Coldrain have impressed, opening for Crown The Empire at O2 Academy Islington. All the way from Japan, Coldrain saunter onto stage with an eerie atmosphere. The bassist, RxYxO wearing a mask over his face as they burst into their first song. Coldrain brings the perfect balance of light and heavy, yet the power and energy they create never differs despite this. The band plays with remarkable passion, the lead singer Masato in particular. The guitar parts are notably good with round after round of face-melting fills.
Volumes sure know how to get the crowd’s attention as they come onto stage to the Jurassic Park theme song. Opening with Left For Dead they don’t stop moving, ever. It’s rare to see a band moving around quite this much on stage but they own it, their stage presence is impeccable. Three songs in, they eventually calm things down slightly for Finite before picking things back up for The Mixture. Volumes are restless with energy and it comes across in their live performance, making them brilliant to watch and even more fun to mosh to.
Crown The Empire enter the stage to Are You Coming With Me? with an electrifying presence. The band’s songs are brilliant recorded but live, they pack an inconceivable amount of power and emotion. Their energy is intoxicating, the room going into utter chaos. Despite being released only hours ago, the crowd still erupts for What I Am which is brilliant live. Crown The Empire know how to get the crowd going, with endless mosh pits, the crowd seeming to never tire. Coming back for an encore of Initiation, and old fan favourite Machines, the band gives the night an ecstatic send off. Crown The Empire have proven they are phenomenal live.