Circle-pits, viral videos and the kind of buzz other bands would kill for – how Malevolence became British metal’s 17-year overnight success story

WORDS: MATT MILLS • PICTURES: JAKE OWENS

malevolence’s Alex Taylor is glaring balefully at the crowd in front of him. It’s a chilly Sunday evening in January, and the singer and his band are opening for Trivium at London’s Hammersmith Apollo. For many, this would be a thankless gig. But not for Malevolence.

“I know it’s a Sunday night and I know it’s fucking early, but you people in the middle, I need to see something special,” Alex barks. “Open the whole fucking floor up right now. Push it back! Push it back! Push it back!”

As Malevolence launch into a lacerating version of the title track from 2017’s Self Supremacy album, the crowd obey his orders. Suddenly, the entire floor of the Apollo is transformed into a maelstrom of flesh and sweat. Bodies collide with each other. In the middle of this melee, a dude with another dude on his back begins spinning round and round. On the ground next to him, someone begins doing push-ups. It’s carnage, in the best possible way.

Within 24 hours, camera phone footage of the scene has gone viral. Social media timelines are filled with posts of the ‘Can you believe this?’ variety. Trivium may have headlined the show, but it’s Malevolence who are grabbing the headlines.

“You know what, I’m surprised that it took so long for one of our pits to go viral, because we’ve been doing this for the last two years,” says Alex. It’s a week later, and we’re sitting with the singer and guitarists Konan Hall and Josh Baines on the band’s tour bus, parked outside Prague’s Fórum Karlín, where the Sheffield band – completed by bassist Wilkie Robinson and drummer Charlie Thorpe – are due to play in a few hours.