Where the Japanese electro-metallers may not be everybody’s cup of tea, they certainly know how to put on a phenomenal show!

I happened to come across Crossfaith a few years ago when they were playing a festival. Sadly the exact one completely eludes me now – but there was only about 50 people in attendance. The Osaka quintet were not in anyway moved by the low attendance, and continued to give it their all. All of those 50 people were completely engaged in the highly energetic show, and I’ve been a fan ever since.

It’s a bit different tonight. They are performing to a crowd of hundreds at the Electric Brixton, and the fans couldn’t be more excited. It was a representation of unity in metal, with an eclectic mix of hardcore and electro fans coming together to jump together to the dominating resonance of the Crossfaith sound. A informatic voice rung through the PA to countdown the arrival of the band, and we were off.

The band smash into the foray with their new album title track ‘Xeno‘, demonstrating their diverse musicianship pull some thrash and nu-metal tricks out of the bag, and coating them with techno layers that pulsate to the ever-changing tempo.

Crossfaith have proven to me before that they are a force to be reckoned with on the live stage as a support band, but gaining legions of new fans with their performances, they find themselves having to command a lot of people tonight in a headline role, but they do that without fail.

It’s tracks like ‘Wildfire‘ where the band manage to get their entire room to strip off their shirts and swing them around, and ‘Omen‘ where the band pull a Slipknot style ‘everybody get down then jump the fuck up’ show trick. That kind of command and energy deserves a lot of respect, and it’s probably why Crossfaith have propelled themselves to exponential fame in the UK market.

It’s clear the Japanese electro-metallers are more about their live show than music, as everything about it seems to be perfected. The execution of the sweeping electronics, the showmanship in drum-solos, the jumping into fan mosh pits, it’s all there. Crossfaith are a band that may not entirely impress you with their sound, but they will definitely impress you live.