Conan concert report 5/3/2026
I'm in the club, listening to the brown note.
New year, new shows, same old me. It’s been a week since I got to see Conan live, but I’m only just getting around to actually writing about it. Admittedly, more factors than procrastination factored into this, some of them directly related to the show itself, but that’s to be discussed over the course of this report, so do be patient.
I’m uncertain as to whether I’ve mentioned it before, but Thessaloniki as a city has always been about black, thrash, and heavy/power metal, in no particular order. Stuff like death and sludge are in woefully short supply, with the only instance of a sludge band having come over recently being Eyehategod back in 2025, a time where I wasn’t in the country, let alone the city itself. As you can imagine, seeing an ad for Conan playing here was cause for excitement. The Scouse trio’s primitive brand of sludge, riffy and amplifier worshipping in equal measure, has been something that I’d grown quite fond of over the years, especially during those sweltering Greek summers, where I am in need of music capable of matching the swampy atmosphere. Admittedly, the early days of spring, where the weather becomes a touch chillier again following the passing of the halcyon days isn't the ideal weather to enjoy such music in, but I’d be hard-pressed to say no to a night of huge riffs.
Excitement mounted as the date approached, and I headed down to the Eightball club in as lively a jaunt as I could muster on a Thursday, especially one where I’d have to go to work the next day. Upon turning the corner to get to the club, I
noticed that the alley was rather empty, roughly 20 people scattered around waiting to get in the venue. To anyone who has read my report of the Mortuary Drape show, I’ve long since made known my trepidation about shows with little attendance, and I quietly shuffled my way into the club, perturbed by the fact that I wasn’t even told to wait in line.
As I sat in the empty venue, my mind couldn’t help but think back to the Catch-22 Thessaloniki has locked itself in when it comes to live shows. How are we supposed to get more bigger bands if we don’t show up for the smaller ones? Its older residents lust after a past where both big and small bands showed up here, but they’ve shirked attending shows of smaller artists for reasons unknown. Seeing the smaller turnouts, it’s not far-fetched to think that whichever band stops here will eventually skip the city over in favour of Athens, and the cycle will continue. The wider metropolitan area of Thessaloniki boasts a million people, and you’re telling me there weren’t enough people interested in seeing one of the heaviest bands around? As I’ve said, the Eightball is a small venue, it’s genuinely astounding that it was at quarter capacity that night, and that’s me being generous. There was a guy who drove two hours to be there, and who’d have to make the drive home immediately after, there’s no excuse for people to not show up.
I spent the past two paragraphs lamenting the attendance, because it made me realise just how important having a good crowd is to making a show fun and memorable. You could have the most exciting and blood-pumping band on the planet firing on all cylinders for 90 minutes straight, and it wouldn’t mean shit if you were the only one banging your head at the barrier. The pit was so empty that
some random ladies from a nearby club showed up and just started grooving there, and they were arguably more energetic than the black-clad people who paid to be there. It was a tragic sight, and I can’t imagine what the band itself felt, despite all the “Thank yous” interspersed throughout the set. Live shows are energy being transmitted back and forth between artist and audience, and it’s rare that I’ve seen such a one-sided instance of that phenomenon.
I’m uncertain as to whether I’ve mentioned it before, but Thessaloniki as a city has always been about black, thrash, and heavy/power metal, in no particular order. Stuff like death and sludge are in woefully short supply, with the only instance of a sludge band having come over recently being Eyehategod back in 2025, a time where I wasn’t in the country, let alone the city itself. As you can imagine, seeing an ad for Conan playing here was cause for excitement. The Scouse trio’s primitive brand of sludge, riffy and amplifier worshipping in equal measure, has been something that I’d grown quite fond of over the years, especially during those sweltering Greek summers, where I am in need of music capable of matching the swampy atmosphere. Admittedly, the early days of spring, where the weather becomes a touch chillier again following the passing of the halcyon days isn't the ideal weather to enjoy such music in, but I’d be hard-pressed to say no to a night of huge riffs.
Excitement mounted as the date approached, and I headed down to the Eightball club in as lively a jaunt as I could muster on a Thursday, especially one where I’d have to go to work the next day. Upon turning the corner to get to the club, I
 |
| My ass shouldn't be able to go this far back for pictures. |
noticed that the alley was rather empty, roughly 20 people scattered around waiting to get in the venue. To anyone who has read my report of the Mortuary Drape show, I’ve long since made known my trepidation about shows with little attendance, and I quietly shuffled my way into the club, perturbed by the fact that I wasn’t even told to wait in line.
As I sat in the empty venue, my mind couldn’t help but think back to the Catch-22 Thessaloniki has locked itself in when it comes to live shows. How are we supposed to get more bigger bands if we don’t show up for the smaller ones? Its older residents lust after a past where both big and small bands showed up here, but they’ve shirked attending shows of smaller artists for reasons unknown. Seeing the smaller turnouts, it’s not far-fetched to think that whichever band stops here will eventually skip the city over in favour of Athens, and the cycle will continue. The wider metropolitan area of Thessaloniki boasts a million people, and you’re telling me there weren’t enough people interested in seeing one of the heaviest bands around? As I’ve said, the Eightball is a small venue, it’s genuinely astounding that it was at quarter capacity that night, and that’s me being generous. There was a guy who drove two hours to be there, and who’d have to make the drive home immediately after, there’s no excuse for people to not show up.
I spent the past two paragraphs lamenting the attendance, because it made me realise just how important having a good crowd is to making a show fun and memorable. You could have the most exciting and blood-pumping band on the planet firing on all cylinders for 90 minutes straight, and it wouldn’t mean shit if you were the only one banging your head at the barrier. The pit was so empty that
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| Possibly the most pedals I've seen on a single board. |
That being said, I am more than happy to say that Conan did put on the stellar, bone-rattling, performance I wished to see. I went in expecting the show to be a physical experience, not only in regards to wrenching my neck out of position, but also in terms of sound. The outright heaviest show I’ve been to so far was Bell Witch back in 2024, where the frequencies of the bass were so low that both myself and the venue were rumbling and creaking. I’ve been chasing that high ever since, but given the aforementioned lack of doom, getting my fix has been a challenge, to say the least. Safe to say that the trio did manage to replicate that feeling, this time with more riffs and less ambience. Things kicked off in appropriately crushing fashion with “Foeman’s Flesh” off Violence Dimension, which unsurprisingly dominated the setlist, owing to its having been released last year. Getting to hear a track as fun as “Total Bicep” live was a real blast, as was “Frozen Edges of the Wound”, one of the more riveting cuts on that record.
While Conan’s mostly known for playing low and slow, they definitely focused on keeping the pace high, where bangers like “Thunderhoof”, “Levitation Hoax”, and “Satsumo” balance mountainous grooves with driving drumming. We also got the inexplicably enduring “Hawk as Weapon” off their debut album, Monnos, which I genuinely do not know how it managed to lodge itself into the band’s setlist,
especially when “Battle in the Swamp” and “Grim Tormentor” are right there. I’ve always found that they excelled whenever they were a little further away from stoner doom, and those moments or tracks where they veer a little towards that direction I’ve always found to be their weakest. Hefty as they might be, they just lack the character their more caustic offerings possess.
I’d also be remiss not to mention that they played a new track titled “Angermast”, a high-energy tour-de-force reminiscent of the few extra-fast tracks they have on their records in order to throw the listener off. They’ve always been a little hit-or-miss, but it’s hard to deny just how exciting they can be when you hear them in person. This one in particular managed to leave an impression, owing to its punkier flavour, and I can’t wait to hear it in an official capacity. And obviously, we had to cap things off with “Volt Thrower”, which has basically become the band’s “Enter Sandman”, owing to its simple and direct nature. Mercifully enough though it’s nowhere near as overplayed.
The band got on stage right on time, and they got to packing up their equipment just as quickly. Since I had to go to work the next day, I unfortunately couldn’t stick around to exchange pleasantries with the band members. And while I usually leave the shows I attend a little buzzed and brimming with excitement, I came out of this one far more jaded than I wish I’d been. It’s true that the music itself was a blast, and that I had a good time on that front, but the live experience is the sum of all its parts, and it’s hard to confidently say I had a good time when the lack of
excitement from the crowd is as palpable as it was that night. The fact that I didn’t exactly have a good time there is actually one of the reasons it took me so long to write this particular report. I used to say that I’d manage to enjoy myself if you got me in an empty venue with a band playing at full blast, but it’s clear to me now that these shows are a communal experience, one that can’t be enjoyed if you’re all by your lonesome. The band-crowd scale was off-balance, and no amount of having a weirdo bassist who places their head next to the amps is gonna change that.
While Conan’s mostly known for playing low and slow, they definitely focused on keeping the pace high, where bangers like “Thunderhoof”, “Levitation Hoax”, and “Satsumo” balance mountainous grooves with driving drumming. We also got the inexplicably enduring “Hawk as Weapon” off their debut album, Monnos, which I genuinely do not know how it managed to lodge itself into the band’s setlist,
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| The gnarliest drummer a sludge band could have. |
I’d also be remiss not to mention that they played a new track titled “Angermast”, a high-energy tour-de-force reminiscent of the few extra-fast tracks they have on their records in order to throw the listener off. They’ve always been a little hit-or-miss, but it’s hard to deny just how exciting they can be when you hear them in person. This one in particular managed to leave an impression, owing to its punkier flavour, and I can’t wait to hear it in an official capacity. And obviously, we had to cap things off with “Volt Thrower”, which has basically become the band’s “Enter Sandman”, owing to its simple and direct nature. Mercifully enough though it’s nowhere near as overplayed.
The band got on stage right on time, and they got to packing up their equipment just as quickly. Since I had to go to work the next day, I unfortunately couldn’t stick around to exchange pleasantries with the band members. And while I usually leave the shows I attend a little buzzed and brimming with excitement, I came out of this one far more jaded than I wish I’d been. It’s true that the music itself was a blast, and that I had a good time on that front, but the live experience is the sum of all its parts, and it’s hard to confidently say I had a good time when the lack of
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| Giving yourself hearing loss is aura. |
At the time of writing this, I have two more shows to attend on the weekend, one being Heretoir and Havukruunu on Saturday, and the other being the Up the Hammers: Call of the North festival on Sunday. They both seem far more like what the locals would enjoy, so part of me hopes for a better turnout, but at the same time I don’t expect much. While I’ve never been one to make predictions on how an entire year would go based on a single event, it'd be naïve to assume that a pattern hasn’t been establishing itself since last year. Here’s to hoping I’m proven wrong.
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