Elegant Weapons is a new Heavy Metal supergroup comprised of the junior member of some of the genre's most legendary bands: Richie Faulkner, who replaced KK Downing in Judas Priest, Dave Rimmer, who took over bass duties in Uriah Heep after Trevor Boulder passed away, Ronnie Romero, who fronted Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow during their return to the live stage in 2015, and Christopher Williams, who has been Accept's drummer for nearly a decade.
Their debut album Horns For A Halo came out last month and was played almost in full, including the reverent but ballsy cover of UFO's Lights Out. This was the band's first headlining performance, and only their third concert altogether, but you could never tell from the professionalism and the chemistry between the musicians.
Ronnie Romero has long been one of the genre's more promising voices, with a power and a grit reminiscent of Ronnie James Dio or Freddie Mercury. Yeah... He's that good. Richie Faulkner is a true old school Heavy Metal guitar hero in the tradition of Michael Schenker or Randy Rhoads, a virtuoso with a knack for melodies and crushing riffs.
Unfortunately, the concert wasn't very well attended: most headbangers are away enjoying the Festivals like Hellfest or Graspop. But for those of us who were here, it was very exciting to witness the beginnings of the next generation of traditional Heavy Metal.
Re-live the concert by playing the setlist in the embedded Apple Music player below
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