Customer Reviews

Heaven Shall Burn: Bildersturm - Iconoclast II

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The concept of a live dvd that a band puts out is pretty much what most expect: a full concert, documentary, maybe some little extras like bonus live footage, music videos, etc. The way Heaven Shall Burn pulled it off is pretty spot on and then some. You get two full concerts, both with amazing audio quality as the Summerbreeze audio was mixed by longtime friend and former bandmate Patrick W. Engel, and the Vienna audio was mixed by Tue Madsen (Mnemic, Threat Signal, Aborted) who also mixed & mastered the Antigone and Iconoclast albums. The extras are split between the two discs as disc 1 features the "Leitmotiv" Documentary, and all of the band's music videos while disc 2 features bonus extras as tour diaries, backstage footage, and more. The only disappointment (and this has nothing to do with the dvd itself) is that Century Media didn't bother putting out the cd version of Bildersturm in the US for some reason. I guess that instead there's a limited edition which has the two dvd's and the cd, but it's an import. So anybody that wants to buy the limited edition better have a region free dvd player.

"Bildersturm: Iconoclast Part II - The Visual Resistance" comes packed with stuff for HSB-fans.

The first DVD, "Joel", contains a full concert from Summer Breeze, running about an hour long. The audio hits hard, and there are plenty of cameras to cover the action. The audience was kept at their toes that night, including two "Walls Of Death".

On the same disc you get a documentary that's just over an hour in length (it's completely in German but English subtitles are included), showing the real people in the band expressing their own thoughts and living out their own lives - you'll get to see their jobs, how they record and practice, and learn just how meticulous and caring guys they all are. They're animal and people-lovers, vegan, anti-nazi and anti-fascist. Nice to see. The documentary is visually fascinating as well, and ends with some nice bloopers. It's definitely not just your average band sit-down session.

Included on the first disc are also four music videos.

The second DVD, "Amarthius", contains an even longer concert shot in Wienna, and even though it contains virtually the same songs (albeit in different order), it's still one hell of a show. Again, Eric (or Marcus, who really knows?) keeps the crowd alive and divides them into a "Wall Of Death". Both video and sound quality hold up well, even though the camera seems a bit more frantic at times and the sound just a tad more "distant" - turn it up and play it on a big screen and it'll rock your entire household though. There are optional subtitles for what Eric says in and inbetween songs, for those of us who aren't fluent in German yet. They're small and flash by quickly though, so be ready to read.

Included is also a "making of Wienna"-featurette, which is basically a montage of the show being set up and prepared for. It runs for about six minutes.

There are also some mixed bonus features on the second disc (sadly none of which are subtitled), the first being "Metal Cooking", which is the main part of the band (Eric/Marcus not included) cooking some food. Not the most common extra, but without knowing what's said, it's basically just a German home video of cooking. There are two "studio diaries", one from Europe and one from the U.S (which I felt there was no sense in watching without subtitles). "Backstage and more" is the same thing, a montage of the guys in the band while not on stage. "Osnabrück 2008 - Live Medley" is not quite what it sounds like, just a short video demonstrating that they were in Osnabrück and did a live medley on a small stage.
To finish things off, there's an "Online band practice", showing the band members (with the screen split into five) practicing a few complete songs unplugged (with Eric "whispering" the vocals). This is a pretty interesting way to see the band mellowed-out, and might be a little bit helpful for anyone practicing their songs on an instrument.

This live DVD was awesome. Lots of excitement. I am not so familiar with this band, but they put on a great show in this DVD. The songs are insane with the vocals and instruments. This is something you must watch if you are a metal fan.

This DVD is a great opportunity to see this great metal band in their element performing in some great European shows. I am a huge fan of bands like this and don't get to see them often perform in Europe so I was very excited to buy this. They truly deliver also...these bands are so talented and very underrated due to their lack of exposure in the American metal scene. The documentary section is kinda cool because you can see how such a unique band gets its start. The two shows they have on each DVD is interesting in its own right. One show is them playing at a huge festival, the other one them playing at a venue where they are the main event and fans are literally going nuts over them(way more than in any metal show i've been to in America). Some of the crowd antics such as circle pits and wall of death are a display of how much more intense the metal scene in Europe truly is. If you don't know what these are then you need to see them in action on this DVD it is some fun stuff.