Blackfield, a music collaborative formed by Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson and Israeli rocker Aviv Geffen have gone on tour around Europe in support of their latest album, ‘V’.
We caught Aviv & Blackfield at the Islington Assembly Hall in London on Friday and enjoyed 90 minutes of pure music escapism.
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
At this large yet very cosy venue, Blackfield’s sound was warm and bassy.
Switching from playing on an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar and keys, frontman Aviv also took the time to speak to the crowd, introduce the talented band members and give some background on some of the songs.
Before breaking into the song ‘Blood’, Aviv referred to the horrific terror attack in Manchester and dedicated the song to the 22 victims and their beloved ones. His keyboard was decorated by 22 led-candles, with respect to their memory.
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Being the progressive rock band that they are, we got the expected good dose of heavy yet super tasteful guitar riffs and odd time signatures, mixed with soft ballads and soulful melodies. Lead guitarist Omri Agmon showcased his talent with his unique sound and tasteful playing, perfectly complementing the musical production throughout the night.
Aviv Geffen & Omri Agmon, Photo by Gili Dailes
Blackfield, photo by Gili Dailes
With a more or less equal distribution of songs from all of Blackfield’s albums, there was enough of the old material to enjoy along with the new, unfamiliar songs from the band’s latest album.
The night took an energy turn when Aviv invited Steven Wilson to join him on stage for 3 songs, at this point the everyone were on their feet (including those in the sitting wings).
Together, they’ve played the all time favourites ‘Blackfield’, ‘Pain’ and ‘Once’, which were followed by ‘Hello’- when Steven got off the stage and Aviv was fronting the show solely again.
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
After a short break, Aviv and the band returned to the stage for the encore which included two songs from Aviv’s Israeli music repertoire- but translated to English.
The songs- political, harsh and criticising, were surprisingly relevant even tonight in London, despite being written in an entirely different country more than 20 years ago.
Listen to Blackfield’s new album ‘V’ here
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Photo by Gili Dailes
Aviv Geffen ft. Blackfield, Islington Assembly Hall, London
May 26th 2017
Photos by Gili Dailes
Words by Nanneq