On Tuesday night at the National in Richmond, VA, my very favorite Swedish metal visionaries, Avatar, proved once again that few metal bands understand live performance as they do. Their “Don’t Go in the Forest” tour stop in Richmond felt less like a traditional concert and more like a theatrical journey into controlled, delightful chaos—equal parts horror carnival, death metal spectacle, and celebration. Supported by Texas death metal crushers Frozen Soul and Italy’s symphonic extremists Fleshgod Apocalypse, this stop on Avatar’s tour delivered nearly four hours of energy, musicianship, and off-the-charts atmosphere.
Frozen Soul opened the night with a set that hit like a punch to the face. Hailing from Ft. Worth, Texas, Frozen Soul’s (Chad Green, Michael Munday, Samantha Mobley, Matt Dennard, and Chris Bonner) death metal immediately set a punishing tone for the night. Frontman Chad Green worked the audience with the experience; he connected with the crowd through his booming voice and somewhat surprising heart.
The band performed shrouded in darkness at the National—this was unfortunate as it obscured the full charisma of Green’s stage presence and made capturing that charisma challenging. Nonetheless, his raw, death metal vocals pierced the darkness and hit the crowd like an ice storm.
There was no elaborate stage production, no unnecessary tricks, just pure heaviness delivered with icy force. Even early on Tuesday night, circle pits had already begun opening across the floor; the dedicated metal fans hurled themselves into chaos created by Frozen Soul. Frozen Soul’s latest album is appropriately titled No Place of Warmth, released this year.
Once Frozen Soul left the stage, I stood on the main floor, chatting with the other photographer covering the gig along with a friendly member of the security staff. While the stage was being set up for the next band, I noticed a piano positioned on stage. Then I realized Mozart was playing over the house sound system. Then I recognized the Spring movement of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. Very intrigued, I wondered what was in store for us.
Avatar has always had a knack for bringing interesting bands along as support for their tours. They continue this trend with Italian symphonic death metal band Fleshgod Apocalypse (Francesco Paoli, Francesco Ferrini, Veronica Bordacchini, Fabio Bartoletti, and Eugene Ryabchenko). They took the stage by placing vocalist Bordacchini front and center, dressed in a stunning, elaborate costume and holding an Italian flag in her right hand. Her operatic voice is gorgeous.
Performing songs from across their catalog (the band’s latest is 2024’s Opera), Fleshgod Apocalypse’s combination of death metal and operatic grandeur sounded enormous inside the National. Sweeping symphonic arrangements collided with driving beats, death-metal vocals, and Italian passion, producing a sound that is elegantly violent. Fleshgod Apocalypse delivers a different kind of theatricality than Avatar’s, leaning into gothic drama and classical flourishes rather than dark carnival spectacle. They’re a great fit for this tour and a delight to photograph.
Once Avatar took the stage at 9:30 p.m., the entire room transformed.
The room darkened, and the fans heard the rumble of an approaching thunderstorm, while the stage was bathed in blue light. The suspense built until the red curtains at the back of the stage opened and the Swedish metal gods (Jonas Jarlsby, John Alfredsson, Johannes Eckerström, Tim Öhrström, and Henrik Sandelin) rolled through the dark to the front of the stage on a moving platform, drum riser coming together behind them. Lit only by a lantern held aloft by frontman Eckerström, the men took their places on stage and launched into the sea shanty “Captain Goat,” from the latest album Don’t Go In the Forest.
The men immediately had the audience eating out of their collective hands. Eckerström has mastered his twisted circus-ringmaster persona, grinning wildly beneath his face paint while commanding the stage with a charisma that recalls greats like Rob Halford. Few vocalists in metal possess his ability to simultaneously balance menace, humor, theatrical storytelling, and genuine emotional connection.
As I write this, I chuckle to myself, remembering the first time I saw Avatar, back in 2019. Then, I was genuinely a little intimidated by Eckerström’s on-stage presence—like the possibility of real danger was just beyond my camera lens. In 2026, I’m not intimidated anymore. The madness is always delivered with a wink and heart.
But I digress. Avatar sounded phenomenal throughout the night, but that’s nothing unusual. Guitarists Jonas Jarlsby and Tim Öhrström delivered sharp performances filled with massive grooves and melody, while bassist Henrik Sandelin and drummer John Alfredsson locked everything together with rhythmic energy.
The band played for two hours and with a set that included songs like “Silence in the Age of Apes,” “The Eagle Has Landed,” and “Bloody Angel.” On this tour, the band has been switching up the seventh song in the set at each show. The Richmond crowd was treated to “A Secret Door” in that slot. “Death and Glitz” and “Smells Like a Freakshow” turned the venue into absolute pandemonium. I was delighted to hear my personal favorite, “Torn Apart.” As a side note, it was fun to finally see the “Tragedy with Tits” t-shirt (a reference to “Death and Glitz”) at the merch stand.
Avatar’s new material fits seamlessly into the show alongside older favorites, demonstrating how adept the Swedes are at evolving without losing the DNA that makes them Avatar. Their music remains technically impressive, heavy, and just plain fun.
But it’s the theatrical presentation that truly elevates Avatar. Each tour brings some new twists, some new stage innovation—this tour brings us the split drum riser, for instance. Every gesture, every bit of light, and every pause between songs has purpose. Avatar understands that live metal should feel immersive and provide added value to their fans, and they deliver that experience better than just about everyone else touring today.
If you’ve gotten this far, you may be asking yourself, Rachel, why should we believe you? We know you are an Avatar fangirl, so of course, you’re going to be full of praise. Yes, that is all true; however, I’m also 100% correct. Few things in life can be relied on to deliver over and over again. One of those things is an Avatar show.
I would be remiss, however, if I failed to mention the devotion of Avatar’s fans, many of whom I know were lined up at the venue since at least early afternoon. I was fortunate enough to have balcony access Tuesday night, and from my perch at the side of the stage, I could see it all. The floor rarely stopped moving, fists pumped in unison, and crowd surfers floated toward the barricade, many screaming every lyric with huge smiles on their faces. Despite the metal chaos, the atmosphere, as usual, remained warm and communal. It’s an environment Avatar seems uniquely capable of creating.
By the time the night closed with the favorite “Hail the Apocalypse,” the Richmond crowd looked exhausted, but also exhilarated and totally satisfied. Avatar invited Richmond into their delightful nightmare carnival, and the fans happily followed them deep into the woods. The Don’t Go in the Forest” tour wraps up in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, on May 20. From there, they head back to Europe for a summer of festival performances and gigs in support of Metallica. Then, in August, they take the circus to Australia.
FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE
FROZEN SOUL
