Live Review: Frozen Soul with Creeping Death, Foreseen and Overthrow at The Underworld, Camden, London (12/02/2024)

Its a chilly Monday night in London and things are about to get a lot colder as we head to The Underworld to check out the icy death metal outfit, Frozen Soul.

The Texas based band are a few dates into a huge European tour and this is the first of 5 shows here in the UK with Bristol, Manchester, Glasgow and Birmingham next in line before they head to mainland Europe. Well known for their brutality, a small but special venue like The Underworld should make for a suffocating experience and having fellow brutal Texans, Creeping Death with them is only going to up the ante. Add to that bill with Helsinki’s Foreseen and local favourites, Overthrow and you have one hell of a lineup.

Arriving just after doors open, as I don’t want to miss anything, and it is really pleasing to see how many people are here already. The place is around half full, on a Monday, before Overthrow are even ready to take to the stage. What’s more impressive is all 4 bands have merch out and there are queues, in particular for headline act Frozen Soul where, at just before 7, there is a queue for their merch that stretches round the corner of the bar out to the sound desk area. Amazing. I mean, I know just how good Frozen Soul are. I’m a big fan, having seen them kill it at Bloodstock 2023 and been super impressed by their recent album, Glacial Domination but I did not realise quite how popular they have become. I’m so pleased for them.

But enough about Frozen Soul, for a minute anyway, on to the other bands.

Overthrow

First band up are Camden based Overthrow and they killed it. They sound really tight, heavy as you would hope and packing massive riffs, groove and fiery solos too. The frontman, wearing his shades, sounds strong though was a little faded for the first track or two as the incessant drums and riffs overtook everything but he grew into it quickly (or the sound desk sorted his mic level out quickly) and he worked the crowd wonderfully. Being the opener, they didn’t have a huge amount of time but managed to hammer out all of the tracks from their killer EP, Ascension of the Entombed with Lords of Xibalba being a personal favourite.

They had a good crowd and it kept growing as people were drawn in from the bar area to catch a piece of this fiery start and there was plenty of movement with heads banging in all directions. Ruptured Nebula went down a treat just being immensely heavy but somehow seriously catchy too and Caustic Vengeance is a banger, on record but even more so live. And if the crowd weren’t already worked up into a frenzy, at a death metal gig, what better way to sign of your performance than with a cover of  Cannibal Corpse‘s Hammer Smashed Face. Overthrow killed it, and looked and sounded way bigger than an opening act should.

Foreseen

The crossover thrash metal outfit, Foreseen, have come all the way from Finland and are another popular band based on the now rammed venue as they prepare to take to the stage. They play quite a strange mix with huge solos, hardcore beats and shouts, really taking the crossover part and strethcing it as far as they can go. It synchronises quite quickly though and is really enjoyable. What impresses me the most though is the energy levels on stage. The frontman, hell, the whole band don’t stay still for a second. The singer throws his arms around while barking and shouting out with vocals that are firmly in the hardcore camp. He also appears to have attended the Phil Anselmo school of gurning.

I really enjoy the gang vocals stuff and musically, they sound amazing with the drums in particular standing out as they shake the whole venue. I’m not a great lover of the vocals though, I must admit, even if it definitely works for and in the band. They hit us with a collection of very fast and heavy music. Short blast tracks and that addictive to watch, nonstop energy goes down well and they have a very interested and intrigued crowd with plenty of movement. For me though, they suffer a little just because of how good Overthrow were.

That’s not a dig, Foreseen were really good with some wicked dual lead guitar work as well and some bangers including a few from their most recent album, Untamed Force, including Tolerance of Abuse and the title track, Untamed Force. They have a few albums behind them as well so we got some older tracks like Death Injection from their Helsinki Savagery album too. A reallty good performance and Foreseen hold their own on a stacked bill.

Creeping Death

By this stage, thanks to the quality of the opening two acts, Creeping Death have a well warmed up and enthused crowd to work with. Their overall energy and attitude combined wiht the absolutely crushing riffs would have been enough to wake this place up even if the crowd were static though. The frontman is good with the crowd and clearly enjoying himself. We even get a little local banter as we are called knobheads and bellends in a Texan drawl. They sound great again, a little bit of a deathcore vibe for moments mainly thanks to the impressive lead guitar work which is almost on a par with the impressive circling, spinning and other acrobatics he gets up to while playing. Even more impressive a feat when you know the size of The Underworld’s stage.

Creeping Death are clearly a very popular band though and it’s the first time the venue felt sold out, whereas previously it just felt very busy. It’s also nice to see such a range of people watching and enjoying them with a good mix of age range and gender all firmly packed in and enjoying the crushing riffs and beats the band bring. Constant demands for more movement, for bigger and faster circle pits, sees the crowd really go for it. Its good fun backed by some really powerful death metal and a very strong vocal performance. They really do sound good and The Underworld’s sound is on point too and you can understand easily why they are so popular as they bang out a strong set with tracks from 2023’s Boundless Domain, including the title track, and tracks from Wretched Illusions as well as the excellent Spectre of War.

It’s a third great performance in a row, from another stellar band on a night that showcases some serious death metal talent but now, its over to the main event.

Frozen Soul

When you see so many good bands all performing at the top of their game, you can’t help but wonder if the main act will be able to keep up the same level. Well it took all of above half a minute for me to be reminded that Frozen Soul are head and shoulders above the rest. The lights go down and they come out to Accept‘s Balls to the Wall. It maybe seems at odds with the music we are getting but raises spirits and sets a mood. As we prepare for the Frozen Soul set, they set the scene so beautifully, playing off of their cold and wintry metal sound with intense blue and white lights and fake snow falling as well as a lot of smoke. You felt cold watching them despite the torrent of sweat running down my back.

On the absolutely rammed floor, with people trying their best to catch a glimpse of the band on stage around the massive pillars, the energy levels and excitement reaches a whole new level. Frozen Soul are here to make a statement and as we kick in, and they inform the crowd that it is absolutely mandatory for people to get up on stage with them and dive off, all hell breaks loose. The sound has been great all night but now it booms as the floor shakes underneath the might of the drums and bass. Muscially, Frozen Soul impress so much and with the release of last years Glacial Domination, they are starting to get the back catalogue you need to headline a show.

Singer Chad Green is a big fellow but stalks the stage like a sleek predator. He owns that stage, has the crowd eating out of the palm of his hand and has a voice to rival any other.

So popular are they that you see genuine emotion on the face of those watching and cannot help but be a little taken back at the massive impact this talented group have had in a relatively short space of time. Arsenal of War sees Creeping Death join the stage, some members adding vocals and others just joining the crowd in stage diving and pitting. Invisible Tormentor is well received as are tracks from their first album Crypt of Ice, including that banging title track. A lot of songs come from the latest release though with Morbid Effigy being a particular favourite of mine.

Amongst all the crushing beats and booming voals, the punchy riffs, screaming guitars and impressive backing effects though, and amongst the writhing floor, sea of heads banging and horns being thrown, roars of approval and bodies flying from the stage – amongst all of this, it was the authenticity of their performance and the speeches between songs that blew me away the most.

The genuine gratitude for the sold out show on their first headline tour and the kindness in how they spoke of their time in London now and in the past. The heartfelt messages about looking after each other and mental health struggles and the cruel and clearly painful reality of dealing with loss, in particular the front mans brother, Cory. In the middle of this maelstrom of carnage, Frozen Soul showed themselves to be honest and true, playing serious death metal but to people they see as their family. And that connection, so clear on everyone’s face, was why I was at a jam packed sold out show on a Monday night with such a welcome mix of genders and age groups.

Frozen Soul are on the path to huge things and this tour will surely elevate them to even greater levels as they unite us all under the banner of the new wave of death metal.

There are still plenty of dates across the UK and Europe coming up so make sure to grab yourself a ticket from here – you dont want to miss this.

Find out more about all of these bands at the links below:

Overthrow – Foreseen – Creeping Death – Frozen Soul