7th February: a day when a gaggle of hungry metal fans waiting to see the return of the Polish Metal Kings has made the whole magnitude of today’s event even more stacked with anticipation. The ULU makes a strange choice of venue for tonight’s proceedings; it is tediously difficult to get to, and at the end all the fans remain huddled together outside at a freezing cold temperature. This fails to dampen spirits though as first support band Suicide Silence, a Californian deathcore group, arrive on stage. In a way it is surprising to see them here - a death core/emo band supporting an established black metal band like Behemoth. The music wasn’t anything special for tonight; typically moshy riffs with screaming vocals, although they were very energetic and had all sort of fancy head banging! It was clearly noticeable that the music was written to co-ordinate moshing and head banging and nothing more, and this affects the crowd tonight, which is here for one band and one band only.

The moment of truth arrives when the crowd intensely start screaming Behemoth’s name; a chant that could carry itself to the very gates of hell! Drummer Inferno arrives to do a sound check on his mammoth drum kit, and it is a sign of just how passionate a musician he is that he tunes his own instrument up. Suddenly, darkness. The sample intro ‘Rome 64 CE’ is loud and brutal, giving everyone a sign of things to come. The fast triplets and drum roll signals the arrival of ‘Slaying the Prophets ov Isa’, and few can stay on their feet as the crowd is blown away by the immense sound. Instantaneously there is a circle pit in the middle of the venue, spinning like a twister which will destruct anything that comes into its way.  After the first song Behemoth go back to their earlier album ‘Thelema 6’ to give a taste of their older material with ‘Antichristian Phenomenon’. The ending of the song is particularly magnificent, as the melodious riffs taking place demand a headbang from everyone. ‘Demigod’ is up next: a ballistic Mayhem-sounding song whose influence is not lost on this crowd. Another highlight is ‘Conquer All’, the most furious and fire-breathing song the band has ever produced. It’s a master piece of their teamwork, and the torrents of crowd surfers that rise up during this song firmly underline its powerful effect.

    “Do you want some more? Say ‘fuck yeah’ if you do!” Roars Nergal, and the crowd obliges, a resounding “Fuck yeah!” ringing around the ULU. “Are you sure? Say Fuck YEAHHH!” The frontman insists, prompting another furiously huge reaction. But he’s a tease and still isn’t satisfied, although his choice of words is somewhat interesting. “Are you fucking sure? Say PLEASE JESUS!” Needless to say, Huge boos and whistles soon appear, and Nergal cracks a huge smile as he launches into the awesome. ‘Sculpting the Throne ov Seth’. Behemoth always kept the music intact from their end as a band, and never commercialized their product to fit the requirements of a super big brand. This kept the music intact with a solid sense of extreme metal, which is why they are so successful today. On the evidence of tonight, this dominance will continue, and the Kings won’t be letting their crown go for some time yet.