So far this year there seems to be a recurring theme with the weather and the Heavy Metal gigs I have attended. The cold, wet and wind seems like the UK's average weather but this sensed to me another Metal Storm was on its way to conquer Southampton. This time the storm arrived in the form of Metal's newest guitar prodigy GUS G alongside with ARTHEMIS, SKARLETT RIOT and DENDERA in tow.

I had originally arrived at my one of my second home's The Joiners at around 5 ready to interview GUS G himself but I found the street to be very busy and not knowing why so I parked in the next street along. It however clicked when I saw thousands of football fans emerging from the stadium near The Joiners; so ceasing the chance I might be able to park next door after all I went to move the car.

Portsmouth Heavy Metal DENDERA were about two songs into their set when I finally arrived; due to Southampton's awkward one way systems, missed opportunities to turn around and post football traffic, what should have been a five-ten minute quick fix turned into an hour long glittering performance. Nevertheless, there was already a buzzing atmosphere as DENDERA gave a hugely powerful performance as the first act; this was reinforced by Ashley Edison's strong vocal talent, IRON MAIDEN-esque guitar work and a loyal fan base that supported DENDERA every step of the way. A worthy choice to kick off this evening.
 

Second support act came in the form of Scunthorpe based SKARLETT RIOT. I know for an absolute fact they are an incredibly strong and talented Hard Rock band with a lot to offer to the music community. However as much as they tried to keep the Heavy Metal crowd engaged, it just was not working which is a great shame as I have seen them previously and from what I remember they had no trouble getting crowds going with their fantastically kick ass melodies and Chloe Drinkwater's charming stage presence. I personally thought their performance was fantastic, just seems a shame the rest of the crowd didn't seem as engaged.
 

Italian Heavy Metal quartet ARTHEMIS were next to show Southampton what they were made of, this was my first experience of ARTHEMIS and I can honestly say it is not an experience I want to be forgetting anytime soon. From start to finish they had Southampton eating out of the palms of their hands with grand sweeping melodies, passionate stage personas and charismatic frontman Fabio Dessi making the audience laugh. If their infectious energy from start to finish didn't ensure they had new fans after their remarkable set I don't what would have done.
 

I really wasn't quite sure what to expect regarding GUS G's performance on stage; I was wondering who would have to sing the melodies, member's from the support acts that had just been on perhaps? In fact no, he had gathered a tour band for gallant support as he showcased every riff, solo and technique that has ensured him great success such as being handpicked by OZZY OSBOURNE himself.  Being this is the third show of his first solo tour; this indeed provided the ideal opportunity to display his growing talent. This talent was so incredibly immense that even practicing air guitar along to his technical solos proved a challenge as your fingers started to ache after a while.
 

This set included much intrigue; the best one being SKARLETT RIOT's own Chloe Drinkwater providing the vocals for "Long Way Down". This performance was completely spellbinding; it wasn't just Chloe's beautiful voice that gave the song lift but her visible passion for this song as she belted out those key vocal chords. This was welcomed by Southampton with open arms.
 

Another highlight from this fantastic evening was the eclectic selection of Classic Rock and Heavy Metal throughout this evening; from the upbeat "Blame It On Me" taken from his solo album to powerful "Redemption" this set contained something to suit everyone's pallet. Particularly encore numbers "I Am The Fire" and OZZY OSBOURNE classic "Crazy Train".

A truly remarkable experience of Heavy Metal, which I hope to undergo again soon.

*Photography: Rikki Wolf