SATAN REIGN OVER NEWCASTLE

Satan @The Cluny, Newcastle, September 5, 2024

On an alternative Earth, Satan’s Court In The Act is on a par with The Number Of The Beast. Guitarists Russ Tippins and Steve Ramsey are as revered as Adrian Smith and Dave Murray. Hell, frontman Brian Ross might even be an airline pilot, with a sideline in fencing.

Sadly, we’ve yet to find a portal to that world.

So despite Court’s thrilling songcraft, their ’83 debut didn’t propel Satan to the world of arena tours and number one records. Ross left to focus on Blitzkrieg, the line-up dissipated, the band’s name changed (twice) and fame was elusive.

Satan’s story could easily have been another footnote in NWOBHM history.

But after the Court In The Act line-up was resurrected in 2011, the Newcastle quintet have more than made up for lost time.

Which brings us to tonight’s hometown show.

There are guys in their 60s and 70s here, for sure. One happy fella exclaims that he’s “waited 40 years for this”.

And of course, family and friends from Newcastle’s metal scene are here too. Blitzkrieg, Ross’s other band, are in the house.

But this audience is also multigenerational. It’s peppered with 20-somethings who weren’t even born when nu-metal was in its heyday, let alone NWOBHM.

Yes, of course, you can check out Court… or ‘87’s Suspended Sentence on YouTube. There’ll always be a market for nostalgia. Plenty of NWOBHM-era artists trade in it. Support act Abaddon – led by the man himself – do a sing-a-long Black Metal, for instance, and rewind to Leave Me In Hell.

Satan, however, are still a vibrant, dynamic creative force.

This week, they’ll be releasing their fifth post-reunion album, Songs In Crimson. The boys are regulars on the festival circuit and in demand across the Atlantic.

In many ways, they’re just getting better and better with age.

Sure, Dr Who superfan Ross isn’t averse to some time travel. Court…’s Trial By Fire blazes across The Cluny, despite a mic malfunction threatening to derail Satan’s opening assault.

A sparkling Blades Of Steel is the follow-up: surely one of the finest metal songs of ’83, it’s greeted with near-hysteria tonight.

And Ross’s son, Alan (pictured below with Tippins) gives his dad a rest and the fans a treat by belting out early cut Break Free.

There are smiles (and hugs) all round.

But Satan don’t need to rely on past glories.

Over the last 13 years, they’ve been busy sculpting a fresh set of anthems, every bit was formidable as their early work… if not more so. Songs like The Devil’s Infantry, a rapid-fire hit from 2015’s Atom By Atom, or 2018’s soaring Into The Mouth Of Eternity, are manna from heaven for metalheads. New tracks Era (The Day Will Come), Turn The Tide and Sacramental Rites show the quintet aren’t getting stale. They’re constantly progressing, carving out extra dimensions to their sound and introducing new twists and turns.

Indeed, Satan’s work is urgent and inventive, and tonight it’s played with astonishing dexterity, the band’s psychic connection even stronger than when they slew The Cluny last year.

Permanently grinning bassist Graeme English is locked in with Sean Taylor, forging a muscular rhythm section that anchors Ophidian’s menacing groove.

Ramsey and Tippings drop twin leads like they were going out of fashion, their stratospheric fretwork a joy to behold. Ross and Tippins glide through Burning Portrait’s call and response passages.

It’s incredibly slick… but it looks like the metal veterans are having a hell of a lot of fun too.

And who could blame them?

As Kiss Of Death, a song from their very first demo, brings proceedings to a close, Satan’s worshippers are in raptures.

It’s clear the band are inspiring a new legion of metalheads and drawing ever more acolytes to their banner.

Yes, the young Satan would have been disappointed they never ‘made it’ back in the 80s.

But in 2024, they’re having the time of their lives.

Frankly, it’s nothing less than they deserve.