Live Review: Coheed and Cambria – O2 Forum, Kentish Town, London
13th June 2023
Support: Soul Glo
Words & Photos: Jacob Schwar
It was an absolute privilege to be back at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town which is without a doubt one of the best venues in London, having seen some of my most memorable gigs from Dillinger Escape Plan to Neurosis upon its hallowed stage. Tonight performance was unsurprisingly sold-out which is expected whenever Coheed and Cambria are in town, the types of people in attendance were die-hard metalheads to clean-cut casuals which shows the impressive reach this band has in mainstream music and this performance was to be a perfect example of why Coheed and Cambria are the best in what they do!
Kicking things off we have hardcore punk outfit Soul Glo, initially I was surprised to see them on tonight’s line-up, considering their intense, noisy hardcore sound firmly contrasts the more accessible and polished sound of Coheed and Cambria. The audience’s reactions seemed rather mixed with many bopping heads and others with a look of dismay upon their faces, it was rather amusing to watch the crowd as the band teared through the song 'Jump (Or Get Jumped By The Future)'.
As things went on, it was clear to see the audience were warming up to this hardcore quartet, with the initiation of a small mosh-pit and many raised arms sporting a clenched fist in support. They’d follow up with a ruthless hip-hop track 'Driponomics' showcasing the more experimental side of Soul Glo as well as 'Gold Chain Punk (whogonnabeatmyass?)' an oddly anthemic number though crushingly heavy! Soul Glo were a fantastic choice as support acts for this tour, they truly surprised and amazed, being a hardcore band opening up for a bigger prog metal act is no easy feat and I’m happy the audience were able to support and appreciate their fiercely impassioned performance.
We now come to tonight’s headliners, New York’s finest in progressive metal, Coheed and Cambria! Upon the dark stage came leadsinger Claudio Sanchez, wielding an acoustic guitar, he played the sweetly poignant intro 'The Reaping' soon joined by his fellow bandmates, they kicked straight into 'No World For Tomorrow', making for one of the most compelling band introductions I’ve seen in a while. The band would be playing pretty much the entirety of the 'No World For Tomorrow' album for the first half of tonight’s performance which included the poppy and Rushesque 'Feathers' which got the entire crowd singing their hearts out.
Then the almost poppunkish 'The Running Free','Gravemakers & Gunslingers' with its catchy riffage and unapologetic attitude and a personal favourite the truly epic 'The End Complete'. They would go on to play a substantial encore as well, consisting of material from their most recent album Vaxis – Act II: A Window of the Waking Mind released back in 2022. This included the epically anthemic 'The Liars Club', the beautifully passionate and uplifting 'Beautiful Losers' and finishing the night of with 'Ladders Of Supremacy' allowing Coheed and Cambria to show off their true progressive side and that despite their overall ‘accessible’ sound, they’re still a metal band at heart.
All photo credits: Jacob Schwar / Darkness Before Dawn
