UK-based DRAGONFORCE have announced an exclusive show - their first UK headline show with new vocalist Marc Hudson - in their adopted hometown at London’s 100 Club in Oxford Street on February 16th. The show is timed to give Dragonforce fans an opportunity to celebrate with the band the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon, and the fact that their new album is finally finished and due for release in the spring.

Guitarist Herman Li comments: "We are all glad to be finished in the studio, especially given that the new record is sounding fantastic! We're looking forwards to letting off steam at the 100 Club and announcing that in the Year Of The Dragon, DragonForce are well and truly back!"

Tickets are on sale now at Seetickets.com.

Following is BW&BK; scribe Mark Gromen's report on Hudson's US debut as Dragonforce's new frontman back in October 2011:

When initially announced, back in June, the NYC show at the Gramercy was supposed to not only be Marc Hudson's North American debut (having played just a handful of dates overseas, including opening for IRON MAIDEN!), but the lone Stateside gig. Well, earlier this week, a scheduled LA show was scrapped when the newboy became ill, so the Big Apple remained the first/only US showcase, after a stop north of the border (Toronto), a day earlier.

Good thing the Gramercy was close to packed, as the under 21 DRAGONFORCE/POWERGLOVE crowd (plus a few interested CMJ conventioners) didn't buy many drinks. (Isn't it time for the one trick pony Glove to ride off into the sunset? Cute the first time you see them, even if you have no video/cartoon backstory, but on repeated viewings/listens, their hyperbolic instrumentals ring hollow.) With a pair of Macbook computers behind drummer Dave Mackintosh, DRAGONFORCE played just eight songs, albeit two newbies, one cryptically entitled 'Song 7' on the evening's running order. Ultimately it proved to be called 'Lost Fallen World' (oddly enough, also lyrics found within 'Fire Still Burns') according to Hudson (see video below).

The Force was in constant motion from the word "go!' Opening with 'Heroes Of Our Time' the guitar tandem of Herman "Tongue On The Fretboard" Li and Sam Trotman flew across the stage, frequently positioning themselves on the center stage riser. The vocalist predominately shared the first tune with bassist Fredric Leclercq, but by the 'Operation Ground And Pound' follow-up (where an electronic fan was plugged in, to produce billowing hair), he too was on the riser, between the six-string camera muggers. Alcohol consumption, previously a visible part of the live show (and rumored to be one of the flies in the ointment, regarding ZP Theart's departure) was restricted to cans of Bud Lite (virtual tea tottling, by DRAGONFORCE standards) in the wings.

The frontman did his job as master of ceremonies without being pretentious, although his enthusiasm and thick accent at times hamper his stage banter, something that will surely be less noticeable as he becomes completely comfortable with the role. 'Cry Thunder' one of the new tracks, was up third. It is far less frenetic, more of a mid-tempo traditional metal number, complete with military cadence snare and the titular sing-along chorus. For having never heard the song before, it went down well, without prompting, for the participatory crowd. 'Starfire' was introduced by the first of Vadim Pruzhanov's solo spotlights, this being the shorter of the two, strapping on the keytar which allowed his bald head (Sinead O'Connor?) to visit the front of the stage. The ballad not only allowed lighters and cellphone screens to pierce the darkness, but Hudson got the opportunity to shine. Virtually alone on the spotlit stage, it gave him the chance to dust off his higher register.

The aforementioned 'Song 7' came next, Hudson claiming it's "the fastest, most extreme song" in the band's catalog. Certainly blazed by, even morseo by its rather pedestrian predecessor. In a word, whirlwind! 'The Last Journey Home' and 'Fury Of The Storm', neither a slouch in the speed department, closed out the proper set, before returning for one more, 'Through The Fire And Flames'. It wasn't the longest of shows, but certainly whetted the appetite for what's to come. The band will return for a full North American tour in 2012, once their new Roadrunner Records disc is released.