Devil Sold His Soul headed to London ending their first headline tour in five years with a bang!
Following their highly anticipated fourth album release ‘Loss’ (2021) via Nuclear Blast, Devil Sold His Soul embarked on a short run of UK headline shows to celebrate the release. The critically acclaimed record is filled with poignant melodies intertwined with subject matter that connect us all as living souls. Having both Ed Gibbs and Paul Green together on combined vocal duties creates an exciting dynamic which is accompanied by soaring guitar riffs, haunting melodies and rhythmic drums. Lyrically, the album circles around loss, grief, mental health and anxiety. Though the topics are heavy and dark, the melodies and atmospheric riffs are uplifting and draw the listener into their ban.
With an early start, the o2 Academy Islington opened their doors around 6pm, having the first band of the evening starting off the night shortly after. Forlorn, a British heavy metal sextet, combined ethereal sound waves of post-rock with the metallic fury of metalcore and draw the fans who came down early closer to the stage.
Next up was the British three-piece Urne whose sound is a mixture of varying styles and intriguing experimentations ranging from heavy riffs to softer melodic soundscapes. With the venue starting to slowly fill up they saw a growing number of fans gathering in front of the stage waiting to get hyped up for the final band of the evening.
As the lights dimmed for the last time and the ambient intro of Ardour kicked in Devil Sold His Soul made their way on stage and saw the near-capacity crowd going mental right from the start. The excitement of the fans saw them moshing and jumping along. Any crowd-surf attempts got immediately shut down by the security team but that didn’t diminish the joyous atmosphere. Songs such as Devastator and Signal Fire saw the crowd scream along at the top of their lungs while Loss offered an emotional end to the set before coming back with Darkness Prevails and Like It’s Your Last as encores. Towards the end of the set Forlorn’s Megan joined Ed and Paul on stage with some guest vocals which was a nice surprise. For the last song, Paul took the leap and jumped into the crowd being carried across their heads before heading back on stage to finish off the evening with a bang.
It was an absolutely magical evening with loads of emotions, heavy riffs and heartfelt melodies. Everyone seemed to have a great time and enjoyed themselves be it the bands on stage or the highly energetic crowd singing their hearts out in front of the stage. The atmosphere reached from dark melancholy to bright excitement. Overall, it was a special time with amazingly talented bands and great music.
Venue: o2 Academy Islington
Band: Devil Sold His Soul
You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to stay updated.
A Special Time 