Cold In Berlin’s dark force commands every inch of the stage, and tonight at The Garage, it’s Maya who reigns supreme.
With Adam Berlin and Lawrence Wakefield conjuring dense, doom-laden riffs and Alex Howson’s drumming pulsing like a heartbeat on the verge of collapse, all eyes are on Maya.
Her voice—a haunting wail that teeters between angelic and feral—transcends the black-clad room, pulling the audience into a hypnotic, immersive world. Her stage presence is magnetic, with her body language a performance in itself.
a mix of rage, terror, and a chilling grin"
With hair cascading over her face, she alternates between clutching herself with almost agonizing intensity and staring into the crowd with a mix of rage, terror, and a chilling grin. It’s this theatricality, coupled with the blistering ferocity of the band’s sound, that electrifies the crowd.
Their music defies simple classification. We desperately try, but it’s a volatile blend of Gothic rock, doom metal, and art punk. Cold In Berlin teeter between the ethereal and the savage, evoking an image of Andy Warhol in the press pit with a Super 8 camera.
The crowd, fully enthralled, has been led through a journey of emotional extremes"
“Dream One” begins the descent into their shadowy sonic landscape, followed by the ferocity of “When Did You See Her Last” and the spellbinding “White Horse.” With each song, Maya’s confidence swells, her voice cutting deeper into the emotional core of the audience. Her connection with them is primal, drawing everyone into the abyss that Cold In Berlin so effortlessly create.
They are an unsettling, captivating spectacle"
The band’s genius lies in their ability to weave slow, melancholic ballads with explosive, high-octane tracks. This versatility is the beating heart of their live show—there’s a constant shift between moments of eerie calm and bursts of raw power. And yet, through it all, the music remains cohesive, tethered by a deep, brooding aesthetic that feels both intimate and epic. By the time they reach their finale, “Total Fear,” the room is thick with dry ice, hormonal sweat, and the sense of something profound. The crowd, fully enthralled, has been led through a journey of emotional extremes—fear, exhilaration, despair, and catharsis.
Cold In Berlin deliver ‘an experience’—a doom-filled communion with the audience that is as haunting as it is exhilarating. They are an unsettling, captivating spectacle, and you leave feeling as if you’ve glimpsed into the darkest corners of something deeply human.
Cold in Berlin played support to The March Violets at The Garage, Highbury on Saturday 20th July 2024
