LIVE REVIEW: Born of Osiris @ Islington Academy, London

BORN OF OSIRIS have risen up to become one of the most popular tech-metal bands in recent years. With this in mind they seemed a great choice to headline the Sumerian Alliance Tour as the record label celebrates its 10th year. Bringing along VEIL OF MAYA, VOLUMES and BLACK CROWN INITIATE was sure to provide fans of tech-metal with a very good night.

Due to a ridiculously early stage time BLACK CROWN INITIATE are playing to an unfortunately small crowd but those lucky enough to make it in on time are treated to something brilliant. Crushingly heavy but packed full of intricacies, this is far more challenging than an opening band should be. Continuously shifting between death metal and prog they never get boring and the fact they only managed to fit four songs into a half an hour set tells you a lot about what the songs are like. With this being their first time in the UK, BLACK CROWN INITIATE make a very strong impression.

Rating: 8/10

VOLUMES on the other hand are far less interesting. They explode on stage and with every member dressed head to two in white they have a striking image. However poor sound immediately hurts their performance which also comes across as a little sloppy at times. It isn’t helped that the music is actually very basic for a tech-metal band. This is tech-metal so heavily filtered through Warped that it often feels like they are just playing one note breakdowns but with an off-kilter time signature. The crowd initially respond well and get caught up in the bands energy but things start to dip especially as VOLUMES pull out a new song. Wormholes picks things back up towards the end but it’s hard not to feel disappointed by VOLUMES tonight.

Rating: 5/10

VEIL OF MAYA are undoubtedly the highlight of tonight. Focusing heavily on their latest album Matriarch is a great move tonight and allows current vocalist Lukas Magyar to really show off what he is capable of. And his performance tonight is really the standout, delivering both clean vocals and screams perfectly. The rest of the band are on top form as well, making everything look easy. The energy levels from the crowd also peak during this set with a mosh pit that never seems to close. Mikasa wraps up the set brilliantly with all the crowd singing along to its huge chorus. VEIL OF MAYA are on such good form tonight that it is hard to believe they are just main support at the Islington Academy. Their performance tonight is certainly worthy of headlining or even filling larger venues.

Rating: 9/10

Unfortunately BORN OF OSIRIS just aren’t able to top VEIL OF MAYA tonight. They come out full of energy and and deliver a tight and polished performance that you’d expect from a headliner but it isn’t as exciting as what came before. It doesn’t help that the crowd had thinned out noticeably by the time BORN OF OSIRIS take to the stage. The biggest problem is just how formulaic BORN OF OSIRIS come across with every song following a similar pattern. There’s lots of impressive guitar work but there isn’t a huge amount of difference in the riffs and solos between songs.

There’s no denying the effort BORN OF OSIRIS put in tonight with the dual vocals of Ronnie Canizaro and Joe Buras adding a lot of energy. The majority of the synths being played live instead of just being on a backing track is also a nice touch and adds a more authentic feel to the performance. In the end they deliver a solid set that the majority of the remaining crowd enjoy, but it just feels underwhelming compared to what VEIL OF MAYA managed tonight.

Rating: 6/10

Check out our exclusive photo gallery of the night’s action in London from BlackLotus Photography: