By Tampa Earl Burton, Journalist, and Brent Michael, Photographer – Rock At Night Tampa
Live Review: Leprous with Wheel – Jannus Live, St. Petersburg, FL – April 10, 2025
In the U.S., progressive metal has not been able to grasp the share of its audience that you might find in Europe. You wouldn’t have known that on Thursday night, however, as prog metal fans turned out for a special double bill that performed in St. Petersburg. For those who were in attendance on Thursday evening, the double prog shot of opening act Wheel and headliner Leprous would prove to be all the entertainment that they would need.
Leprous Brings Melodic Edge to Prog Metal
The headliner for the night was the Norwegian band Leprous, who have been a part of the music world since 2001. That would turn out to be one of the jokes that vocalist Einar Solberg touched on during the night. “How many of you are ‘old school’ fans?” Solberg questioned the crowd. When the requisite cheer arose, Solberg joked, “You’re all lying…we weren’t even HERE ten years ago!” As everyone had a decent laugh, Solberg went back to doing what he and his bandmates do best – powering out a melodic brand of prog metal that was entrancing to all.
Promoting their current album Melodies of Atonement, Leprous naturally played several of the tracks from that record, including “Silently Walking Alone” and “I Hear the Sirens,” but it was a perfect way to present themselves to folks who might not have been familiar with their work. “Sirens” was particularly noteworthy, with Solberg’s powerful and piercing vocal talents echoing through the St. Pete night.
What was a particularly fun moment also brought that ‘old school’ vibe that those in attendance SAID they wanted. Solberg presented the crowd with a choice of two songs – “but only one can be played,” Solberg cautioned – “Passing” from 2009’s Tall Poppy Syndrome, or “Forced Entry” from 2011’s Bilateral. The audience leaned towards “Forced Entry,” so Leprous slammed their way into one of their more aggressive tunes. Along the way, Solberg presented what he called his “limited” keyboard skills, but it was quite well done with some powerful guitar work from lead guitarist Tor Suhrke and touring keyboardist Raphael Weinroth (picking up Solberg’s “slack”).
Overall, the show provided by Leprous was quite an impressive display. Of the two bands that played Jannus Live on Thursday, it was obvious that Leprous leaned more to the melodic edge of prog metal, with some excellent melodies provided by the band. Color me impressed by the work of these Norwegian metalliers, because I was skeptical walking in.
Wheel Brings Power Edge to Prog Metal Approach
If Leprous presented the more melodic edge of prog metal, the Finnish band Wheel decidedly went toward the more power-edged approach. Led by vocalist/guitarist James Lascelles, the four-man band came out of the gate with their foot on the gas, offering up a 45-minute set that hammered the crowd in attendance. Having said that, the performance by Wheel was still intriguing as they motored through selections from their three-album (and two EP) career.
One of the tough things to do in the world of rock is to shuttle between being the opening act and the headliner. Wheel’s prior show to the Jannus Live appearance was as a headliner in Texas two days prior, so the setlist had to be chopped down to fit into their opener here in Florida. Wheel,
however, did it without even a hint of a sweat, and they dropped much of their new album (2024’s Charismatic Leaders) in the process.
Wheel impressed me with their harder sound, something that you do not normally get in the prog metal scene. But they also could bring out the acoustic work, especially with “Caught in the Afterglow” from Charismatic Leaders. It was intriguing to see a band work both sides of the equation so well, as Wheel did.
From the moody intensity of Wheel to the melodic excellence of Leprous, it was a fascinating and entertaining night of rock. Kudos also to Jannus Live for presenting such a bill, something that you will not see many independent venues take a chance on. It was a great Thursday evening of rock, progressive or otherwise, and all in attendance in St. Petersburg left thoroughly satisfied.
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