Negative - In The Eye Of The Hurricane DVD

The live show on this DVD was recorded during the ‘Anorectic’ tour in Negative’s home town of Tampere on 8th December 2006.   It had been eighteen months since the band had played to the home crowd, and the excitement from the predominantly young female crowd is electric from the outset.  The set list unsurprisingly concentrates on the ‘Anorectic’ album, but also features many of the band’s hits, notably the chart toppers ‘The Moment of Our Love’ from the debut album and my personal favourite ‘Frozen to Lose It All’ from ‘Sweet and Deceitful’.  The band is excellent throughout, and they should be commended for taking a “warts and all” approach and avoiding any post production overdubs for the main concert.  However, Jonne’s vocals are quite strained and frequently flat.   Of course, this could be because they were approaching the end of a lengthy tour, or it could be that the excitement of playing the home town got the better of him.  On the basis of their live show at Swedenrock this year, they have obviously moved up a gear, or it could quite simply be that his vocal technique has improved in two years.  Time is, after all, on his side, and one only has to look to the development of chirpy German power metallers Edguy for a similar comparison.

Disc 2 features an interview, band biographies (two of which are missing), and a huge Extras section.   The interview is conducted with the band members in pairs.  There are subtitles, of course, and it provides information about how the band formed and gives an insight into the general personalities of each of its members.  

The Extras section has a long documentary which has four viewing options: Finnish; Finnish with subtitles; with commentary in Finnish by the band, and with commentary plus subtitles.  The commentary by the band is much funnier that just watching the documentary straight.   There is plenty of footage gathered by the band over the years since 1998 when Jonne was a mere 15 years old and they were playing their first gigs at a Youth Centre because they were all under age.  Their playing skills weren’t that hot, but the energy, enthusiasm and promise were definitely there. 

There are lots of high jinks which is natural when a bunch of exuberant young men go off on an elongated holiday together, and one particularly hysterical incident in Tallinn, Estonia where Sir Christus commandeers the grand piano in reception and Larry joins him in entertaining the breakfasting guests with ‘Black Sabbath’.  Their efforts are soon thwarted by a stern security guard who orders them to turn off the camera, too.  Needless to say they don’t.   A photo gallery and fan videos complete this section.  The good thing about fan videos is that the band is more likely to behave naturally and get up to some stuff they wouldn’t do during a “formal” shoot, so they are entertaining to watch.    

If you are not already familiar with Negative, I would recommend seeing them live first, as the concert on Disc 1 is unlikely to create a positive impression.  For existing Negative fans, this is essential as a matter of completeness.