A niche in what is an entirely overdone genre.
2nd December saw Canadian heavy metal band Kobra and the Lotus take to Swansea's The Garage live music venue. Supported by local bands Nucleus and tour buddies Triaxis, this was the penultimate night of Kobra and the Lotus' UK tour, and the last for Triaxis. Despite the painfully cold weather, spirits were high; sound checks flew by, each band raring to go.
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Nucleus
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The lightest and youngest band of the gig, Nucleus had the unenviable job of warming up the sparse, cold crowd. The guys played a great set of soft rock but unfortunately let themselves down with their lack of stage presence. A bit of movement and crowd engagement would've done the world of good, but given the guys' young age, this should hopefully come with experience; they certainly have the talent.
Triaxis
On their website Triaxis describe themselves as "...a bastion for timeless heavy metal"; I was keen to find out if they could live up to this description. It didn't take long for the band to drive it home that this is one special band. With a classic metal vibe, they played the crowd brilliantly; the previously rigid crowd was now crammed in front of the stage, fists punching the air to the beat of the drums.
It was soon clear that Triaxis has a good following in Swansea, with many crowd members singing along. Front-woman Krissie Kirby's strong vocals were complimented beautifully by the tight, technical instrumentals, the powerful performance successfully drawing everybody in the venue into their world. Playing song from both their debut album and forthcoming second album, their final song the highlight of the set for me (I just wish I could remember what it was called!).
Even with their incredible performance, the thing that surpassed it for me was Triaxis' genuinely friendly nature - you couldn't help but laugh at Kirby's jokes and exaggerated Welsh accent, expressing the band's delight to be "back home". I can't wait to catch this band again in the future.
Kobra and The Lotus
The final dose of classic, female-fronted metal of the night was finally here. The crowd seemed to grow considerably as Brittany Paige and the boys took to the stage. Donning skin-tight leather trousers and a leather waistcoat, Paige looked every inch the rock diva.
Whilst researching the band prior to the gig, I had read that Paige was a classically trained vocalist and had found out in our earlier interview that she initially wanted to be an opera singer, so I was expecting a performance akin to Tarja Turunen and Simone Simons; imagine my surprise when her powerful voice was released as a feisty but controlled metal vocal along the lines of Doro Pesche... but better! The notes Paige reached with ease were mind-blowing... and she'd told me she was recovering from a cold!
The band played a variety of songs from their debut album, including their version of the Motorhead classic 'Ace of Spades', which was a definite hit with the Swansea crowd.
The set was over way too soon; as the band left the stage the audience chanted for an encore and were elated when they were treated to a complex drum solo by Griffin Kissack, closely followed by two more incredibly strong songs by the Canadian quintet.
For me, the only disappointing aspect of the gig was the small crowd. Whilst those who had attended made their adoration for the bands known and more than made up for the lack of bodies, it is a worrying reflection of the current music scene if bands of this calibre can't draw them in.
It amazes me that this band has only been together for 2 years; the technical performance was so tight and accurate, their sound a niche in what is an entirely overdone genre. Brittany had explained to me that the band had re-recorded their album in its entirety as their sound evolved, a good sign that this professional band has a very bright future ahead of them.
Kobra and The Lotus are completing their UK tour with a set at Hard Rock Hell festival today; boy are the festival-goers in for a treat!
To view all photos taken during this set click here. There are 3 available.