Amaranthe, Serpentine @ The Borderline, London

Amaranthe

Serpentine

@

The Borderline, London

UK 5-piece, Serpentine, take on the responsibility of being the only support band tonight. The incessant murmuring of “Who the fuck are these guys?” among members of the audience is shortly and seamlessly transposed into rhythmic head banging. Bearing in mind Serpentine played their first live show just a few months ago, they charge through their melodic power-ballads with an impressive degree of confidence and execution.

After an extensive run of over thirty dates supporting Hammerfall across Europe, Swedish-Danish newcomers Amaranthe take to the Borderline stage for their tour finale and first ever UK headline show. To the delight of everyone in attendance, the band just keep on track after track until the new album is performed in its entirety, including one of the bonus tracks being performed. Displaying an admirable lack of fatigue, the sextet plays ‘Serendipity’ and ‘Amaranthine’ with particularly notable emotion and sincerity. This is by no means to say the rest of the début record isn’t converted beautifully into the live environment.

The 200-strong audience have done well to brave this rainy Monday night, for they have just taken in an absolute belter of a show. They leave fulfilled, knowing it’s going to be hard to recreate this club-like intensity any time soon. If this gig’s anything to go by, Amaranthe will blow up and begin packing out much larger venues in the coming months and years.

Reviewed by Ben Robertson
Photography by Asif Salam