PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Saturday the 24th marks the 5 year anniversary of Retribution Alive and what best way to celebrate than having a big party with various DJs in the multi-floored Lounge, as well as Satan headlining a London show, along with Toledo Steel, Primitai and Ai Force.
Even though it was an early start, at only 6.15 Toledo Steel come on stage. Quoting the event description, Toledo Steel are a band so metal they even have it in their name. Dynamic riffage, pounding drums, high pitched vocals and hot flaming action heats up the venue as a start to this promising night. The band played for half an hour and I noticed lots of people gathering around, head banging to the beat and having a nice night. Their set comprised of old and new songs, including ‘No Quarter’, ‘Heavy Metal Headache’, and the all-time crowd favourite ‘Black Widow’. The whole band had lots of energy despite being only the starter and delivered a stellar show, managing to have everyone in the venue fist pumping and having fun.
Second act on stage was Primitai. Conquering the stage with double guitar solos, lots of furious headbanging and enchanting vocals, Primitai take action and bring even more people in the venue. It is starting to get hotter when these people are on stage and they manage to deliver a very good performance. Their set included mostly songs from their new released record, without leaving out some of their older stuff. The crowd always seems to enjoy their gigs and I am always amazed by how good they are as performers.
Next band on stage are Air Force and here I can say they are the band I enjoyed the least. Even though their music was close to my vibe and they were very good performing on stage, the crowd’s and their roadie’s attitude made me leave the venue halfway through their set. Air Force seemed to rock their crowd up to the point that I watched them, having a nice vibe to them and being very tight as a band, giving their all on stage. However, despite the noticeably larger crowd, the quality of their fans gave me a bad impression, specifically because they wanted to be at the front at all costs, not letting people around them enjoy the show. I would definitely recommend watching them, but from a distance.
Last but not least, the mighty Satan came on probably the smallest stage they’ve ever played, to a full sold out venue and showed all of us how it’s done. Following their return from a long US-tour, Satan played for 1.5 hours non-stop, performing one banger after the other. The crowd was cheering and singing along from the first lyric to the last, the guitars were raging and burning, the drums were upbeat and the devil himself came to earth to deliver one of the best performances. Playing songs from both their old and their brand new album and having the crowd at a breath’s distance from the stage, Satan’s performance was a solid 10/10. For people who haven’t seen then, they are a must-see act and for those who have, they just seem to be like a good wine – they get better as they get older and you can’t have enough.
