Symphonic metal is on the rise in the UK, and taking advantage of that are the European powerhouses of Xandria and Serenity who aim to present themselves in the most valiant of lights in the intimate environments of the Camden Underworld. We were there to soak in some symphonic radiance…

[date]10th February 2016[/date]
[venue]The Underworld Camden[/venue]
[city]London, UK[/city]
[support_bands]Jaded Star[/support_bands]

Like any metal show in the UK, an precursor array of thoughts spins through one’s head. The market for the genre is such an enigma – and so many bands that play the country have little to no marketing manage to draw in a fair few people to their shows.

Not once have I seen any sort of promotion for Xandria and Serenity in the UK, and to say that these bands drew in a fair few people tonight would be an understatement. The venue was packed to the rafters. A faith restoring sight that does show metal is well and truly alive, despite the business of it taking a minimum role in the bigger picture of British music.

Serenity have just released a fantastic album in ‘Codex Atlanticus‘, and Xandria, with the release of a new EP last year, are riding the symphonic storm that has come with a reinvigorated push with the addition of vocalist Dianne van Giersbergen a couple years ago. While both bands are getting big in Europe, such a UK following was most unexpected, but fans are here for a reason, both bands are brilliant.

Serenity

The first of the two co-headliners this evening are Austria’s Serenity. The band have been slightly dormant in the past couple years with vocalist Georg Neuhauser working on multiple albums at once, and of course the band parting ways with a few members after their last ‘War of Ages‘ album. But the group have stormed back with the brilliant ‘Codex Atlanticus‘, where they intend to make a bombastic statement of return with the live performance tonight.

Wasting no time in raising the symphonic intensity, Serenity kick off with the new ‘Sprouts of Terror‘. Suddenly it’s quite easy to see how these bands are drawing in such masses of people. The sound is incredible, and it makes for a very captivating performance alone.

The symphonic backing hits hard, with vocals so entrancing that the emotion fuses with the air molecules in the venue and takes on a physical form. The successive tracks of ‘My Final Chapter‘ and ‘The Perfect Woman‘ are real winners as it allows the band to take a more theatrical perspective to their performance. While the musicians display the raw fervour through their instruments, vocalists Georg Neuhauser and Natascha Koch add the piquancy.

It’s the diverse palette of tracks performed that ensure not one moment is dull including the heavy hitters of ‘Heavenly Mission‘ and ‘Serenade in Flames‘. It’s underlying proof that Serenity are the complete package, and the response underlines that there is complete appreciation of what Serenity do.

It’s performances like this one that have more often than not helped a band get a foothold in the UK. I am very much expecting to see Serenity return again playing a couple more dedicated UK shows. Even if you’ve never heard of them, it’s impossible not to enjoy them.

Xandria

Even though Xandria’s latest release is less recent, it hasn’t stopped them from taking the final spot tonight. The band are getting big in Europe, and fans tonight are clearly taking notice of that. Since vocalist Diane van Giersbergen took over vocal duties in 2014, the band have been getting bigger and better. That increase musical stature has caused a amplification of a live presence, and Xandria will boast that.

The band begin with the striking ‘Little Red Relish‘ (just as a note it seems like both bands have opened with a track that could be mistaken as a food theme), and it’s yet another sound that is instantly absorbing, but just in a little bit of a different way.

Xandria is harder, just a little bit darker, and of course the more operatic overtones are taken on. It’s a difficult sound to demonstrate in a small venue with less than adequate PA’s, but the band own it. It’s an enormous stage presence for such a little room, and fans are loving it.

It’s yet another array of diverse tracks that experiment in different shades of epic, stapled together with theatrical operatics. Tracks like ‘Blood On My Hands‘ bring the fists up in the air, while ‘Call of the Wind‘ brings the jig. It’s some very refined symphonic metal, and now easy to see exactly why Xandria are getting some big attention.

Fans sing along to the karaoke-esque ‘Dreamkeeper‘ and of course the classic ‘Ravenheart‘ to show appreciation to the fantastic evening of symphonic metal. It brought us what could be mutually agreed upon as some of the best talent that Europe currently has to offer in the genre.

As the notes of the final ‘Valentine‘ peter out it’s quite clear the UK needs more of this stuff. There is a love of it, and every hand in the air says ‘come back soon’. With a new Xandria album on the horizon and Serenity impressing so many, it’s clear that there will be a return in one form or another.