A band I’ve wanted to catch for some time, Cirith Ungol, if you don’t already know, play a kind of progressive heavy doom metal, with great riffs, simple repetitive structures supporting meandering developmental parts, and it’s all topped off with a unique vocal style that I can honestly say has got better with age, delivering anthemic lyrics that makes everyone in the room want to punch the air. This is a perfect example of a band that plays even better now that they are old. Starting in 1971, splitting up in the early nineties and now reformed, the closest they generally get to the UK is mainland European festivals these days, so a trip to Finland in October it was!
Kulttuuritehdas Korjaamo in Helsinki is an old tram station converted into an arts centre, for want of a better word. The main hall for gigs is pretty big, and the sound is great. It’s only an hour set tonight. They open up with Atom Smasher and keep the classics coming right up until King of the Dead and Paradise Lost. It’s a great mood all round ( probably not though for the guy who gets dragged out by security for being a bit too overexcited down the front ) and the fists are pumping throughout. They have two headlining sets coming up at Keep It True 2020 and you know what, I can see them handling that just fine. Here then is a snippet of Frost and Fire. If you only learn one guitar riff in life – make it this one!
Old Man's Mettle 
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