PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
A very hot Sunday afternoon in Camden whilst still recovering from the previous nights indulgences and I am about to watch three bands that I personally think made up a fantastic triple bill.
First act of the night hailing from South Wales are the excellent female fronted five piece Triaxis, This band are unafraid to do what they love and they do it with passion and a lot of talent. Their classic metal sound is refreshing in a time when all bands seem to do is scream (don’t get me wrong I don’t dislike the screaming). Opening up with “Gates of Damnation” from their album “Key to the Kingdom” you can hear the old school metal influences of Metallica and Maiden peeking through but not enough to mask originality. After a recent addition to their catalogue “Sker Point” Krissie (vocals) tells us that we are about to hear a brand new song entitled “And Shadows Creep” and if this lovely slab of metal is anything to judge the future material to come from this band they are certainly going to have me as fan! The band finished their fantastic set off with a brilliant cover of Iron Maiden’s “The Wicker Man” and their short time was up..
Full Set list: Gates of Damnation, Sker Point, And Shadows Creep, Severed Sanity, Lies, The Wicker Man (Cover)
Genre: Metal
Label: Unsigned
Rating: 8/10
If you haven’t already, check them out at: http://www.myspace.com/triaxisuk
Full gallery of Triaxis courtesty of Veronica Maiden
Next up were the awesome NWOBHM band Praying Mantis, Formed back in the mid 1970’s by brothers Chris and Tino Troy Praying Mantis are quite simply one of the best NWOBHM acts to still be serving out awesome slices of melodic metal. They kicked the evening off with “Children of the Earth” from their 1981 album “Time Tells No lies” to much enjoyment from the already excited Barfly audience, Next up we heard “Restless Heart” and “Highway” from 2009’s album “Sanctuary”. You can really tell these guys love what they do as the energy and enthusiasm explodes across the stage and spills out into the crowd energizing each and every one of us. The guys served out a massive helping of both classic and newer material in a very short space of time finishing off with the brilliant “Captured” leaving the audience wanting more. The current album “Sanctuary” is available from their website along with their 30th Anniversary EP “Metalmorphosis”.
Full Set list: Children of the Earth, Restless Heart, Highway, Dream On, Don’t be Afraid of the Dark, Turn the Tables, Captured.
Genre: Heavy Metal
Label: Frontiers Records
Rating: 8/10
Praying mantis official website: http://www.praying-mantis.com/
Full gallery of Praying Mantis courtesy of Veronica Maiden
Finally it was time for the evenings final band the mighty “Kobra and the Lotus†from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This classic metal band fronted by the awesome Brittany Paige have been relentlessly touring the Europe since their apperance at this years Hard Rock Hell Road trip in Ibiza! They opened up their time with the brilliant “Aria†and followed by “Visionary†the already hyper audience seemed to find yet another gear to kick into and it’s easy to see why with the energy this band display. Next after an emotional introduction to their tribute to the late metal master Ronnie James Dio we are given a wonderful rendition of his “Heaven and Hell†which was met with rapturous applause moving along next we had “Ballad of Jane Doe†from their debut album “Out of the Pit†after this I unfortunately had to leave due to transportation issues that a Sunday night out in London almost always has you hostage by however Kobra and the Lotus have a further five dates of their UK tour to go so if they come near you I highly recommend you get yourself to their show.
Full Set list: Aria, Visionary, Heaven & Hell (cover), Ballad of Jane Doe, Nothing Good, Lonely, Welcome, Legend.
Genre: Heavy Metal
Label: Sonic Unyon Distribution
Rating: 8/10
Official Kobra and the Lotus website: http://www.kobraandthelotus.com/home/
Full gallery of Kobra and the Lotus courtesy of Veronica Maiden
In closing you may note that I have given all three bands an 8 out of 10 rating that is simply because they were all amazing, it’s so rare that you get presented with an evening so full of talent that it made giving any one band a different rating would have been insulting so yes each band individually 8 out of 10 however the evening as a whole 9 out of 10 (there’s always room for improvement) Praying Mantis and Kobra and the Lotus are both on the bill for this years Hard Rock Hell in Prestatyn, Wales among many other fantastic acts. http://www.hardrockhell.com/
