It can’t be an easy job being a gig promoter. Say you’ve got a Swedish power metal outfit on your hands who are famous for their fantasy lyrics and having three vocalists. A great band who have been going (although not with the same lineup) for 25 years. They are good, but they have reached that in-between stage of their career where they are not quite going to sell out a big theatre but are way past the club scene. How are you going to support and market that?

Well some genius hit on the lightbulb idea of pairing Amaranthe with Britain’s own overblown fast-as-fuck pioneers of pomp metal DragonForce. Surely that can’t fail? In the sold-out and packed-out vault of Manchester’s Academy (1) tonight failure was not ever going to be an option. Three UK dates (Bristol, Manchester and London) are finishing the current European run for this somewhat unlikely pairing and it’s a shame that there couldn’t be more as it was a night made in power metal heaven. 

Openers Infected Rain are from Moldova and they are very big on dreadlocks. They are also very big on sound. At first the impression was that we were watching yet another copycat of Ukraine’s favourite sons (and daughter) Jinjer, but they turned out to be a bit more than that. Vocalist Lena has a terrific range, going from guttural scream to operatic soprano in an instant, while visiting all points inbetween just for something to do.

Her yellow dreads and Rupert Bear pants are pretty impressive too. The music is brutal, in-yer-face metal enhanced by just the right amount of backing tracks. It bounces and snarls, encouraging the crowd to part for a proper pit and enticing them to bounce along and be part of the show. There was fist-pumping galore, and plenty of opportunity to sing (or shout) along to the choruses. At one point the whole crowd crouched down to the floor, only to rise like a multitude of black-clad jack-in-the-boxes. It was raw, it was honest and it went down really well as a warm-up.  

The tour has been billed as a co-headliner throughout it’s current run, but it seems that the running order hasn’t changed throughout so before too long the stage is filled with lasers and some atmospheric lighting over what appears to be an 80s-tv-themed backing track, and then BOOM there is a confetti cannon that heralds the explosion of colour and noise that is DragonForce. As the stage lights flash they reveal a set made of retro-style gaming screens and machines. Were we expecting to see stalwart shredders Herman Li and Sam Totman atop 1980’s arcade machines? We certainly were not! From the off the music is fast and furious, licks traded from atop the space invaders and guitar-face abounding during ‘Revolution Deathsquad’.

The band is more than just two guitars though (well three really, as we meet new guy Billy who does mostly-but-not-always rhythm) and the musicianship is tight although there are parts of the room where the sound isn’t the best or the loudest. The thing with DragonForce though is that although the music is fast and furious it’s also packed with melody and catchy hooks. Plus the shredding of course. How many notes can one man’s fingers discard, imagine that and then multiply it by two or occasionally three – it makes for a wild ride.

Tonight we learn that there are many different kinds of shredding to be enjoyed. ‘Cry Thunder’ sees some Celtic shredding, with a folky violin-inspired sound. Arms are waved, air is punched, it’s uplifting and inspiring. ‘Power Of The Triforce’, inspired by the classic game Zelda, sees us introduced to Coco the 3ft tall crowdsurfing stuffed chicken. Aha, shredded chicken! There is more confetti, more band members moving and gurning, it’s all very theatrical. This is a band that is inspired by gaming, and Skyrim gets a mention during the introduction to ‘The Last Dragonborn’, a song in the military style that inspires us to invade small countries and showcases some fine retro shredding. Fireworks burst at the front of the stage as we experience party metal on steroids. ‘Doomsday Party’ gives us disco shredding, a nod towards KISS at their eighties finest, and a bit of a giggle.  

The stage is then briefly vacated due to the advent of two massive inflatable dragons with glowing eyes. This makes the band’s subsequent dodging and weaving around each other even more impressive as they nip between giant teeth and horns. I assume we are in encore territory now as Titanic shredding occurs – a double-speed version of Celine Dion’s classic film theme was not on the bingo card for this evening.

Even Swifter shredding then happens, in the form of a triple-speed cover of Taylor Swift’s ‘Wildest Dreams’ complete with the lady herself on the video screens and even more fireworks just in case things weren’t mad enough already. Final song of the set is their own classic ‘Through Fire and Flames’ and although the song is a powerhouse in itself they throw everything at it just to see what happens. As they urge us to “carry on” I think, aha, Carry On Shredding! (Ooh Matron) and realise it’s time to step away from the notebook and just enjoy the breathtaking spectacle. There are more flames, more smoke, the video screens are flashing fit to explode, the speed is off the scale, the theatrics are superb, tongues seem to be firmly lodged in cheeks, there’s even a woah-oh chorus and then BOOM again and as the crowd picks silly string out of our collective hair it’s all over and the only question on everyone’s lips is how the hell are Amaranthe going to follow that? 

The answer to that question is, of course, obvious. They are going to bring their unique triple vocal style, synth-heavy euro-metal to Manchester and beat us over the head with it until we submit. This is yet another strand to the tapestry that is loosely woven into the label “Power Metal”, and although similar in some ways to DragonForce it’s also completely different. The vocals are the main thing with this band. They have an operatic soprano female, a clean male and what I now know is a harsh male too. This means that they can work different styles of singing into not just the set but often even each individual song. They can harmonise or contrast at will, and they take full advantage of that unique power right from the off.

The songs themselves are deep and full of emotion; with titles like ‘Fearless’, ‘Damnation Flame’, ‘Viral’ and ‘Strong’ you can tell that this band do not mess around. There are no gimmicks, no theatrics, no stage sets. There are backing tracks, but they enhance rather than overpower the sound. The point is the music, and it’s a very sharp point indeed. The crowd are onside immediately – the numbers pressing to the front are slightly less but they are intense and enthusiastic. Arms are waved, phones held aloft, heads nod in perfect time, choruses are sung and tears are shed. Singer Elize has even anticipated the Manchester weather and arrived onstage with her usual gothic ruffles obscured by a very practical-looking waterproof plastic mac! The catchy hooks abound, there are riffs galore and over it all those three distinct vocals wrap themselves around each song and deliver it like a neat little parcel. There are plaintive vocals over a single piano trill, there are screamed vocals over a metal masterpiece. It’s all about the contrast, but somehow the contrast also provides comfort.  

So yeah, this is serious metal. But at the same time, it’s also just slightly silly. The lyrics have all the cliches, as do the band. They do windmill hair. The bass player has painted his face so he looks a little like a Batman sidekick. Guitar solos involve shapes being thrown. The drummer twirls his sticks. In places, it verges on being a parody of a metal band. These bits are fleeting though, but they do bring a smile. Power ballad ‘Amaranthine’ could be from a Disney film, it’s uplifting and epic and could easily be sung on screen by animated creatures. The metal is heavy and powerful but also contains just a hint of commercialism, just a touch of euro-pop, to keep it above the run-of-the mill within the genre.

After 50 minutes of such emotional labour, the band attempt to leave the stage but the crowd manage to pull them back. Set highlights ‘Archangel’, ‘That Song’ and ‘Drop Dead Cynical’ close out the proceedings. ‘That Song’ has a beat that borrows a lot from Queen’s ‘We Will Rock You’ with that duf-duf-duum drum going on, and indeed they dutifully acknowledge this by sequing into it during the bridge. The lights come up, the bands take a bow and it’s the end of what has turned out to be an epic night of power metal. Until next time, I raise my sword in respect! 

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
Amaranthe, DragonForce, Infected Rain