Ten out of every nine t-shirts at the British Lion concert in Jacksonville, Florida featured an Iron Maiden logo or album cover.
It's not surprising as the legendary British heavy metal band's bassist, Steve Harris, is easily the most recognizable name in British Lion. The quintet is currently in the latter half of their U.S. Tour supporting their second album, The Burning.
The debate about whether British Lion is heavy metal or hard rock wasn't settled last night, but fans seemed to agree from the opening notes of "This is My God" that it's fist-pumping, horn-throwing rock n' roll well worth venturing out on a Wednesday night for.
The postage stamp-sized stage didn't slow Harris--who puts some miles on his shoes during his performances--or guitarists David Hawkins and Grahame Leslie. The energy of that trio, and singer Richard Taylor, kept the crowd jumping, providing the perfect symbiotic relationship that allowed both band members and their audience to feed off each other. Harris sang along to just about every song, showing he's still enjoying playing live music whether it's in front of tens of thousands of Maiden fans or a few hundred British Lion followers.
The German band The Picturebooks opened for British Lion and delivered a powerful and unique performance to get the crowd warmed up. Vocalist/guitarist Fynn Claus Grabke and drummer Philipp Mirtschink have a White Stripes vibe that showcases both raw power and sound.
The count of how many drumsticks/mallets Mirtschink breaks is easily lost during the performance, but his set includes basically a bass drum, a few tom-toms and what amounts to a ship's bell. They did away with cymbals a while back as they couldn't afford to keep replacing them at the rate Mirtschink was breaking them.
Check out Mark's pics below...
BRITISH LION
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