Trail of Tears

Despite metal's chronic shortage of women, Ronny Thorsen has never had a problem finding one...uh...to sing. One of Gothic metal's grand old idiosyncratics, Trail of Tears's founder, leader, and sole original member has steered the Kristiansand, Norway-based sextet through triumph (five albums, all noteworthy) and tragedy (a financially disastrous tour of Mexico that led four band members to quit), with Ahabian single-mindedness, since 1994. While nobody who performed on last year's slightly blackened Existentia is currently in the band, Thorsen has a new/old vocal foil in the rejoined Catherine Paulsen, whose lambent soprano complements his death growls like sleep in the midst of light electrical torture. 18+.
Sun., Jan. 27, 6 p.m., 2008