HELLOWEEN HAMMERFALL
O2 ACADEMY, BRIXTON, LONDON
Europe’s triumphant tandem bring power (metal) to the people
Helloween don’t fritter away their two hours onstage
JAKE OWENS
IF YOU WERE dropped into tonight with zero context, you’d assume HAMMERFALL were the headliners. Their set is 75 of the most bombastic minutes Sweden can muster, while the stage is decorated entirely in their honour. We’re talking light-up shields and mallets flanking the drum kit. There’s also a backdrop depicting an angelic knight wielding… guess what… a big fucking hammer.