Simon Rushworth
@ Newcastle Trillians, November 21 2010
Kobra And The Lotus have seemingly risen from nowhere having formed just last year. Known for red hot front-woman Brittany Paige appearing in Metal Hammer’s Maidens Of Metal calendar, their reputation has rapidly excelled to higher metalling heights. A modest Newcastle crowd gave the Canadiens a chance to show exactly why they’re extremely hyped.
The night could have been considered as the antithesis of top-heavy, with local act Harlot arguably producing the most interesting set. Their pop tinged melodic metal is very accessible regardless of taste. Simple but effective, the recently signed rockers have a long way ahead of them and a potential to hit a goldmine of commercial success.
From here onward, things remained unsteady. Triaxis offered some traditional heavy metal, with a female fronted setup being the only element to distinguish them from the mire of a regurgitated retro sounds. A cover of Anthax’s Madhouse was uninspired and while there was plenty of coherent guitar duelling, the female vocals suffered in the more thrashy sections.
The main act, unfortunately, ensured a continuation of inconsistency. Where there were some enjoyable passages, there were equal amounts of scrambled and flat sections.
There’s no doubt that Paige has the looks and feisty charisma to entertain an audience and her efforts have to be noted, with a perpetual ‘in your face’ attitude backed by some Maiden-esque guitar. Cynical Wasteland had the hard, raw, rumbling riffs and was followed by some lovely picking in Nothing Good Lasts Forever.
Whilst experimenting live with improvised vocals is commendable, Paige’s voice sometimes veered a little too wildly off course. But when she did hit the right note, it was with the shrieking high pitched intensity more akin to Manowar’s Eric Adams. Unlike countless other female metal singers, there’s no hint of operatic influence and Paige is more of a female interpretation of a Rob Halford or Bruce Dickinson.
After returning for an encore, Kobra And The Lotus at least finished in style with the slower paced yet epic Legend. The rendition stuck out from the mediocrity in such a way that it inspired an exciting enthusiasm to hear more material like this from them.
It’s debatable whether Kobra And The Lotus would have gained the attention they have without a lead singer who is ultimately viewed as a sex symbol. But regardless of this, you just feel that the egg has hatched too soon and this talent isn’t quite harnessed yet.
Calum Robson