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Saturday, at the legendary Dome in Tufnell park in London, saw the staging of the very first Imperial Age Festival, an event that was devised by the members of the band Imperial Age alongside some of their dedicated fans (who would ultimately turn private investors for the event; a couple of whom I got chatting to over the course of the evening as they dedicatedly held their ground right at the front of the stage). Ultimately the brainchild of Aor and Jane (singers from Imperial Age), an event that could bring the local metal community together as a sort of thanks for welcoming the pair to the place that they now call home following their move from Russia (via Turkey) at the start of the conflict in Ukraine.
Putting on an event like this for the first time cannot be a small feat; and with some last minute changes (original headliner Orden Ogan having to unfortunately pull out due to illness and a venue change from the originally planned O2 Academy in Islington), what everyone involved was able to put on can only be described as a success.
That being said, however, if you are a fan of good old fashioned sword waving, first bumping, head banging, armour wearing, swashbuckling, power metal, then this was definitely the event for you.
First out onto the, shall we say atmospheric, stage (if there is one criticism that I could have of the night it was the venues very…very…liberal use of the fog machine on stage) were Spanish symphonic pirate metal seven piece, Crusade of Bards; who, for the first act of six, were greeted by a surprising large crowd for so early in the day. The combined male and female vocals of Eduardo and Eleanor (with the occasional addition of keytarist Paulo) harmonised well off of each other. As a whole delivering a rounded symphonic sound, the set, including ‘The Northwest Passage’ and ‘The Rise of the Kraken’, was, despite some audio issues within the venue that were quickly rectified, a nautical romp of an opening act.
Second act on the bill, featuring the second keytar of the night and clad in an array of armaments, were local London based symphonic outfit, Pythia. Acknowledging that it has been some years since their last release, they promised the crowd that new material is in the works. Their music revolves around themes of life, love, passion and the supernatural; they brought their set to a close with probably their most popular track ‘Sarah (Bury Her)’.
If you prefer your power metal to have more of an 80’s NWOBHM flavour with just a sprinkling of Elder Scrolls lore added on top, then the next band, Southampton's own, Battle Born, are most certainly up your street. Starting their set off with an intense drum line from Charlie (who was sadly relegated to the gloomiest corner of the stage), the crowd were assaulted with a high tempo wall of sound as the remaining members of the band burst onto stage for the opening self-titled number ‘Battle Born’. Lead singer Jack is a blur of motion on the stage bringing a level of energy that is unmatched by any other band on the night, working the crowd both during and in between songs. Twin riffs provided by Will and Tom on guitar (Will winning the prize for most complete musician on the night, running double duties on lead guitar and keyboard with backing vocals added to his resume as well), the group are rounded out by bassist Matt (who some say is still spinning around in circles somewhere with the biggest smile on his face).
Their sword waving, drinking horn raising, head banging set is a blast of energy from start to finish; including fan favourites ‘Power Force’ and ‘Meridia’ alongside the first live play of their new single ‘Magic and Steel’. I have to admit that I have a particular soft spot for this band, tonight was the 9th time that I’ve been lucky enough to see them perform over recent years and their development over that time is clear to see, judging from the reaction from the crowd, the praise levied on them by the headliners later in the evening and conversations I was privy to on the tube on the way home, many others agreed; surely securing a host of new fans willing to ‘Bring The Metal Back’. One thing that you can guarantee at a Battle Born gig is that you will have a fun time. For those who missed out tonight, or those who cannot wait to get their next Battle Born fix; the lads let the crowd know that they are heading out on a mini tour of the UK next week supporting fellow NWOBHM revivalists, and one of the most talked about bands in British metal at the moment, Tailgunner.
Starting off the second half of the evening and with a bit of a gearshift to all those who have come before (and who we will see after) are Suffolk based Ghosts of Atlantis. Although distinctly symphonic, their sound is much heavier and to the extreme end of dark symphonic metal, emerging onto the stage in ragged coats with their faces streaked in blue and white paint, for the first time tonight the staging perfectly matched the atmosphere of the music on show. Their music embodies themes of fantasy and Greek mythology with unsurprising references to Atlantis. Although maybe not everyone in attendance’s cup of tea, there was a noticeable section of the crowd who were there specifically to see the four piece perform. Ghosts of Atlantis were musically polished and delivered a technically accomplished and engaging set, including songs ‘The Lycaon King’, ‘March of the Titans’ and ‘Lands of Snow’; with the atmosphere created I personally felt transported into the content of their songs. Towards the end of the set we got a play of new single ‘Behind the Wall’ a track which seeks to tackle mental health and loss, specifically looking to break down the barriers to men discussing their mental health issues.
The fifth band of the evening, and making their debut appearance on a UK stage, Italians, Alterium. Having only formed in 2022, the fact that this quintet have made it to second on the billing is a testament to both their polished sound but also their super catchy brand of symphonic power metal. The duelling guitars of the super talented Alessandro and Paolo provide the backing for Nicoletta’s powerful vocals. Highlights from their set included a punchy cover of Sabaton’s ‘Bismark’ that had the entire crowd fist pumping in unison; “as every good power metal album needs a ballad” (queue a waltz between the guitarists on stage) ‘Crystalline’; and the pirate friendly, yet drum fierce, ‘Heroine of the Sea’.
Last up, chief architects of the evening, and recently promoted headliners, Imperial Age. Headed by Aor and Jane, the band is now rounded by a predominantly British cast of instrumentalists; from what I can gather tonight was the first outing for this particular line up on stage together, but with the show that they put on you would never know that they had not been performing these songs together for years.
Listening to Aor explain the journey that both Jane and himself had been on and how the band has had to evolve over recent years, before giving thanks to the other bands on the line up alongside the fans, promoters and venue staff who helped to make this first edition of the festival a reality, it is clear to see the drive and passion that he has not only for his music, but also the metal scene within the nation's capital.
Onto the music, and what Imperial age delivers is good old fashioned symphonic power metal in its purest form. The set begins with ‘Windborn’ and gets progressively heavier as it continues; seeing Aor’s tenor vocals play off of Jane’s mezzo-soprano (the later also providing a contrasting set of heavy vocals on occasion) as the crowd are treated to the likes of ‘The Way is The Aim’ and ‘And I Shall Find My Home’. At one point the crowd were instructed, and duly obliged, to split and form the first meaningful mosh pit of the evening. The main set comes to an end with the heaviest song so far, newest single ‘Gnosis’, most of the band leave the stage for the briefest of moments whilst drummer Manuele gets up on his drum riser and chugs his way through a bottle of wine to the cheers of the crowd. The rest of the band return for their encore, a song that Aor has dubbed the “drummer killer” (hopefully the bottle of wine hadn’t kicked in too hard for Manuele at this point) ‘Call of the Towers’; Aor relishing the fact that the rest of the band don’t know yet that the rest of the upcoming album will be of a similar tempo.
On the whole the festival, despite experiencing a few teething problems, was largely a success, although you have to wonder what scale the event could have reached if it were able to have staged that big ticket headliner and remained at its original higher capacity venue.
Words: Simon Arinze
Photos: Simon Arinze
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