By: Jay Broderik (see what I did there?)
Toronto, Canada - 888 Yonge Street. The corner of Yonge and Davenport near the heart of the city. The building that sits on this corner is known around these parts as The Concert Hall. Man, do I have a ton of stories about this venue. Like the story of when I almost died when I saw my first thrash show, Megadeth, at this very venue. Well, IT'S BACK! I haven't seen a show here since August 31, 1992, when I saw White Zombie open up for Pantera. As I entered this venue on March 3, 2025, to check out the Folkfest of the North Tour with Korpiklaani, Ensiferum, Trollfest, and NiNi, the memories came flooding back. It feels super cool to be back in this venue.
I'll profess... I don't always know every band at every show, but typically, I'll know at least one. Admittedly, all 4 band's on this tour are new to me, so I have no real idea on what to expect. As it turns out, this was going to be a real eye-opener.
NiNI
Presented by Toronto metal music promoting legends Inertia Entertainment, this 4 band, co-headlining tour had an early start. With the doors opening at 5:30, the show seemingly started without warning. I hadn't noticed the time, but standing around chatting with my fellow photogs, the opening act NiNi came out, and it was on. Now this was completely new to me. The band's Taiwanese frontwoman NiNi had a traditional Chinese Ruan in hand. A 4 stringed plucking instrument, the Ruan has been around for millennia, and frankly, I have never heard this instrument being played in real life. Now, take this ancient instrument, and fuse it with metal? WOW! What a completely unique sound. During the set, the band even throws out an Asian style jam, "cheers" the crowd, and rock out with some great fun.
NiNi (the frontwoman), thanks the crowd and tells them they are so amazing, and then drop the last track of their set, "... Baby One More Time". Yes, that Britney Spears track! And with it's traditional, metal fusion, they kill it. And a little drum solo closes out a really different set of music. Very interesting. Very cool!
Trollfest
Trollfest is a Norweigan folk metal band that has been around for 20 years. The band last played in Toronto at The Horseshoe Tavern in 2024, but prior to that, it seems as though they had a 9 year hiatus of playing this city. Amongst their plethora of music, one of the more recent tracks was 2022's "Dance Like a Pink Flamingo". And sure enough, one by one, the band heading out onto the stage, each wearing a pink flamingo get-up, with tutus, and the whole works. Hilarious! As soon as they start into their opening track, the 2022 aforementioned hit, the crowd goes into a frenzy.
There is a ton of crowd participation with Trollfest. Frequently getting them to cry out "Hey", like during the song "Essenfest", or singing "Ave Maria" during that song, the band is a complete gem for the audience. But the biggest laughs came from the floor being split in 2, one side standing and jumping, one side sitting. When vocalist Trollmannen sings "switcheroo", the standing side sits, and the sitting side stands, and jumps. And then, as is with every show the band performs, bassist Böesse Basshöl heads out into the crowd, and starts a conga line. You read that right folks! A conga line winds it's way through the Concert Hall, even heading up to the balcony and back down.
Bordering on the edge of silliness, this was a TON of FUN! The crowd loved it, and the band was having a hoot!
Ensiferum
Folkfest of the North is a co-headlining tour between Finnish folk Gods, Ensiferum and Korpiklaani. Tonight, Ensiferum plays the undercard. When the band comes out and leads into their opening song "Fatherland", I'm blown away by the power. Speed, growls, guttural vocals. Now this is the music of the Norse Gods that I was expecting. The band hits hard out of the gate, and all 3 members on the frontline move back and forth across the stage, trading places, and full of energy. With the crowd roaring and hands in the air, the band sounds great!
As the band progresses through their set, the four guys in front of the kit all share in the duties of vocals. Keyboardist Pekka Montin even comes out from behind the keyboards to front stage, singing and engaging. Man, these guys are good!
The crowd at this whole show has been loud and engaged, but there isn't a ton of moshing and crowd surfing. That is until Ensiferum's track "Lai Lai Hei". While the song starts out somewhat gentle, the tempo picks up midway through and the crowd bursts into a mosh pit, and I witness the first surfer. This one whips them up, and at the end of the track, bassist/vocalist Sami Hinkka yells out "You guys are fucking loud! The next one's a new song again, 'The Howl'".
Set List
Fatherland
Twilight Tavern
Treacherous Gods
Winter Storm Vigilantes
Lai Lai Hei
The Howl
Run From the Crushing Tide
Andromeda
Leniret Coram Tempestate
Victorious
Wanderer
Rum, Women, Victory
In My Sword I Trust
Two of Spades
The lighting for Ensiferum was also spot on! Man, some of the best lighting I've ever had the pleasure of shooting with at a concert. Even after my shooting commenced, and I stood back to watch the rest of the show, I was blown away by the flashing, and spinning lights up on the stage. Add the band's performance, the constant headbanging by Hinkka and guitarist/vocalist Petri Lindroos, and the energy from the crowd, at least one new fan was born!
Korpiklaani
Holding the duty as headliner for the Toronto show was another Finnish folk metal band, Korpiklaani. And these guys were different still. The standard bassist, guitarist, drummer and singer were accompanied by a violinist and an accordion player. As the band started into "Rankarumpu", I immediately thought 'Korpiklaani, where have you been all my life??' With the band's brand of folk metal, there is also a distinct Celtic Rock sound. Bands like The Mahones or Dropkick Murphy's come to mind. And damn, it's bloody cool as hell! The music is fast, upbeat, danceable, and just plain amazing!
The band plows through their first 5 songs. The energy from accordion player Sami Perttula and violinist Olli Vanska are unmatched. They are literally running all over the place. Even drummer Samuli Mikkonen frequently stands and urges on the crowd, who respond by singing, dancing (at a metal show???), clapping, and having the time of their lives. Again, not a ton of moshing or crowd surfing, but things in that regard break out occasionally.
There is not a ton of interaction with the crowd from singer Jonne Järvelä. The occasional "How are you doing?" and "It's good to be back!" (the band played The Phoenix in April 2024), were thrown out, but I think that was a bit of a language barrier. Anyway, who the fuck cares about banter when you've got violins, accordions and heavy metal???
Set List
Rankarumpu
A Man With a Plan
Saunaan
Happy Little Boozer
Ievan polkka
Rauta
Aita
Oraakkelit
Kalmisto
Tuli kokko
Vaarinpolkka
Pidot
Leväluhta
Gotta Go Home (Boney M. cover)
Iron Fist (Motörhead cover)
Sahti
Tequila
Vodka
I thought Ensiferum was amazing, and with the timing, the headliner's only had about 75 minutes left for their set. I really thought Korpiklaani had their work cut out for them. Ensiferum was a tough act to follow. But boy, was I wrong! Korpiklaani was mind blowing. Even with a thrown in cover of Motorhead's "Iron Fist", how could things possibly go wrong? Well, they didn't!
What an insane mix of musical styles at this show. Thank you NiNi, Trollfest, Ensiferum and Korpiklaani. And oh Concert Hall, how I have missed thee!
Concert Photo Gallery
Korpiklaani Online
show date: March 3, 2025
Comments