Live Review: Dreamslain with Cruel Mother and Tales Of Perdition at New Cross Inn, London (13/11/24)

A Wednesday November night in New Cross, London is not where you might expect to find a band from the Northern part of Norway, but that’s where Dreamslain hail from. The progressive metal band is in town for a rare show in the English capital as part of their post-release plans for their latest album, Forge of Rebellion.

An album that we summed up as:

Never a band to shy away from creating something wholly unique, somewhat strange, and convincingly unhinged. Dreamslain are back and back with something that requires focus and thought. Forge of Rebellion is a grand example of how this band defies genre labels and takes the listener on a journey that can simply be summed up as epic.

Epic and unhinged, both words that fit a live showing of Dreamslain’s music as well. Yet, seeing the trio perform, it is staggering just how impressive their sound is and how talented they are to bring all the madness, emotion, and power to a venue like this.

Speaking of power though, first up, it’s symphonic metal band, Tales of Perdition, who throw a lot into wowing a sizable crowd (for just after 7pm on a Wednesday) and really hit their stride when they unleash the excellent track, Diary of the Paranoid. From their 2020 self-titled EP, this track sounds immense live, and the band treat it with reverence and respect, adding a bit more theatre to proceedings, and taking that confidence into the remainder of their enjoyable set. They made some new fans tonight.

Whereas Cruel Mother seem to be playing to a room full of people that came down for them specifically. A folk-infused doom band that utilises English history and folklore to create atmosphere and deliver rich story-based content. Something they certainly deliver on, both from a visual and sonic aspect, even if the violin is sometimes buried under the live sound of vast guitar riffs and pounding drumbeats.

They can certainly be called a unique experience, one that isn’t going to be to everyone’s taste (not every track they play hits, personally), but guaranteed to be memorable regardless. A high point? The Red Barn from their latest EP release, Cut Down for the Earth, sounds great.

Speaking of sounding great though, it’s headliners Dreamslain, who play for over an hour and give us Forge of Rebellion in full, as well as a few others. Markedly different from what came before, but also not a million miles away either, their progressive metal sound has folk influences, but is drawn from their history and heritage, hence why we get very special tracks like Burn the Boats.

It is just one of many that sound so big in the live environment and none of the nuances of Dreamslain’s music is lost here. If you thought keyboard player Anna was doing impressive stuff on record, just wait until you see her live. An absolute wizard on the keyboards and the perfect accompaniment to Igor’s complex riffing and epic vocals, as well as Daniel’s powerful drumbeats and patterns. Together they are Dreamslain, and they really did impress. Here is hoping that they come back soon!