LIVE FROM THE PIT: Paradise Lost, Messa and High Parasite

It’s gloomy. Of course, it’s bloody gloomy. Paradise Lost are playing the Islington Assembly Hall in October. That might be one of the most gothic sentences ever composed. They’re also hot off the heels of their new album, Ascension, which has had quite the good time critically as of late. This has to be the umpteenth time the Paradise Lost boys have played in the capital, and for good reason. No British metal band has shown themselves to be musical chameleons quite like these guys. From the post-mining teenage wasteland that was the north of England in the 80s, this band emerged as a death metal, then a goth metal, then a synth metal, and then back to a sort of death metal group in the span of nearly four decades. They’ve got fans of all types, fans of their Depeche Mode era, fans of their early death metal careers, even new fans, you name it. Paradise Lost remain, as ever, a band for all seasons, though autumn still suits them best. They have brought with them fellow Northerners High Parasite and Italian doom aesthetes Messa who are also just coming off of a fantastic album. This is set to be a hell of a night.

Starting off things are High Parasite who are pretty much the best band you could ask for to open for Paradise Lost. High Parasite is fronted by vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe (recently) formerly of My Dying Bride, another forerunner in the wave of northern doom of the early nineties along with Anathema. While there are similarities with Paradise Lost in their sound, the sound of High Parasite is one that developed independently to sound distinct yet clearly of the same musical haplogroup. Last year they came out with their debut album, “Forever We Burn”, and the songs played from that album are received quite well. It’s an opening set that feels both respectful and self-assured, a fitting continuation to the story of English doom.

Next up is Messa, which was hotly anticipated this evening. Many in the lobby are clad with black Messa shirts, Italian accents threading through their conversations, clearly for them this is the real main event. “The Spin” was solid gold to anyone who had the pleasure to hear it, “scarlet doom” they call it, a fusion of Joy Division’s airy sensibilities and the delicate ghostly tones of modern doom. Much like Paradise Lost, it’s a pretty sophisticated affair. Sara Bianchin, dressed in a sharp black suit, commands the stage with an effortless gravitas. Blue and white lights dance across her face as the band launches into “Fire on the Roof”. There’s moments of quiet interspersed with moments of heaviness when they play “At Races” and “The Dress”, and although there’s the absence of some studio vocal effects, they still put on a whopping good performance. Guitarist Alberto Piccolo has his eyes closed as he rips into a fabulous guitar solo on “Immolation” whilst all the crowd can do is stare agape at the glory of the spectacle. It really is incredible, and this band deserves their own headline tour.

Setting the fog machines on overdrive mode, they lumber out of the mist; Paradise Lost. Opening on “Serpent on the Cross”, they’re still as resplendent now as they were 20 years ago. What is a bit strange is drummer Jeff Singer looking like he’s been imprisoned inside the Fortress of Solitude, as the drums are behind plexiglass screens. While it does improve the drum sound, it does also bring to mind the band’s ever-rotating rhythm section. Ho hum. With little pomposity or flare, they break into “Tragic Idol” and “True Belief” and it is very clear that this will be a deep-cut show with some cuts of the new record sprinkled in. There is no doubt that there are a few people pissed off that staples like “Embers Fire” and “Enchantment” are absent, but these are seriously good songs in their own right, and they manage to include at least one song from each of their albums.

Frontman Nick Holmes is back with his legendarily dry northern wit that led him to befriend the likes of Mikael Åkerfeldt and Peter Steele. Before an amazing performance of “Mouth” he says “the next one is from ‘Believe in Nothing’… the one with the bees on it”. And before “Nothing Sacred” he beckons to all of the fans of the “Host” era, which he follows up with “…all three of you”. At another point he states he will take a picture of the crowd to send to his grandmother “who lives pictures of crowds in London for some reason”. Not too long into the following song he informs us, wryly as ever; “my grandmother is dead, by the way”. A wonderful bit of dark humour to offset the even darker music. The performance is tight, confident, and unpretentious, the clear work of a band who have long stopped chasing validation. What was an hour and a half setlist ended up feeling a lot shorter, and before you know it, it’s all over.

By the time the crowd filters out into the cold October night, Islington feels wrapped in a gothic veneer that lends it a bit of character. Paradise Lost, High Parasite, and Messa together create the picture of endurance, all with incredible new albums in tow, they are living proof that doom is still king even in 2025. Paradise Lost remain not just a band for all seasons, but for all time, and autumn, once again, is theirs for the taking. 

Words: Kiarash Golshani

Photos: Cate Neves