Lately Cradle Of Filth have been mentioned multiple times in the press. I would not say they had particularly big hitting records over the last (many) years, but the very last record was a good touch for those nostalgic, with good self-plagiaristic Her Ghost In A Fog tune and some other strong themes borrowed from the past. Either this or the abovementioned publicity put the band to a bigger venue compared to my previous gig in 2015. 

Mélancolia is a bizarre act that have joined this tour coming from Australia. The venue is yet quite empty. The vocalist is running a Burning Man outfit coat, before changing to something that he took from Marilyn Manson. 
Back track, a very high snare and muffled instruments, the fellows do not always hit simultaneously, but I appreciate quite cool vocal effects. Well, the bass and drum link is quite tight, and the bass has a Korn vibe, just being way faster. 

The band is not too original (at least, their live performance) and the audience is quite passive. In addition, the vocalist Alex Hill is swearing way too much, and it does not add charm to a band that is unknown. 
Need to check their records, I suspect that the mix did not do them justice. 

A smaller backdrop shows pieces of the Cradle of Filth logo beneath. Death metal gods Suffocation are very simple people. No intros of similar bullshit - they just hit a chord and start. Sadly, the lights are quite bad as well, so is the sound in the beginning.

Ricky Myers has much lower vocals compared to Frank Mullen. I first encountered Ricky when I bumped into Consume the Forsaken video from Disgorge. And now Ricky has shifted from drums to vocals. 
Kings. Despite the setlist having only one radio hit (for me), Pierced from Within, the set is very good. Suffocation is a religious experience, you sense how much they influenced the industry. Slow pace blast beats, slam riffs, but not pathetic ones (funny that they created the whole lousy genre and did not stick to it themselves). Funeral Inceptions sees guest vocals (from Melancolia?). 

The sound improves towards the middle of the show, the band is enjoying themselves crushing the place, Rick shows heart with his arms before announcing the last one, Infecting the Crypts. Heavy set, a different experience than with Frank (I was lucky to catch the Frank line-up), and a must see. 

Cheap Helloween skeletons are set right and left to the stage. Cheap cemetery fence, Cradle of Filth stage setting are kitsch - like if they are mocking King Diamond stage setting, except for they are not. After quite a tasteless intro, the band kick in with To Live Deliciously - a great starter. 

I am happy to see the band perform on a bigger stage, they definitely deserve it. What is a mystery to me is how they manage to find great talents over these years. It’s been an army of people who have played in Cradle of Filth. The current lineup is very strong. It is much better played than the gig I saw ten years ago in a much smaller venue. Very tasty solos from Jiří Háb (if I am not mistaken) and keys with backing vocals from Kelsey Peters. 

At some point I understand that I smell of incense (“The smell of incense takes me high”)! This is a great idea to support the show. 

CoF have a huge discography, and there are a lot of albums to select songs from. 
I cringe when I hear these high pitch vocals, but this is so close to the recordings, - it really is what the fans are here for. 

One of my all-time favourite The Principle of Evil Made Flesh is brilliantly brutal. Very well played. 
Well, love them or not, Cradle of Filth are in a great shape and form. I would like to see a longer set on a bigger stage with more serious props.