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I have invented an indicator that allows assessing a metal show in terms of how cool it is. The simplified formula looks as follows: number of headbangs by band members per person per minute. For example, if there is one person in a five-person band headbanging on the stage during a concert at the rate of 10 headbangs per minute, this indicator equals a miserable 2. If there are four artists actively waving their hair, this becomes an 8.

To test my invention, I went to see the concert by Epica and Apocalyptica, supported by the Finnish band Wheel. It took place at the beautiful Roundhouse concert hall in Camden Town, London, UK, on Saturday evening, February 4, 2023.

Wheel started early; so many people have sadly missed the first songs. Though these guys have some aggressive energetic songs, overall their set was rather atmospheric, requiring some time to dive into it, and shame it was not long enough. This band certainly deserves to be seen at a full-scale concert, though the headbanging indicator was about 4.

After that, the time has come for some metal opera by Epica, and the headbanging indicator went up to 8-9: there were six people on the stage (Mark Jansen, Isaac Delahaye and Rob van der Loo with the guitars, Coen Janssen on keyboards, and Ariën van Weesenbeek on the drums and Simone Simons, the voice), of which all but Ariën have created a massive turbofan that has blown the crowd away. Ariën's ability to join his friends was naturally limited by the drums, but he did his best to shake the ground (and quite successfully). Coen has a shaved head, but banged it very actively so it counted towards the overall indicator.

After Epica Londoners had an opportunity to enjoy the best of the string music, played by three cellos. Apocalyptica's set was loaded with some of their most famous musical compositions, such as “Inquisition Symphony”, “I Don't Care”, “I'm Not Jesus”, “Shadowmaker” and others. Metallica was not forgotten - this concert could not be complete without “Nothing Else Matters” and “Seek And Destroy”, but I was disappointed not to hear “Master Of Puppets”. And, of course, Simone joined Apocalyptica to sing their latest single “Rise”. The headbanging indicator was 7 to 8. As the result, the amount of headbanging at this show has surpassed the monthly average for this area - and what I mean is that it was a fantastic show!

Epica and Apocalyptica continue their tour, with more concerts planned in 2023 in ten European countries and six South American capital cities.