July 15, 2017, I was in Illinois working with DreadMusicReview covering Chicago Open Air. At 3 PM that Saturday, a band I had been looking forward to for years by the name of DragonForce hit the stage and had a spectacular set. After their set, I had the opportunity to meet vocalist Marc Hudson and guitarist Herman Li. It was quite memorable. Twelve days later on July 27, 2017, DragonForce had a tour stop at The Beacham in my current residency of Orlando, FL. I was fortunate enough to be covering the show and had an interview with Marc before the show. I was bringing my son to the show as a surprise and the tour manager was kind enough to let me bring him to the interview to meet Marc. Marc remembered me from Chicago Open Air and during the interview engaged my son primarily discussing video games they were both playing. On the evening of the show, the security guards allowed the photographers to stay close to the front after we finished photographing. A security guard asked my son if he could see, which he said he could. But, suddenly lifted him up and stood him on a speaker that put him at stage level with the band. During the show, Marc, Herman, and Sam Totman all had seen him at various times and came over to say hello during their performance. Sam even flicked him a pick. It was a moment neither of us would ever forget.
Fast forward six years later and DragonForce was coming back to Orlando, FL and fortunately enough was approved to cover their show. And while my son had grown away from their music, I was still fully invested and looking forward to seeing them perform again. This time, they were touring with an amazing group of bands including Amaranthe, Nanowar of Steel, and Edge of Paradise. When I arrived at the show, I saw Edge of Paradise posting it was a sold-out show at House of Blues Orlando and I was super excited for the bands. There was no doubt in my mind, this was going to be another night to remember.
Opening the show was Edge of Paradise from Los Angeles, CA. The rock band started in 2011 and released their first EP in 2013 and their first album Immortal Waltz in 2015. Since then, they released one additional EP and four studio albums. Their most recent album Hologram on July 14, 2023. The band consists of Margarita Monet (vocals), Dave Bates (lead guitar), David Ruiz (rhythm guitar), Kenny Lockwood (bass), and Jamie Moreno (drums).
Presence, skill, and showmanship are three words I would use to describe Edge of Paradise. The moment they stepped on stage, the House of Blues Orlando crowd cheered loudly. Edge of Paradise wasted no time showing the crowd why they were a band to follow. Their stage setup included fog machines, a beautiful backdrop, and a laser light box for Margarita to stand in and be surrounded by green lasers. Margarita came out in a beautiful green colored dress. Jamie had his sunglasses on behind the stage. They were poised and ready to rock for the crowd.
And rock they did. Dave and David were hard and heavy on the guitars getting the crowd pumped up. Kenny laid down heavy bass beats that thumped your body with every strum. Jamie ripped away at the drums in rapid-fire mode with precision. And Margarita’s beautiful vocals echoed through the venue running chills down your spine. I had known about this band for years but never had the opportunity to see them live. I was extremely impressed. Most of their setlist was from their album Hologram. They performed two of my favorite songs from the album, “Hologram” and “The Faceless”. I also really enjoyed their performance of “The Basilisk”, which was their closing song. If you haven’t seen them live yet, absolutely catch them if they come to your town. You can check out their music and merch over at https://www.edgeofparadiseband.com/. Also, check out Margarita’s art that she sells through their site.
Next to the stage was the heavy metal band from Italy, Nanowar of Steel. The band formed in 2003 and focused on satire and comedy in their songs. They self-published their first album the same year they started and would self-produce three more of their studio albums. They signed in 2018 with Audioglobe to release their fifth studio album. Two years later, they signed with Napalm Records who re-released their fifth album and would produce their sixth and seventh album. Their seventh album, Dislike to False Metal, was released on March 10, 2023. Nanowar of Steel consists of Potowotominimak (Carlo Alberto Fiaschi) (vocals), Mr. Baffo (Raffaello Venditti) (vocals), Mohammed Abdul (Valerio Storch) (guitar), Gattopanceri666 (Edoardo Carlesi) (bass), and Uinona Raider (Alessandro Milone) (drums).
To paraphrase my friend Leith, what do you get when you mix a talking butt, a barn owl, and IKEA? The answer is Nanowar of Steel. I had never seen them or listened to their music so I didn’t know what to expect. And what we started with was a narration from an unknown voice with Potowotominimak holding a microphone to Mr. Baffo bent over and moving his butt cheeks as if his butt was speaking to the crowd. I knew we were in for a grand old time the moment that happened. Through their set Potowotominimak and Mr. Baffo serenaded the crowd with their vocals. Gattopanceri666 with his orange wig and bow tie threw down the bass keeping the songs heavy. Uinona’s drum playing was great keeping the beats of their songs very lively. Mohammed though seriously blew my mind away. His guitar playing was so fast and he was so animated on stage I loved photographing him.
Their music is absolutely satirical and I laughed all the way through their set. Their opening song “Uranus” was dedicated to the planet, but the talking butt before it gave the song a double meaning. “The Call of Cthulhu” gave us Potowotominimak with a Cthulhu mask on his head while mimicking a phone call. He then used the phone to take a video of the crowd and his bandmates. “Il cacciatore della notte” was about a barn owl with Potowotominimak coming out on stage in a full owl costume. But, the most hilarious was “Valhalleluja” which was dedicated to IKEA. During the song, Potowotominimak literally pulled out a large wooded board from a bag, then a table leg, and then started assembling the table on stage to the beat of the song. When the table was done, he passed it into the crowd who then crowd-surfed the table all around the venue. Nanowar of Steel is such a fun band to see live. Check out their music and merch over at https://www.nanowar.it/.
Next up was the heavy metal band from Gothenburg, Sweden, called Amaranthe. The band formed in 2008 originally under the name Avalanche. They changed their name due to copyright and legal issues to Amaranthe. The band released their first album, self-titled, in 2011 and had strong success on the Finnish rock charts. Their second album, The Nexus, saw success on Billboard US Heatseekers Albums reaching #12. Their next three albums all reached #1 on the Billboard US Heatseekers Albums charts. They signed with Nuclear Blast Records in 2019 and released The Manifest in 2020. The band announced the release of their next album, The Catalyst, on February 23, 2024. The band consists of Elize Ryd (clean vocals), Nils Molin (clean vocals), Mikael Sehlin (harsh vocals), Olof Mörck (guitar), Johan Andreassen (bass), and Morten Løwe Sørensen (drums).
I was very much looking forward to seeing Amaranthe live and they were super excited to see the crowd as well. Nils told the crowd it’s been a while since they had been back in the United States and were very happy to be back. Amaranthe is such an intriguing band with three lead vocalists and they truly make it work. Elize and Nils harmonize so well together and their vocals are absolutely amazing. Mikael blends right in with his deep, growling vocals. It’s impressive how easily the three of them sing their way through the song because each vocals changes the vibe as they go. Olof is a fantastic guitarist playing heavy when necessary and switches to melodic so easily. Johan’s bass playing is booming and quick. And Morten drives the pace of the song with each drum hit. What I love seeing is the interaction on stage with all of them and how they interact with the crowd. Elize and Nils play off each other frequently on stage and twice Elize posed for me for photos. Olof looks quite stylish on stage and during a song literally stopped and posed as if I was doing a photoshoot with him. The band constantly engages the crowd too to get them moving wanting to see them bouncing and dancing.
They provided the crowd that night with a twelve-song setlist and it was one hit after another all the way through. They performed “Fearless”, “Viral”, and “Archangel” from their current album The Manifest. They dug back into the archives with “Hunger” from their self-titled 2011 album. I truly loved they performed “Damnation Flame” from their upcoming album The Catalyst. They even performed the title track “The Nexus” from their 2013 album. Their music is a wonderful blend of heavy metal, melodic, and techno and they are truly a treat to see live. I absolutely loved their performance. You can find their music and merch over at https://amaranthe.se/.
Last, and far from least, was our headliners DragonForce. The British power metal band formed in 1999 by guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman. They released their first album Valley of the Damned in 2003 and followed up with Sonic Firestorm in 2004. It was Inhuman Rampage in 2005 that broke them out with their single “Through the Fire and Flames”. The single became so popular it was added to Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and is considered the hardest song to play in the Guitar Hero series. The album peaked at #103 on the Billboard 200 and the album was certified Gold in the U.S. and Britain. Their success grew with their next three albums all charting on the Billboard 200. In total the band has released eight studio albums with their most recent titled Extreme Power Metal in 2019. The band also announced their ninth studio album, Warp Speed Warriors, will be released on March 15, 2024. The band consists of Marc Hudson (vocals), Herman Li (guitar), Sam Totman (guitar), Alicia Vigil (bass), and Gee Anzalone (drums).
DragonForce is by far one of the fastest guitar-playing bands of all time. Herman and Sam are absolutely outstanding performers and their showmanship on stage is phenomenal. They often stand side-by-side ripping through their riffs as fast as they can. Sometimes they literally play each other’s guitars without missing a beat. Herman, though, is the more animated of the two constantly yelling towards the crowd to get them engaged, bouncing his guitar off his legs, and blowing on the strings to make guitar notes. Sam plays fast but stays very reserved on stage. Alicia is similar to Sam, staying reserved, but is dropping bass beats just as fast as Herman and Sam, though you wouldn’t notice unless you’re watching her hands. Gee sits behind a massive drumkit rapidly firing off beats through the songs. And Marc wraps up the songs with his powerful and melodic voice delivering the lyrics as smooth as ice. He is passionate on the stage getting the crowd amped up ready to rock.
The stage setup was perfect for DragonForce. On each side was a massive oversized arcade game console with a working screen. One of the consoles was Galaga and the other was Phoenix. Both were very popular arcade games from the 80s. The consoles were big enough that Herman and Sam could climb up on top to perform on top of them. The band also had this massive video screen on the back wall where they would display various things during the show. They really kicked it up poping confetti right at the start of the show. They also raised it at the end when they had two massive dragon heads on the stage as they performed their encore. It was insane.
That night, the band had a hour and forty minute setlist with only thirteen songs. Why? Because the majority of DragonForce’s songs are long. If a song is less than five minutes it’s a miracle. And those thirteen songs were absolutely killer. They opened with “Revolution Deathsquad” from Inhuman Rampage. From the upcoming Warp Speed Warriors they performed “Power of the Triforce”, which is a tribute to the video game The Legend of Zelda, and “Doomsday Party”. DragonForce is well known for their love of video games and tributes to them. So they also performed “The Last Dragonborn” from Extreme Power Metal which is dedicated to the video game Skyrim. By far, one of my favorite songs they performed that night was “Cry Thunder” from the 2012 The Power Within. It is such a power anthem of a song and hearing the crowd shout out “CRY THUNDER!” at the chorus ran chills down my arms. DragonForce also knows how to have fun. They do cover songs on some of their albums and that night they performed “My Heart Will Go On” a cover of the Celine Dion song they recorded on Extreme Power Metal. DragonForce had their media rep standing on the pit floor recording while a circle pit ran around him. The band wrapped up their setlist with “Through the Fire and Flames” from Inhuman Rampage because that is their staple song. I can’t speak highly enough about their performance that evening. You can find their music and merch over at https://dragonforce.com/.
Overall, DragonForce, Amaranthe, Nanowar of Steel, and Edge of Paradise delivered a stupendous performance for the crowd that night. It was a show for the ages and one I will always remember. Catch this tour while you can, because you’ll never have another show like this ever again.
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