14th of March, 2026.

[Be sure to stick around, as Mat got the opportunity to ask some questions to TEMPEST SAINT and MORTICIAN. You will find them below]

The Dev is one of London’s most prestigious metal and rock bars that hosts concerts from all types of those genres, and on this night, I shouldn’t be there at all.

I should be a couple of miles away, downstairs at The Dome, to see thrash band MUST KILL play their debut Dome headliner, but that sadly got cancelled scant days before the event. An unfortunate event that is, sadly, not uncommon in the metal underground.
After some rejigging and chatting with promoters, MUST KILL secured an alternate venue and that is why I found myself at The Dev.

There were already two bands playing here that night. TEMPEST SAINT, the London outfit that play in a classic NWOBHM style, and the Austrian heavy metal veterans since 1983, MORTICIAN, who were playing their first UK show here. Seeing as a three band bill is nothing new to The Dev, it seemed that fate had a hand in helping MUST KILL honour their appointments.

On this day, it was going to be a busy one as the place was filling up in time for TEMPEST SAINT.

These young lads have made quite a name for themselves around the capital and home counties with their brand of hard rocking, traditional approach to metal.

Dedicating their set to the sad passing of Phil Campbell, they set off with great aplomb with NEVER THE END. It was clear, with a blend of power, speed and melody, that denim, studs, riffs and swagger were the order of the day, and TEMPEST SAINT delivered.

THE CURSED further cemented their validity, with its super catchy chorus and licks.
It would appear that TEMPEST SAINT have more in the pocket, where they plough through some unreleased treats. Namely SINNER IN MY SHADOW, SHACKLED TO THE BLAME and DIRT OF THE DOG keeping things alive and jumping.

Singer Joe makes for a true showman. His weapons are a cane, grin and charisma that is infectious, while James supplies some sultry guitar work. That man knows his trade. Luke and Lee kept everything super tight with a rhythmic partnership of the ages.

Once again, TEMPEST SAINT gave their all to us and, once again, nailed a superb set.

As I said earlier, MORTICIAN came over to London from Austria to make their UK debut, and it was quite an impression they made.

MORTICIAN formed in 1983 during, what I like to call the renaissance of metal, yet, for them, it was an all too brief residence.
The band split in 1989, only for guitarist Thomas “Tommy Lee” Metzler and bassist Patrick Lercher to reform MORTICIAN 2009. Of which, they have enjoyed the release of a compilation and four albums.

Now they grace UK soil, and with them, they bring Alex “Black Cat” on drums and the unmissable singer, Twain Cooper.
Twain is a tall fellow, making it easy to see from anywhere in this small place with its low stage.

The Dev was jam packed by the time INMATES poured from the speakers, there was no mistake that Feldkirch’s finest had something to prove. Alex wasted no time giving the kit a proper warm up while ‘Tommy’s’ riffs were raw yet sharp.

KING OF THE RING harks back to the early days of proto thrash, with an energy that belied MORTICIAN’s longevity.
Taking it back to those earliest days, STREET WARRIORS had fists pumping the air with hard rocking earnest. It was another reminder that heavy doesn’t need a second kick pedal, nor stay around the low end of a guitar to get the job done.

Saying that, MORTICIAN are a bit nifty there as well, as their latest statement of intent, 40 YEARS OF METAL demonstrated. It’s a gut punch of metal gladly taken.

The band finished with a double whammy of HELL RAIDERS and their “theme song”, MORTICIAN… and as if it couldn’t get more metal. Both are tracks that bridge the gap between early power metal and thrash most acutely, and with more serendipity, considering the last minute addition to the evening…

Take into consideration the week that the Milton Keynes moshers, MUST KILL had just been subjected to, one would forgive them to be a tad deflated. This didn’t show before they set foot on stage, and showed even less when they unleashed all Hell’s fury with NIGHTMARES COME TO LIFE. As ironic hindsight goes, that one’s pretty close.

That demon was soon put to bed as the song is the perfect bridge between traditional metal power and modern thrash.

The venue wasn’t the first change at the MUST KILL camp, as just three days before this night, they officially announced that their lead guitarist, Daryl Cooper, had officially (and amicably) left the band. This was something brewing behind the scenes until a suitable replacement was found and brought up to speed, which was in the very capable hands of Ethan Herridge. This was Ethan’s first gig with MUST KILL and he filled those big shoes left for him excellently.

The double barrels of Daryl and Dan’s guitar work were on point with SEPTICITY and GHOST MALEVOLENT, two sides of mosh Incitement designed to bring bruises.
Considering the band having a relatively short career thus far, it’s impressive that they’ve secured some real anthems. One standout being CROSS THE LINE, a quantified thrash necessity that always pulls them in.

LOST followed, and it shows their progressive side, allowing everyone to breathe, watch and take in what is capable of the Milton Keynes massive.

It would seem compulsory that the debut album, CONDEMNED TO TORTURE would take up the setlist (this is part of the albums tour, after all) when the title song and groove tempered UNDERHANDED WAYS roundly bullied the PA, but the finish line was for the back catalogue. Some earlier favourites for the faithful to enjoy.

This came in the form of three quarters of their 2023 EP, CAUSE AND EFFECT, with that song showcasing their deft ear for death metal, and the teutonic stomp of NO MORE.
Finishing the set with the crossover-centric MY SCOURGE SENTENCE completed the thrash circle, and the set, from a band who thoroughly know thrash.

Coming away from this evening, although exhilarating and successful, a gremlin of mixed emotions gnawed the back of my mind.

Yes, I was expecting to see MUST KILL headline a bonafide London venue, but then I wouldn’t have witnessed MORTICIAN deliver their wares to their British cousins.
Adversely, it is a shame that MORTICIAN got bumped off headlining their maiden show on British soil but, if MUST KILL still had The Dome to play, I still would’ve missed MORTICIAN.

It shouldn’t go unnoticed that there were two less fortunate entities involved by the names of PHOBETOR and CHENOBYLISER, who were to be MUST KILL’s support acts.
It was a monumental night, nonetheless. With the classic, hard rocking metal of TEMPEST SAINT, MORTICIAN’s golden era school of heavy and power metal, to the modern thinking of thrash that is in its fourth decade of existence. It was a lesson in metal’s evolution, taught with passion and without prejudice.

–

During the night, I pestered the bands for interviews, and we have the original Dev line up answering some questions.

First up is Joe Curtis. Lead singer of Tempest Saint…

I was chatting with one of the night’s organisers and missed the end of your set. Did you get to play From The Ashes?

We did not! There were calls for an encore from the crowd, but we’d already gone 5 minutes over our set time (Don’t tell the Dev, lol, I don’t think they noticed), so we let those calls die down so as not too cut in to Mortician’s set, we don’t roll that way, and especially not then, because they are such lovely guys!

How was it playing with MORTICIAN? You share common ground, and those guys have some real experience.

They certainly do have experience, and it was a blast! We got off to a great start over message on social media; we decided to just let them know we were excited for the show, and they responded in kind. Our basisst Luke was first to the venue as per usual (he’s like nightcrawler from the X-Men), and immediately on our arrival he was saying the mortician guys introduced themselves and were incredibly friendly, which was followed by the exact same thing happening to the rest of us when we showed our faces to them. In the end that set was phenomenal but we knew that was going to be the case when they smashed out a cover of Judas Priest’s “Grinder” during their sound check

Seeing as MUST KILL are a thrash band, they have a very different style to you and MORTICIAN. Is a mix of genres good for gigs?

Variety is the of the spice of Life, and sticking with that analogy, a good lineup is like spice, in that, so long as it isn’t too much, having it is way better than leaving things plain.
We’ve played with Must Kill before and they are Legends in the scene!

The TEMPEST SAINT sound is rich in classic tropes. How do you balance that style without falling into the ‘cheesy’ trap?

Our core philosophy has a lot to do with that. All four of us make the music that we would want to hear, and for the most part we focus on making music that has a message that stays with the listener, as opposed to something simple like the amount of booze you can drink or one-night stands you can have, though we do have songs like that too, In smaller doses. We refuse to be an 80s metal caricature.

You play some unreleased songs at your gigs. Is there a release on the horizon?

We do! Lots of things will be revealed very soon, unfortunately we’re not allowed to say much right now. All I can say is, Album 2 is well underway, and 2026 is going to be huge.

With the metal world having ‘core’ and genre fluid bands, how important is it to keep the hard rock element alive?

It’s of paramount importance, and I think the amount of bands around at the minute, doing what we do, and making a serious success of it, is living proof. Tailgunner and Battleborn are prime examples of this.

Is flamboyance a dying art in metal? How do you manage to keep the gimmicks away from your sets?

By being authentic, and remembering to stay that way when we take steps towards furthering our show and our performance. We play the music first and foremost, which prevents the exuberant things that we do on stage, and with our denim and leather look, from becoming too pantomime; good focus will prevent you becoming a parody I guess.

Lastly… what’s you favourite biscuit?
It varies! right now? Custard Cream.

–

MORTICIAN also graced me with an interview, where guitarist Thomas “Tommy Lee” Metzler answered (kindly translated by bassist Patrik Lercher)…

The concert at The Dev was your first time playing the UK. Was it also your first time visiting the UK?

This was our first time in the UK as a band but we’ve been to London and the UK quite a few times before. For example at the Monsters of Rock in 1986 and the Metallica show at Club 100 before the Monsters of Rock in 1987. And not to forget we had a short live interview at MTV London during the Metal Hammer broadcast with the Bailey Brothers.

What was your impression of the UK audiences?

The Dev was packed and the atmosphere was fantastic. We were overwhelmed by how enthusiastically the audience got involved, as it was their first time hearing our songs. A huge thank you to the crowd. As I always have been a fan of the NWOBHM scene and have dreamed of playing in London since we have a band this dream has come true now.

What were your influences when you started MORTICIAN back in the 1980s?

We were Hard Rock and Heavy Metal fans and really wanted to start a band. Our influences were initially Kiss and AC/DC, as well as Judas Priest, Saxon, Mötley Crue and all the NWOBHM bands.

MORTICIAN took a break for 20 years. Were their many differences being in a band in the 1980s to the 2010s?

A big difference was that in the 80s we could play live everywhere, whether at motorcycle rallies or in certain pubs. Twenty years later, that live club scene was gone, which is a real shame. But on the other side nowadays, with the internet it’s much easier to share our music. I didn’t really take a break, though, since I had a band called ART OF FEAR and released six CDs. [click here for more info on Art Of Fear].

How is the metal scene in Feldkirch and the Vorarlberg area?

It’s a very small scene, if you can even call it that. But there are promoters who have consistently brought good bands to Vorarlberg. So we had the opportunity  to play with various bands like Thin Lizzy, Exodus, Black Label S, Lordi, Magnum, Flotsam and Jetsam, Tokyo Blade, and others. And we also organize the “Hard n Heavy Festival” that takes place once a year and features six international bands.

What bands from there would you recommend?

There aren’t many real metal bands. From my point of view Casiopeia is a cool one. [Check Casiopeia on Spotify here]

Are there any future releases or tours you can tell us about?

Since I’m feeling a bit lazy (haha) about writing at the moment, a full new album will take a while But after the shows in Shanghai and London, I’ve got back a taste and energy for it, There will be no tour but after the Hard and Heavy Festival we’re planning a concert with an international band in Feldkirch and we are in contact with a Club in Edinburgh what hopefully happens in 2027.

Last question just for fun… What is your favourite biscuit?

I don’t eat anything sweet. Bacon and mountain cheese are my thing, hahaha. But Patrik loves Black Forest Cherry cake.

–

The debut album, HYPERBOLIZED by TEMPEST SAINT is out now on major streaming sites.

40 YEARS OF METAL, the fourth album by MORTICIAN is available on all major streaming sites.

The debut album by MUST KILL, titled CONDEMNED TO TORTURE, is on all streaming sites now.