The Mission and Fields of the Nephilim at Brixton Academy

Christmas is that time of year when everyone tells us that this is the time to be good, nice and lovely people, that time in which you can hear the clinking of bells and everywhere there are Santas laughing and hugging. Well, no thanks very much! We choose instead a goth hard rock night in Brixton with The Mission and Fields of the Nephilim, in order to fight the sweetish taste of cordiality that’s killing us.

The Mission are a British band formed by two ex-members of The Sisters of Mercy – Wayne Hussey and Craig Adams. Like many of hard rock’s great success bands of the 80s, they started with great albums only to continue unfortunately with a descending parabola. Records like Gods Own Medicine and Children are rightly considered to be important in the history of music, but it’s true that in recent times the band have not shone for their music. However, their unique sound – a clever mix of new wave, hard rock and goth attitude – is still their distinctive value tonight, making these four gentlemen a pleasure to listen to onstage. They start out a little weak, but recover with great power. All songs seem stronger in this live performance, especially a wonderful cover of Neil Young’s Like a Hurricane. Mosh pits formed during Wasteland and Tower of Strength, the fans visibly excited. There were also some strong renditions of tracks from the  record The Brightest Light.

Field of the Nephilim’s frontman Carl McCoy’s impressive stage presence and guttural roar are not something you can easily forget. The English band have been steadily building up their reputation on the goth metal scene for thirty years and tonight they are fairly celebrated by their adoring audience in Brixton. Fields of the Nephilim formed in 1984 in Stevenage, offering a sounds not too different from The Mission, a mix of new wave (At the Gates of the Silent Memory, Laura), hard rock (Phobia) and metal (Xodus). After the bluesy sound of The Mission, Fields of the Nephilim change gear, turning the Academy in a dark gothic metal temple. The audience responded enormously to Moonchild and For Her Light, going wild for the toughest tracks Penetration and Preacher Man, making the gig quite entertaining. 

Beside the sound, these two bands share the same journey. It is a good choice to put them together for this tour, but you better be careful: this is a fan-only zone.

Lorenzo Cibrario

For further information and future events visit The Mission’s website here.

For further information and future events visit Fields of the Nephilim’s website here.

Watch the video for The Mission’s Wasteland here:

Watch the video for Fields of the Nephilim’s Moonchild here: