Live Review: Dragonforce & The Sword

Considering the critical buzz and their being championed by rock's biggest names, it's odd that heavy metal/doom/stoner troupe The Sword can't pull a larger crowd. The Americans have killer riffs up the yin-yang; material from current effort, Apocryphon, especially has a groove so wide you could fall into it. Much of said appeal was lost on many attendees primed for the headliners. Also, a shortage of genuine presence and charisma – not to mention variety at times – meant they didn't resonate with the endearing spirit they exhibit on record. This unconventional combination of bands ensured they were always going to be up against it and though they tried hard, it wasn't quite their night.

Power metallers and riff-mongers make for strange bedfellows, so as the minority that were there for the latter headed off, the former's devotees made their presence known. Guitar Hero seems like an age ago now and although the franchise is long since departed, its lingering effects were detectable in DragonForce's poses and tongue-in-cheek showmanship. Returning after a five-year absence and sporting new, more versatile frontman Marc Hudson, the drawing power of the warp-speed, cheesy Englishmen had waned. They still retain an exuberant, air-shredding following though. Keytar-sporting Vadim Pruzhanov channelled an ADD-riddled child let loose in a toy store; a beaming, axe-licking Herman Li looked every inch the guitar god and fellow shredder Sam Totman enlisted roadies to pour beers down his gullet.

Oh – and they played some songs too; Fields Of Despair went down a treat, as did semi-ballad, Seasons, a soaring gem from middling latest disc, The Power Within. Through The Fire And Flames sent everyone home grinning. The narrow scope of material struggled to sustain an hour-plus and, removed from media hysteria of yore, DragonForce's creative and commercial peak has likely passed. They're still entertaining enough to watch, mind you.