Review of the S.Alquimista

Taken from the 'Burning Suns' mailing list:

"It was a triumphant return to the stage after almost one year.
Forgotten Suns debuted their new line-up (Linx, Ricardo Falcão and Sammy are now joined by bassist Nuno Correia and the original FS keyboardist Miguel Valadares). The band was very loosen and seemingly having fun, as if they had never stopped playing live. They had also the advantage of playing in a great venue, with a crystal clear sound, to an audience that seemed conquered from the first notes.

The concert was marked by this complicity, and by the several surprises Forgotten Suns had up their sleeves. Most noticed was the new song "Flashback". A short (unfinished?) song making us foresee a heavier sound on the next album. It seemed to definitely please the audience, from what I heard after the show. Linx sang reading, the lyrics, and they speak of awakening our consciousnesses to the world we live in, to ourselves, to our mistakes, to what we are or wished we have been...“As time is slipping I clearly see / That things we don't care for / Are all that really matters”Another surprise was the video projection during the concert. A work by Marta Machado, evoking visually some Forgotten Suns' themes. It was like a kaleidoscope where we could see X (the Snooze character) played by a man with a white mask, walking through decadent and desolated landscapes. There were CGI images, some abstract, some simulating a kind of voyage through the human nervous system. And many short films like those illustrating "Strange Affair with the Night", where the day/night dichotomy was again explored as in the promo video, but now with different images. "Flashback" was dominated by the portrait of an elder couple, over images of war. "Betrayed" (the only song from "Fiction Edge" being played in Santiago Alquimista) was illustrated by images of innocence, like merry-go-rounds and musical boxes, all shown within an old fashioned golden frame.It's an idea being developed, giving Forgotten Suns a stronger multimedia side. Linx told me it's still being tested, and this film will be more elaborated in the future, linking even better with the songs. For now I can only congratulate Marta Machado for making the concert become a more complete experience.

Last words to the band's new sound.
The songs have many new details. I remember especially the drums, where Sammy keeps offering a lot for those who crave for detail (For instance his solo in "Struggle" just before what I call the Arabic section, not present in the CD).
Nuno Correia brought to the band a more melodic bass that seemed to dialogue much more with the guitar. Ricardo Falcão was the perfect lead man, as always, while Linx showed an incredible energy, and a voice that seems to be getting better and better. Finally about Miguel Valadares I say this: if music was measured in dimensions, Forgotten Suns have just added another one.We're waiting for more concerts.

The future seems bright.

As for the set list, it was:
Pay The Price
Senses
Strange Affair With The Night
Struggle
Flashback
Betrayed

Please notice (and this was the night's third surprise), "Betrayed" was played live for the first time in its longer version, that including the "famous" missing section no one had ever heard live before. It felt nice to hear something new... but that at the same time seemed to be already part of us."