The anticipation as the venue began to fill was noticeable – most of the crowd had been waiting 2 years for a London show, and tonight was the night.

First support band Fallen To were the unexpected surprise of the night. Their dynamic mix of crunching riffs and contrasting rap with beautifully smooth melodic vocals was perfect, not to mention a superbly clear live sound. The haunting ‘Dark Wounds’ encaptured most of the crowd, and with songs like ‘Re Alignment’ and ‘No Allies’, they’ll go far, and they should have gained some new fans tonight. Sikth on the other hand were a bit more difficult to get to grips with. They’re one of those bands you have to be really into to be able to get it, as is the case with mudvayne really. Their crazy intensity could be mistaken as being muddy, but they had some good songs, and a very diverse and demonic vocal style which at least put a smile on the faces of the unenlightened majority.

As the lights went out and Spag (I still refer to them by their original names) began drumming, the moment of realization was upon us – mudvayne were here at last! The crowd were eager to hear stuff from L.D.50, and went wild when the guys launched into ‘Internal Primates’ after opening with ‘The End Of All Things To Come’.

Everything you expect from a mudvayne show was there, except the makeup. Kud was looking sleek in black, Gurrg was wearing red, as was Ryknow until he finally stripped down to his sexy bare torso half way through. Couldn’t really see a lot of Spag behind that big drum kit, but he seemed to have more hair than usual.

Between songs Kud was rather endearing as he thanked the people who put them where they are – their crew and their fans, no signs at all of a big ego. Plenty of social commentary on the war and what he would like to do to the world leaders, as the anticipation of what they would play next kept us hanging on his every word.

It was a pleasant surprise when they launched into ‘Solve et Coagula’, with it’s infernal pounding and Kud screaming ‘Fire! Fire!’ I wouldn’t have thought they’d have played it, but I was glad as it became one of my favourites after a few listens to the album.

The set just kept getting better and better as all the favourites emerged – Death Blooms, Nothing To Gein, Cradle, all accompanied by awesome lighting which intensified the whole experience.

The newer material such as ‘Mercy, Severity’ and ‘Silenced’ sounded absolutely amazing, and were definitely some of the highlights of the night. Just the sheer quality and intensity and amazing sound quality made these songs stand out. Another highlight was Ryknows’ bass on ‘Nothing To Gein’. The intensity and quality of the live performance is beyond incredible – Spag’s infernal pounding of that drum kit no doubt left him exhausted, and Gurrgs’ riffs sounded amazingly clean.

There was a mixed crowd and mixed reception. From the 14 year old Slipknot hoodie wearing army continually punching the crap out of each other and the kids who were desperate to sing along but had no idea what the words were or any hope of keeping up with Kud, to a couple of people who I saw sitting down reading a magazine in the middle of the performance, to those of us who couldn’t quite get to grips with the fact that we were finally seeing mudvayne.

It’s always an anxious experience seeing one of your favourite bands play – what are they going to play, what are they not going to play, are they going to play my favourite song, etc, etc. But they definitely met those expectations with an almost perfectly chosen set, and no evidence at all of being ass-holes who have sold out as some people believe.

After waiting two years, it was well worth the wait. But it was all over way too quick, and we were left wanting more. But with the sheer intensity and energy that goes into a mudvayne show, they can only play for so long, and what they did play was very well chosen and satisfied even the most rabid fans. Lets hope its not another two years until we get to see them again.

(written by Nicola)

Setlist:

The End Of All Things To Come

Internal Primates

Silenced

-1

Death Blooms

Not Falling

Solve et Coagula

Mercy Severity

Nothing To Gein

Cradle

Dig