Live Review: Lordi – Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhamptonn
2nd April 2025
Support: Sick N' Beautiful
Words & Photos: Scott Clarke
It’s mid week and the sun was almost setting after we’ve just put the clocks forward this past weekend yet the night was still bright, it’s the kind of weather that just puts you in a more uplifted mood from the beginning and to add to that, things were going to be taken up even higher tonight as we waited at the Wulfrun Hall, queues formed en masse, all in anticipation of seeing Finnish monsters of metal, Lordi.
As we filtered into the venue, the merch stands were already busy with patrons picking up t shirts and other memorabilia to support the bands on tonight. It wasn’t a packed out house which surprised me but there were still a fair amount of people from the beginning as up first tonight are a very fitting band that are set to amplify the theatrical nature of tonights show. Italian alt-metal, hard rock, industrial, sci-fi inspired quintet, Sick N’ Beautiful.
Opening up with a burst of lights and an incredible array of props and elaborate stage wear, the first impressions of this group are a feast for the senses.
(Human) is Overrated is the first track to blast our eardrums tonight and it’s a treat as its straight in with a new track from the forthcoming Horror Vacui album set to launch this very month. Tonight We Go To War is next on the list, that chugging rhythm keeps the heads nodding before a bit of a tangent as a cover of the Kiss classic, God Of Thunder is thrown into the mix and not for the only time tonight. Drop It 2 The B follows and this really drives home the industrial vibe of the band. Raise the Dragon, another treat from the new record gets some airtime along with latest single Hate Manifesto again from the new album. Closing out their time with us with New Witch 666 and going back to Hell Over Hell from 2015 for Makin’ Angels.
I have to say, they’re different. In a good way. In a world where so many people are trying to be like someone else, it’s so refreshing to see and hear a group that is totally something unique. From what I’ve heard and seen tonight, they are able to blend so many genres and styles together masterfully that it gives them this unique quality where no two songs really sound the same. With amazing and intricate costume designs and several changes for the lead lady along with the stage design and lighting, it made the show feel truly like something from another world, its just a shame that they weren’t permitted to use their full stage repertoire consisting of fire and lasers as well due to safety reasons at the venue, else that would’ve really been something else to behold.
Herma’s powerful vocals take the lead and blast through the rhapsody of instrumentals, her stage presence and the way she stalks the stage is both dominant and intimidating, she definitely takes charge. Big Daddy Ray’s beefy bass notes and Evey’s pounding drums beat the rhythm and the power of the tracks while L0r1 and Nemes provide driving riffs along with blistering solos to round out a group of instrumentalists that blend genres and styles to create their own unique sound and feel while still having clear inspiration as their foundation from the likes of Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson. It’s a deep and aggressive sound that still manages to maintain catchy melodies and as the tracks go on, the crowd seem to lap it up.
I wasn’t familiar with the band before tonight and I’m sure some in the audience were in the same boat, but they put on a great show and a range of tracks that really spoke to the crowd. There will be quite a few new fans having been made here after this performance and, with the knowledge of the act that would be following them, they were able to excel themselves on that stage and really turned things up for this captive audience.
After a change around of complex stage furniture and from the sci fi to the macabre, the lights dimmed for the second and final time tonight for our headline act, Lordi. With their album titles remaining clever plays on words or phrases throughout their illustrious career such as, The Monsterican Dream, The Arockalypse, Scare Force One and Screem Writers Guild, to name just a few, it should come as no surprise that the latest offering should follow suit, for tonight Lordi are here to showcase their 19th studio album, Limited Deadition.
And yet despite their myriad of albums and the amount of material they’ve put out there, Lordi are probably still most remembered for a classic EuroVision moment that saw the Finnish entry overcome the odds and land the victory back in 2006. It was a historic moment, the first act from Finland to win and also the first rock/ metal act to win the competition, it really doesn’t seem like it but it was almost 20 years ago!
God of Thunder echoes throughout the place as it heralds the arrival of the band. They take their positions on stage to a monstrous roar from the Wolverhampton crowd and begin the evening’s rockfest with Legends are Made of Cliches, the first track from the latest record and strangely one of only 4 tracks from the newest release that are scattered throughout the setlist tonight, the others being Syntax Terror, Retropolis and Hellizabeth. The new songs go down very well with the fans and its credit to the song writing abilities that even after so many releases and with a very distinctive sound, Mr Lordi and his group are able to release new material that blends in so well with the established classics and never seem out of place even though the albums do tackle their own themes independently.
The set tonight consists of Girls Go Chopping, Who’s Your Daddy?, Beast of Both Worlds, The Riff, Girl in a Suitcase, Call Off the Wedding, The Devil is a Loser and I was glad to hear two of my personal favourites, Blood Red Sandman as well as Would You Love a Monsterman thrown in for good measure. There was a little of something for everyone tonight from the past to the present.
With such a vast back catalogue of material, it’s always going to be a difficult decision to decide just what to play in a two hour set for a crowd of fans that are always going to favour some songs or albums over others. Yet tonight I sensed no disappointment from the fans who just loved every moment of the show with offerings from Limited Deadition of course but also Deadache, Get Heavy, Lordiversity, Babez for Breakfast, To Beast or Not to Beast, The Monsterican Dream and of course The Arockalypse for a closing number that took me back to that night 20 years ago, seeing a surprising entry that took everyone off guard yet proved to be a worthy winner with Hard Rock, Hallelujah.
With the attention to detail in their stage sets and of course their incredible costumes, immediate comparisons can be drawn to the likes of Gwar and even Kiss. But the music, although still drawing on the horror and the macabre is more akin to the latter, with many of Lordi's tracks focusing heavily on the melodic side of things. They're so much more than a one trick pony, and although stylistically, first impressions could be drawn that the effort that goes into their theatrical performance is to make up for the lack of quality songs, nothing could be further from it and the fans in here tonight along with the sheer number of albums and charting success that they have had for as long as they have is proof of their song writing credentials, the music speaks for itself, the fact that they put in so much extra in terms of their theatricality and story telling is testament to the desire to put on a hell of a show for the fans.
Needless to say I have the utmost respect for Mr Lordi and his fellow bunch of musically gifted monsters, Hella, Mana, Hiisi and Kone all of which are incredible musicians, not only for their obvious talents but also for their determination to perform in such outfits and prosthetics that not only must take an age to assemble but must be incredibly uncomfortable and hot to wear and perform in on stage for any extended period of time.
The lighting and stage show tonight are like another band member, pulling its own weight and adding to the dramatic show in a way that turns a concert into a theatre production. It is simply superb. Actually I'd be pretty interested to see what Lordi: The Musical would be like. Imagine some of their incredible music videos acted out on stage woven into an overarching story, just an idea guys.
The fans are deeply involved in the performance throughout, even the newer tracks see fair attention and sing alongs, but it's the classics that really bring the house down and see the room here at the civic alive and bubbling like an army of cohorts commanded by Mr Lordi with his vocals on the songs and his amusing anecdotes throughout, weirdly despite the make up and the costumes, you do at times look through all of that as genuine people shine through, and characters give way to people who you'd gladly have a drink and share stories with, this was the first evening of only 6 dates here in the UK on this Limited Tour ‘25 and it was a monstrous success, if you can, get to one of the shows, you won’t be disappointed.
Photo credit: Scott Clarke
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