High Parasite are becoming regulars on stages. Led by the now-former My Dying Bride frontman Aaron Stainthorpe, they’ve been putting in the miles over the past year, and you can see that work paying off. Tracks like “Wasn’t Human” and “Grave Intentions” show a band carving out their own space — doom, yes, but not quite as we know it. There’s a modern edge to the riffs, a brooding swagger in the rhythm, and an attitude that feels utterly current. Bassist Johnny Hunter locks everything down with a low-end throb that’s impossible to ignore. There’s melody too, lurking beneath the menace, and when they close with “Forever We Fall,” it feels like the start of something significant.
Italy’s Messa, whose name literally translates as “mass,” are a very different proposition. From the opening hum of “Fire On The Roof,” there’s an immediate sense of drama. Sarah Bianchin’s voice hovers somewhere between the ethereal and the possessed — she doesn’t just sing; she channels. Guitarist Alberto Piccolo conjures tones that shift from bluesy flickers to jagged, proggy bursts, with songs like “At The Races” weaving unexpected grooves amid the shadows. There’s jazz, doom, and ritual all mixed together, but somehow it never feels forced. By the time they reach “Rubedo” and “The Dress,” you’re drawn into their dark ceremony.
Messa aren’t just playing songs — they’re creating atmosphere, tension, and release. It’s hypnotic and compelling stuff.
Paradise Lost are getting towards the end of their set, and they’ve just played “Mouth.” “That would’ve been a real surprise if it wasn’t for the internet,” smiles Nick Holmes from behind the mic. And yet it reminds that Paradise Lost came from a different time — one before spoilers and setlist leaks, one where mystery still existed in metal. For 35 years, though, they’ve done things entirely their own way.
The minute they emerge from the darkness, the years seem to fall away. “Servant Of The Cross,” from their new record Ascension, proves straight away that time hasn’t dulled their power or ambition. Holmes’ trademark growl cuts through the gloom, while Aaron Aedy and Greg Mackintosh’s guitars weave those unmistakable melancholic harmonies. “Tragic Idol,” “True Belief,” and “One Second” arrive in quick succession — songs that helped define a generation of British metal and still sound colossal.
“This is from when we had long hair and tight pants,” Holmes smiles before “Once Solemn.” He’s right — it’s a throwback in the best way.
They even dust off “Nothing Sacred” from Host — that much-maligned-by-idiots but now rightly revered record — before surging back into heavier territory with new one “Tyrants,” “Serenade,” and “Requiem.”
The set builds perfectly toward a towering “Say Just Words,” the kind of song that reminds you why Paradise Lost remain masters of their craft.
For the encore, they throw in “No Celebration” for the first time in decades, with Holmes quipping that its about “54 disappointing Christmases and New Year’s Eves” before launching into “Ghosts.” To end with “Silence Like The Grave” from the aforementioned “Ascension” is a bold move — few bands would close on something so new, but Paradise Lost have never done things by the book.
Four decades in, they’re still doing it on their own terms. Ferocious, melodic, and as uncompromising as ever, Paradise Lost remain the dark, yet welcoming heart of British metal — still evolving, still essential, and still unmistakably themselves.
