a grim scream when he realizes he can't make it), even the hired guns (bass and keyboards) rule. So what nits are there to pick? Allow me: (1) The disc is way too Ihsahn-centric. Although it's fun to watch him screech, squawk, and growl, the camera lingers on him to an extent that can only be termed excessive. Also, he has an irritating habit of introducing each song with its title and album like a second-rate radio disc jockey -- as if the fans at the show wouldn't have been able to identify any of the songs unaided?? (2) Despite the status of Trym's superhuman drumming as the show's hands-down most impressive visual, regrettably we are given surprisingly few glimpses of this hyperdextrous display. As an aspiring wannabe drummer, I was disappointed with how little screen time Trym gets. (3) Whenever a song hits a high-speed breakdown (e.g. the finale of "Ye Entrancemperium" or the climax of "With Strength I Burn"), the video's director shifts from regular photography to a jarring, MTVesque "blitzkrieg" montage style in which we never see a given shot for more than 1 - 2 frames. Although I admit that it thematically matches the music very well, and understand exactly why they did it, I nevertheless found it annoying because it's precisely during those rip-roaring passages that it would be most interesting to simply see the band do its thing, gimmick-free. (4) "The Loss and Curse of Reverence" is listed as if it were included in the live performance, but in fact that chapter of the DVD is nothing more than the same music video that was included on the enhanced hybrid CD release of "Anthems." (5) A bit too much is shown of the concertgoers, the security guards, and the latter preventing the former from crowd-surfing and stage-diving; given the attractiveness(!) of the average black metal fan, this gets old quickly. But don't let me get you down; my entire review assumes you'll buy the disc anyway, because you should! It kick ass!
Rating:
Summary: CURSE YOU if you do not have this DVD
Review: If you are a real emperor fan, then you probably already this DVD. If you are not into emperor, then this dvd will make you a fan. It is a great concert in your living room. It is a real blast to watch over and over again. It is rather short in lenghth though. As others have stated, the sound is way too low and you will have to turn the sound up high. Warning: 80% of this footage is of the singer, 10% of the audience, 5% is of the drummer, the other 5% is of the other 2 members. That means that if you are a fan of any particular member other than the singer, you will not see much of them. The footage is almost MTV style and any of the individual song performances could easily be shown on Mtv as a music video. I found the singer to be really strange. He would be really evil and sinister sometimes. Other times he would forget he was supposed to act evil and nerdly say "i wunt you to rilly bang yo heads on dis one." How come everytime he mentions the album "ix equilibrium," he will jerk his head up really fast?
I always laugh at that part. Also there is a really funny part. Everyone knows what i am talking about :"I am the challenger of gravit-teeeheeeeeeee-oowww"
I have all the emperor cds but never really considered myself real fan. This DVD changed that for me and now i think i will go back and learn all the lyrics to all the songs. i would have gave this DVD 5 stars if it wasnt for the low sound level.
Rating:
Summary: WOW! Makes me wish I'd seen them in person!
Review: If you were one of the few who got to see Emperor's first (and it would now appear, last) US tour - lucky [people]! - then you already experienced what I had to discover here: the band's incredible ability to pull off such insanely complex material live. However, since they saw fit to not come anywhere near Florida (thanks a lot, guys), I've had to make do with this excellent alternative. Performance wise, this is absolutely stunning, and only reinforces the Emp-dudes immortal status as the Mozarts (or Wagners, or Paganinis...you get the picture) of black metal. OK, they make a couple of minor screw-ups: Ihsahn's voice gives out on him towards the end of "An Elegy of Icaros" (it's more funny than anything else) and they sound like they're a little out-of-sync at the beginning of "Thus Spake the Nightspirit". But hey, so what? Tom Araya can't seem to remember entire verses anymore, so let it go. And the band are lively and visually exciting on stage; this had to have been a really killer show! The camera work and picture quality are excellent, and the sound is probably as good or even better than their studio albums. My only gripes are with the DVD itself: 1) the volume is recorded very low and requires cranking the stereo all the way up to play it loud, and the Dolby Digital signal seems to only come through the center channel (although I noticed that no one else here complained about that, so I'm suspecting that there may be something amiss with my particular copy), and 2) "The Loss and Curse of Reverence" is the same promo clip featured on the enhanced CD of "Anthems...", which actually wouldn't be so bad IF IT HADN"T BEEN IN THE SAME CHEEZY AVI QUALITY WITH THAT "I"-SHAPED BORDER AROUND IT! This is a DVD, man; lemme see the video the way it was meant to be seen! Still, it rules...buy it!
Rating: 
Summary: Bootleg quality
Review: The Video which is also available on Cd is as fast paced and black in aggression; true to the Emperor style which fans like myself truly appreciate. Not for the faint hearted. "Hard Rock" fans stay away. The big disappointment throught the Vhs version is the poor tape quality which is rough and hard to the eye. The sound did also drop out many times to my disappointment. The Cd version though does not suffer from the bootleg faults of the Vhs and its sound is 100% better with kicking bass, expect the much improved quality sound and picture from the DVD. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Bootleg quality
Review: The Video which is also available on Cd is as fast paced and black in aggression; true to the Emperor style which fans like myself truly appreciate. Not for the faint hearted. "Hard Rock" fans stay away. The big disappointment throught the Vhs version is the poor tape quality which is rough and hard to the eye. The sound did also drop out many times to my disappointment. The Cd version though does not suffer from the bootleg faults of the Vhs and its sound is 100% better with kicking bass, expect the much improved quality sound and picture from the DVD. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Emperor remains untouchable.
Review: This DVD crushes the whole way through. Ihsahn although he misses a few notes and gets a tad off-key with his clean singing delivers. My only gripes are: the concert's way too short, not enough old stuff (most of the songs came off of Emperor's past 2 albums), and I think there's just a little bit too much footage of Ihsahn and not enough of Samoth. But the good things about this DVD greatly out-weigh the bad. The band is tight making hardly any noticeable mistakes. The sound is the best production EVER heard on an Emperor release, and the footage is clean and almost makes you feel like you're there. I'd have to say if you are just remotely into Black Metal, check out this DVD. Up the Emperor!!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Awesome. A must-have for many Black Metal fans
Review: Yeah the tracklist was a bit questionable, the length a bit short (well, when it comes to Emperor, it could last 2 hours and I'd still be wanting more hehe). But what amazed me more than the video quality was 1- The sound and 2- the instrumental mastery and performance.
This gig gotta have one of the most perfect sounds I've ever heard when listening to a Black Metal band LIVE. I'm usually a big fan of Emperor's studio sound, but then I was deeply impressed by what they achieved on stage. Except the bass guitar (which I found too low), the match is just amazing. They might have made a few mistakes, and there might have been some studio overdubs, but anyway this is a must.
As to the instrumental performance, well, I was really surprised. I'm not saying Black Metal bands can't play live, but I have attended dozens and dozens of Black Metal gigs, and I must say each time I was always slighty disappointed by the overall instrumental mastery of the musicians on stage. But there its just astonishing; Ihsahn, Trym, Samoth and the rest just excel (especially considering the complex guitar parts) and you can feel a real communion between them. Order it - Order it now :-)
<< 1 >>
| 
