BRITISH STEEL IV - CLOVEN HOOF, PAGAN ALTAR, ELIXIR, BITCHES SIN & CELTIC LEGACY
LONDON UNDERWORLD - LONDON 04/04/09
This was the fourth instalment of the ever growing British Steel Festival. Fans of the traditional and NWOBHM genres would be in their element, many friends from overseas make the annual trip to London (since the location changed from Milton Keynes); this year was no different.
Opening band CELTIC LEGACY from Dublin are a band I have wanted to see for a while. My previous attempt at Bloodstock ’08 was hampered by those organisers changing the set times. ‘Live by the Sword’ from their ‘Resurrection’ self release forges ahead with strong vocals from Ciaran Ennis, with a properly mixed guitar sound. The solos are magical with the Stratocaster stage right bringing the blues to the sound like that of Steve Morse, whilst stage left was giving more of the metal edge. Dave “Slim” on bass never stops moving around and smiles throughout the set bring passion to the stage. Some tunes remind me of the galloping rhythms of Helloween. This was an impressive set, the crowd was quite busy for an opening band that is always good to see, and this tended to grow as their set continued. A mark of a great band with ‘Emenia – Shadow of the Light’ bringing epic metal harmony to the Underworld this afternoon. Keep an eye out for these chaps; this was a perfect opening band for the day.
http://www.myspace.com/celticlegacy
Seasoned scene members BITCHES SIN are up next, I do have to admit that I missed most of this bands set due to interviewing duties, however, for the 5 minutes I managed to catch here and there, there was a swelling crowd and eager support. Classic groovy melodic tunes with a heavy bass sound, the tracks termed “classics” by members of the crowd were definitely more popular than most recent numbers. Although recent tunes included ‘Selling Paradise’, it was ‘Strangers on the Shore’ from their 1982 classic album ‘Predator’ album that made it memorable for me. I was not sure of the line up in the band, this is something that has always been a mission with this band to keep up with the rotating personnel, however, Ian Toomey on guitars and the rest of the musicians were on top form and from the crowd’s reaction, it was a great set.
http://www.bitchessin.co.uk
www.myspace.com/bitchessin
There is one thing you can rely on at British Steel. Those thoroughly nice chaps in ELIXIR will always put on a good show. Many a smile and happy banter between each other makes for a good listen and visual spectacle, when the band has fun, the crowd has fun. The crowd is quite busy actually for this time of the day; more people attend and get drawn in by Norman Gordon and Phil Denton’s classic fretwork, whilst the Nigel Dobbs on drums never stops the relentless pounding of those skins. A new track is aired tonight in the form of ‘Midnight Messiah’, a groovy but heavy opening riff; the only thing I thought was lacking in this was the volume of the vocals, in some areas of the room Paul Taylor’s vocals could hardly be heard, especially from the stage monitors, still, this new track is pretty special (check out their myspace site for a snippet of this new one). Still the band played on (pardon the Saxon pun!) with some well respected tunes like ‘Iron Hawk’ that really gives the crowd something to clap along with during the intro, things get elevated when the modern classic ‘Knocking on the Gates of Hell’ airs and the inevitable ‘Treachery (Ride Like the Wind) – which is where I am taken-a-back when I see one of the band members Mum running down towards the stage from the Merchandise stand headbanging! There was an element of fun and quality today, the band were literally on firing on all cylinders with maximum boost pressure, another wicked fun filled metal display.
http://www.myspace.com/officialelixir
http://www.coldtown.com/elixir/
PAGAN ALTAR had terrible luck today, their drummer was late due to traffic problems on the motorway, and so were only able to play a very short 2 to 3 song set. This was a real shame as I have seen this band a number of times over the last 2 years and tonight’s show was very much more intense and with the musicians being very tight, dry ice and smoke coming from the stage giving a perfect doom ridden atmosphere in which to enjoy these songs. ‘Pagan Altar’ and ‘Lords of Hypocrisy’ are outstanding songs and the way that they come across just makes you want to headbang all the time. Both Rich Walker and Alan Jones both on guitars trade metal licks and Terry Jones’ vocals are once again in top form. The crowd and the band are clearly disappointed after only a couple of numbers, but in the ethos of the festival, every band gets the same stage time and timeslots are tight, but it did appear that a lot of people were here to see them as the venue saw people slowly filtering outside during the headliners.
http://www.paganaltar.co.uk/
www.myspace.com/paganaltar
Undeterred by a rushed gear changeover, CLOVEN HOOF takes to the stage to earn their right as headliners. Recent new guitarist Christian Horton (of Dark Forest fame) looks quite at home. The whole band is in specialist attire this evening, not your standard jeans and t-shirt. Russ North is as I have previously said, one of the best singers in the land, after some vocal monitor issues, the sounds can be heard and the talent oozes throughout the venue. Tracks like opener ‘Inquisitor’ followed by ‘Astral Rider’ and ‘Nova Battlestar’ are ultimately classics in their own right. Tonight however the band treats us to more tracks from their ‘Dominator’ album, namely ‘The Fugitive’. These are hidden gems coming out of the arsenal that is Hoof’s back catalogue. Everyone is fired up and rocking their hearts out, there is plenty of inter-band reaction too, feeding energy off each other. ‘Mistress of the Forest’ goes into all its epic glory and you get the sense that you are just right and home with Cloven Hoof live. Never a band to disappoint, and always a top quality show.
http://www.myspace.com/clovenhoofofficial
http://www.cloven-hoof.co.uk/
The early curfew tonight for some club night once again makes the crowd leave not even before 10.30pm, still, the London venue and atmosphere of the day was second to none. One looks forward to British Steel V! There are plenty of UK bands in circulation at the moment playing in Europe and the UK that would fit this bill, who knows; we may even have enough for a two-day event next year as this festival continues to draw audiences from around the world and the regular UK contingent. Until the next time, thanks to British Steel and Arcane Promotions for a killer day!
www.britishsteelfestival.com
www.myspace.com/arcanepromotions
Paul Maddison
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