Taiwanese extreme metal band CHTHONIC, who recently wrapped up a successful appearance on Ozzfest, are currently trekking across the US on their historic “UNlimited” tour, performing their first headlining concerts in America.
“Ozzfest has been a great experience for CHTHONIC, but we’re excited to perform for our fans for longer than 20 minutes,” says vocalist Freddy Lim.
In concert, CHTHONIC (pronounced “THON-ick”) will continue to perform the tour’s theme song, “UNlimited Taiwan,” written and recorded this spring “to emphasize the ‘UNlimited’ potential of Taiwan and the Taiwanese people,” Lim says. Like the tour – which kicked off in Taipei earlier this summer following the international re-release of 2002’s Relentless Recurrence and last year’s A Decade On The Throne two-CD/DVD live set – the song was named to protest how the United Nations (UN) limits Taiwan’s full participation as an independent country. The Washington Post and the International Herald Tribune, among others, have recently devoted lengthy features to the message behind the tour.
With a new session of the United Nations General Assembly scheduled to open in New York on Sept. 18, many pro-Taiwan rallies will be held around the city in the days beforehand. To coincide with the UN session’s kickoff – where Taiwan will once again petition to be formally recognized as an independent country, and not a Chinese province – CHTHONIC will hold a special “UNlimited New York” concert at Manhattan’s Highline Ballroom, located less than three miles from the UN, on Sept. 16. Tickets are currently available on the venue’s website, www.highlineballroom.com, and at their box office.
Because this is the group’s third New York City concert in recent weeks, coming on the heels of an Aug. 21 performance with NILE and a Sept. 6 concert alongside KATATONIA, CHTHONIC has arranged for the Highline Ballroom to offer tickets for only $5 to anyone who redeems a ticket stub from one of their previous shows at the venue’s box office. For everyone else, a $2 discount can be obtained by purchasing the tickets online at www.highlineballroom.com (enter “un4taiwan” in the access code field). Furthermore, the first 100 fans in the doors will receive a free set of CHTHONIC “paper dolls,” which are sold in toy stores throughout Asia. (A photo can be seen here.)
The “UNlimited New York” concert will be videotaped, and CHTHONIC hopes that people of all nationalities will join them in this historic plea for freedom and independence.
9/13 Jaxx - West Springfield, VA 9/14 Tremont Music Hall - Charlotte, NC 9/15 Jester’s Pub - Fayetteville, NC 9/16 Highline Ballroom - New York, NY 9/19 Le Capitole Theatre ? Quebec City, QC (with Cradle of Filth) 9/20 Metropolis ? Montreal, QC (with Cradle of Filth) 9/21 Webster Theatre ? Hartford, CT (with Cradle of Filth) 9/22 Higher Ground ? Burlington, VT (with Cradle of Filth)
Additionally, the band just announced their first ever European tour alongside Finnish “heroic folk metal” warriors ENSIFERUM. Dates are as follows:
Nov. 9 - Hard Rock Hell Festival - Minehead, U.K. Nov. 30 - Markthalle - Hamburg, Germany Dec. 1 - Lindenpark - Potsdam, Germany Dec. 2 - Alte Spinnerei - Glauchau, Germany Dec. 4 - Bastard Club - Osnabruck, Germany Dec. 6 - Romein - Leeuwarden, Holland Dec. 7 - Biebob - Vosselaar, Belgium Dec. 9 - Substage - Karlsruhe, Germany Dec. 11 - Wigwam - Budapest, Hungary Dec. 12 - Fleda - Brno, Czech Republic Dec. 13 - Colos Saal - Aschaffenburg, Germany Dec. 14 - Z7 - Pratteln, Switzerland Dec. 15 - Hexentanz Festival - Illingen, Germany