Review: Battle Beast + Dominum + Majestica at O2 Institute, Birmingham

Majestica

The evening opened on a high note with Majestica, the Swedish symphonic power-metal outfit led by the ever-smiling Tommy Johansson. Great, fun and highly entertaining, the band struck an instant chord with the audience.

Their set mixed newer songs like with older material Above the Sky, offering a seamless blend of classic Euro-metal bombast and uplifting melody. The vibe was upbeat, melodic, and irresistibly engaging — “riff-happy, full of energy, fast and soaked in keyboards,” as one earlier reviewer perfectly described their live sound.

Tommy’s charisma shone through — taking centre stage both vocally and on guitar — while the band delivered with precision and joy. No Pain, No Gain and Rising Tide were particular crowd-pleasers, combining speed and melody in perfect balance.

Even without a live keyboardist, the symphonic textures still filled the room, thanks to smart production and well-timed backing tracks. Majestica’s performance was a reminder that power metal doesn’t have to take itself too seriously to be truly powerful.

Dominum

Next up came Dominum, the German zombie-themed power-metal sensation fronted by the charismatic Dr. Dead. Their arrival felt like the start of a horror musical — fog, eerie backing tracks, and a parade of undead minions filling the stage. The crowd erupted as Danger Danger kicked things off, immediately setting the tone for their undead spectacle.

Dominum’s show is part theatre, part metal party. The masks, graveyard props, and tongue-in-cheek horror imagery are all there — but crucially, the musicianship stands tall behind the gimmick. Tracks like Don't Get Bitten by the Wrong Ones and We All Taste the Same turned the floor into a mass sing-along, with fans chanting along almost instinctively.

Their surprise cover of Scorpions’ “Rock You Like a Hurricane” was a crowd-shaking highlight, delivered with all the zombie swagger you could hope for. It’s easy to dismiss a themed act as novelty, but Dominum prove the opposite: the music leads, the theatrics amplify.

Battle Beast

Then came the headliners. From the first riff, Battle Beast seized the stage like they owned it — which, for the next ninety minutes, they absolutely did. The band exploded into Straight to the Heart, and the crowd was instantly swept up in a wall of lights, sound, and adrenaline.

The newly released Steelbound album provided the backbone of the set, with new tracks sitting comfortably beside fan favourites. Songs like “Eye of the Storm” and “Wings of Light” hit hard, proving that the band’s mix of melodic metal, hard-rock swagger, and 80s flash still reigns supreme.

Frontwoman Noora Louhimo was simply phenomenal — her voice both fierce and uplifting, her command of the stage absolute. As one reviewer perfectly summed up: “When she says, ‘Forget all your troubles,’ she means it — and the whole room does.”

The O2 Institute’s light show turned cinematic under Battle Beast’s direction, painting every chorus in colour and motion. The only slight drawback was that some of the newer songs haven’t yet reached the instant-anthem status of the classics — but that will come with time.

Three bands, three shades of power metal, one unforgettable night.

Majestica brought melody and heart, Dominum brought theatre and chaos, and Battle Beast closed the evening with pure, explosive confidence. It was a night that celebrated everything that makes power metal so enduring — melody, community, spectacle, and above all, fun. If you left the O2 Institute without a smile (or a hoarse throat), you were probably in the wrong venue.

Photos and write-up - Andy Shaw