Praying Mantis
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The Gods 2000 in the PressLast Modified On 21 Mar 2009From Fireworks Magazine Issue 3 - Available from FireworksMag@aol.com. (This issue also has an Interview I took from all 5 members of the band) Praying Mantis - The Gods 2000 , Maximes, Wigan, 4th Nov 2000 by Dave CockettHaving just witnessed a truly blistering set from Norway’s Street Legal, I can’t say that I really envied Praying Mantis the task of going on next. A far slicker, much more polished animal (at least on CD) than the brash young upstarts who proceeded them, Praying Mantis have been treading the boards in one form or another for over twenty now, so I guess they ought to know a thing or two. The first couple of numbers , "A cry for the New World" and "Children Of The Earth" came over somewhat subdued, the band’s stage persona seemingly left back in the dressing room at this point. With some dodgy harmonies (Not helped at all by a very insipid mix), it seemed like their first UK show in an age would be a big let down , indeed, if it wasn’t for the occasional flash of incisive guitar work, I suspect more of the crowd might have headed back to the bar there and then. Fortunately for the band as soon as they launched into "Best Years" from the recently reissued "Forever In Time", the sound miraculously got hell of a lot better. The transformation both on and off stage was quite remarkable. Particularly the interactions between guitarists Dennis Stratton and Tino Troy, both finally waking up from a dirge induced stupor to play a blinder for the rest of the set. It seemed that with the sound problems sorted Praying Mantis were suddenly galvanised into action cranking out a couple of future crowd favourites in the shape of the mystical "Nowhere To Hide" and seriously classy "Can’t stop the fire". By Comparison "Rise up Again" with it’s half hearted crowd sing-a-long and the galloping set closer "Turn The Tables" sounded a bit to Iron Maiden by numbers for my tastes, especially when measured up against some of the newer material from the last couple of albums. From a shaky opening, Praying Mantis recovered well to win the day in the end, though by all accounts they were much better a few weeks later in London with Glenn Hughes.
From Burrn Magazine. Sorry I don't know which issue. Praying Mantis - The Gods 2000 , Maximes, Wigan, 4th Nov 2000 by Rob EvansHaving to follow the simply superb STREET LEGAL would have been a daunting prospect for many a band but then again PRAYING MANTIS are not your average band and they set about this gig with all the ease of the seasoned professionals that they are. Having been in existence for nearly twenty five years and with ten cds worth of material to choose from, picking a set was always going to be a hard choice and adding to that difficulty was the fact that they where only allowed 45 minutes of allotted set time. This meant that classics like 'Captured City', 'Lovers to the Grave', 'Wasted Years' and 'Naked' all had to be omitted. Even with those classics missing the band still delivered a highly polished set of material that covered a time span of twenty-five years. They really are one of this country's best kept secrets, hopefully that should be rectified with the release of ' Nowhere to Hide ' their first domestic release for many a year. Due to the currently dreadful English weather it took the band over ten hours to get to the gig, all for just 45 minutes of music, but as Dennis Stratton said from the stage ' It was worth every minute' and I couldn't agree with him more. They opened their set with 'A cry for the new World' a song from their 1993 cd of the same name and this song set out the bands stall right from the start. This was a twin guitar assault of the finest order with both Stratton and Troy delivering the goods in style and Tony O'Hora hitting notes that others can only dream of. The next song 'Children of the Earth' was written over twenty five years ago and appeared on their debut album and still sounds as fresh as it did all those years ago, it featured some massive vocal harmonies on what was a classic of the N.W.O.B.H.M . 'Best Years' was introduced as a song written by Dennis Stratton and is to be found on the criminally overlooked 'Forever in time' cd it showcased the exemplary twin guitar skills of both Stratton and Troy and featured keyboards that were subtle and never intrusive. The title track and 'can't stop the Fire' off their most recent cd 'Nowhere to Hide' were next and they just highlighted the enthusiasm for their music that this band still have even after all these years together, as for the songs themselves they where perfect slices of modern day Mantis. The song of the set for me would have to be 'Rise up Again' from the 'Cry for the new world' cd, this one had it all and was topped of by a stunning acappella section that led into a sing-a-long version of Queens 'We will rock you' that was just inspired. They finished the set as they started it full of enthusiasm and left me in no doubt about their talents. The one thing I will add is the fact that a lot of my fellow professionals, Phil included, all stated that Mantis had a poor sound but seeing as I was at the front I can't really comment on that, but what I will say is that what I did see and hear only confirmed what a class act Praying Mantis are and hopefully the British public will wake up to that fact pretty soon. |
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