European Power Metal continues to soar in popularity, and Friday night’s triple bill of Nordic / Germanic Metal sent the crowd home delirious after a majestic display of power and melody from Battle Beast as The Steelbound Tour hits O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire with Dominum and Majestica.
Battle Beast – Dominum – Majestica
O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire – 24 October 2025
Words: Johnny Churchill
Photography: Manuela Langotsch
It is Battle Beast we’re really here to see. Confidently playing no fewer than eight tracks from their brand new album Steelbound, this is a band that are going places.
Metal Goddess Noora Louhimo is quite simply a force of nature and fashion. Stalking the stage in Valkyrie couture, a sculpted black leather corset, sharply pointed shoulder pads and thigh-high boots, crowned by razor-sharp horned headgear, she is every inch the star of the show.
In conjunction with the superb five-piece band who do not put a note wrong all night, it is a winning combination.
The huge set list delivers hit after hit. Opener Straight To The Heart punches hard, while the ever-classy No More Hollywood Endings allows Noora her moment in the spotlight with utterly jaw-dropping vocals.
Heavier tracks like Steelbound, Blood Of Heroes and Bastard Son Of Odin emphasise the Metal chops of the band, with a deserved shout-out for Pyry Vikki on drums, who anchors the set with serious style. 
With the audience completely under Noora’s bewitching spell, the gargantuan set list comes to a close with the ever-epic Eden, a sublime fusion of power, melody and vocals which could lift the roof off any venue.
The encore of King For A Day and the formidable Wings Of Light bookend a truly dominant performance.
With most of the classic-era traditional Metal bands winding down, it is reassuring to see the next generation of festival headliners delivering the goods in such epic and memorable style. 
Majestica
Opening to a ravenous and excited crowd, ex-Sabaton and YouTube sensation Tommy Johansson’s Majestica delivered a pitch-perfect set drawn from their two most recent albums.
Kicking off with one of this year’s best singles, Power Train, Majestica swept the crowd up in a whirlwind of riffs, double-bass and extraordinary vocals from the mega-popular Johansson.
Dominum
With Halloween looming, who better to follow Majestica’s Metal celebration than Germany’s zombie crew, Dominum.
Confident, charismatic frontman Dr Dead controlled the febrile crowd to perfection, and the band served up punchy, layered and bouncing Power Metal, softened by a cheeky cover of Scorpions’ Rock You Like A Hurricane.
Danger Danger, The Dead Don’t Die, and Frankenstein sounded suitably undead and were greedily consumed by the mortal masses.
