@ The Underworld, London
8th June 2026
Review by Demitri Levantis
Photos by The Flâneur
Voivod, one of the lesser known but equally as impressive veteran acts of the international thrash metal scene arrived in the capital one Monday night. And for a Monday night, it was pleasing to see how Camden’s Underworld was packed early on for the onslaught of blackened speed and thrash metal to kick off the week.
Beginning the show were Cryptosis, a Dutch band whom I’d never come across before the gig’s announcement. At first I was banking on them being another thrash band with similar vibes to the progressive experimenting that has made a name for the headliners, but after watching the group for a few songs, I couldn’t help but see them as true Voivod disciples, just not as thrilling as the originals.
That might sound a bit harsh, given how Cryptosis have amassed a strong enough following to gather a large crowd so early in the evening, but this was another example of the crowd enjoying the opener more than this critic. To their credit, Cryptosis’s mix of progressive riffs and precision percussion was strong enough to keep my wayward attention span in focus, but having come here for Voivod, it felt as if the opener were desperately trying to steal the limelight and had deliberately styled themselves on the headliners.
In all, a decent opener who had The Underworld crowded to a strong level at the start of the show and received throngs of applause from those who enjoyed them more than me.
Next up were the band whom I’ve always associated with New Cross Inn, having caught them there every time they’ve previously played London. The band whom I personally credit with bringing blackened speed metal into the upper echelons of popularity over the last decade: Midnight.
Hailing from Cleveland, Ohio, Midnight is a band who needs no introduction to the UK metal fans. On tour once again, this time Midnight were celebrating the 15th anniversary of their highly acclaimed studio debut, Satanic Royalty. Having spun it a good few times across the past decades and a half, it was smile-inducing to hear the band pay tribute to it while subjecting the almost full capacity crowd to their everlasting barrage of chaos, violence, and general satanic tomfoolery.
By this point The Underworld was practically rammed with revellers, something I always like to see when watching a respected band like Midnight, but I will point out that the mosh pit got a little bit out of hand, particularly over my photographer losing a few pieces of her equipment in the scrum that pushed her against the stage when she was trying to get a good shot. This is my only nit-pick here, and I feel this is due to Midnight’s gigs being more used to a venue with a wider standing area like New Cross, but that did not dampen my spirit nor any others around me.
Midnight are that kind of band whom you can rely on for one hell of a show, and main man Athenar lived up to his reputation keeping us focussed on his bloodstained tales of hell, satanism and butchery. Once again, I am pleased to have seen a band who deserve to be where they are by pulling no punches at all (all the while pulling all the punches).
By now the venue was at full capacity, something not always seen at the start of the week. With the summer heat thick in the nether, the air con did not register at all – but spirits were high and yearning for the band we’d all come out to witness.
Voivod, another band I’d only discovered a short time prior hails all the way from French Canada – an area whose metal scene I’ve come to greatly admire over the last few years. The quartet took to the stage to rapturous throngs of applause armed with speeding old school bangers and denser progressions from their later albums. They came, they saw, they treated us to a walk through their illustrious and long career, they conquered.
One thing that set these blokes apart from the first bands on the bill was how jovial they appeared and how they embraced the humour both in their music and in their performance. Vocalist Snake appearing cheerful and happy to be back on UK soil for the first time in a while, and guitarist Chewy and bassist Rocky joined in with heaps of excitement (and funny faces galore). Drummer Away was a happy clam behind, with his hair lusciously moving about his face, seemingly slow mo. Seeing a band enjoying themselves as much as we are is always infectious, however you might feel about their audible output (which was undoubtedly flawless).
As a keen science fiction fanatic, I can’t help but enjoy Voivod even more for bringing songs about space, time travel, intergalactic conflicts, and adventures across interdimensional ubiquities into the thrash metal canon. It is also worth noting that their sense of humour, which emanated from their riffs and drums as they tore through song after song, kept the crowd asking for more and more (and rewarding the band with a decent few mosh pits).
Having been on the road for over 40 years, I can say from what I experienced this evening, that Voivod are a band who can guarantee a fun gig, however well acquainted your are with their music. They are the sort of band who can add some more complex elements to the thrash metal sound and come up with songs of space-related adventure and violence to make anyone from the casual thrasher to the biggest fantasy literature nerd in the metal scene smile. They are also incredibly engaging to the novice, the casual listener, the unassuming friend who stumbled into the gig completely unprepared.
A truly pleasant and fun adventure into some of the finest thrash metal from across the pond to grace the capital city in quite some time. See you again soon, Voivod.