Live Review: Lake Malice - Waterfront, Norwich
9th March 2024
Support: thecityisours and Omega Bad
Words & Photos: Tom Atkin
A delicious trio of alt-metal graces the Waterfront Studio tonight.
First up we have Norfolk’s very own Omega Bad (formally known as Decay The Ocean). For such a young band these guys are doing incredibly well. Playing locally for a fair while means that there is a tremendous amount of support in the room for them and that support is very much justified.
With heavy riffs, catchy synths and some stunning vocals they are living up to the claim that they are ready to take the scene by storm. It won’t be long before these guys are hitting up their own headline tour. You can check out all their current releases over on Spotify!
Filling the second support slot tonight is thecityisours, another great UK metal band that is on the rise. Firstly, I would like to mention that the band had some serious technical difficulties, loosing half of their audio. This resulted in a shorter set, however, it did mean that we got treated to acoustic renditions of three songs.
Once they were back up and running they put on a hell of a show, technical riffs for days that were performed flawlessly, having listened to them a fair bit pre show. I can say that their live/recorded differences are minimal. In my opinion, the live versions have more passion, and really put across how much they love the music they create.
The paring of clean and unclean vocals works an absolute treat for them, and the acoustic performance from Mikey Page was just a thing of beauty. Once again, a band to keep an eye on, currently they have no more dates planned however their back catalog can be found over on Spotify. Be sure to go give them a listen!
And finally, tonights main attraction, the phenomenal UK alt-metallers Lake Malice. I first came across these guys around six months ago when they were supporting Skindred just up the road at Epic Studios. Since then, they have been a constant on my daily playlist. Alice Guala and Blake Cornwall are absolutely smashing the scene now with most of this tour selling out or with shows on extremely low tickets.
Opening the set with 2023’s 'Black Turbine' sets the mood perfectly for the rest of the show, straight in to the full on energy that you would expect if you have heard any of their songs before. We are treated to the vast amount of their catalogue tonight, including 'Creepers', 'BloodBath' and 'Magic Square' which are certainly well received. A band like Lake Malice, with such dedicated fans, always provides a better atmosphere. The pit is in full force through out and the lack space between the band and the crowd just seems to hit different.
Two new songs were dropped in to the set tonight, named 'Scatty C*nt' and 'NWTBU' according to the set list, however I am guessing these are working titles. Either way, it provides us an insight into the next chapter of what Lake Malice are doing. And it sounds just glorious as their current chapter.
Alice’s voice over the top of Blake’s heavy guitar works perfectly. The synth backing ties it all together in a way that I can’t actually compare to at the moment. They are sitting at the front of this alt-metal genre and very much deserve it.
Unfortunately, Lake Malice are not gracing us with another tour until November this year when they are supporting Blackout Problems over in Europe. Until then, you have plenty of time to take in all their music and get hyped for the chance to see them when they are back on the road.
Photo Credit: Tom Atkin
