Exactly six years after their very first performance in The Netherlands Crossfaith returns to the Patronaat in Haarlem on October 11, with the intention to show the audience that while Crossfaith has evolved as a group, their core essence is still the same.
This time the group is in the middle of a worldwide tour to promote their newest album “EX_MACHINA”, a powerful album that shows how diverse the band and it’s members can be with the concept of Crossfaith, while being completely different from the previous album “Xeno”.
But what about the show?
As expected with a group like Crossfaith, the overwhelming majority of the audience drawn to the show are metal-oriented, but the occasional colorful hairstyle which are a familiar sight at ヴィジュアル系 (Visual Kei) and J-Rock shows can be spotted as well. Regardless, Crossfaith had absolutely no problem filling the venue to it’s maximum capacity.
Accompanied by Blood Youth (from the UK) and Normandie (from Sweden) the atmosphere in the room quickly turned into one of a heavy metal concert. And while the audience enjoyed the warm-up provided by the other two bands, everyone was eagerly awaiting the main act.
Before the band entered the stage, the hall was shrouded in a light mist to obscure the stage ever so slightly in order for the members to take their places on the stage, starting their “Japanese Future Metal” show with “DEUS”, and followed by “CATASTROPHE” and “DESTROY” to really set the tone for the evening: chaos.
Overwhelming chaos leading to quite a few circlepits forming in the audience, as well as the occasional wall of death. But with an act like Crossfaith this is not just something you can expect, but also solid proof that both the band and the audience are having a great time.
Vocalist Kenta decided to try a type of beer he never had before on stage, and programmer Terufumi wasted no time to join with a bottle of Jägermeister, which also served as the introduction for the next song, “JÄGERBOMB”.
Not all of the songs played tonight came from their new album “EX_MACHINA” though, they weren’t opposed to visiting their previous album “Xeno” (released in 2015), but also the ZION (released in 2012) and Apocalyze (released in 2013) EPs.
Overall there was a lot of interaction between the audience and the members of the band throughout the show, and programmer Terufumi wasn’t opposed to jumping into the audience for a crowdsurf session somewhere down the line. And while the other members didn’t follow his lead, they each let the audience know in their own way that they weren’t only enjoying themselves on stage, but also appreciating the interaction and reactions they received from the audience.
A few days before the show in Patronaat the band had to announce through their social media that drummer Tatsuya had to partially step down due to an injury to his right arm/wrist, but tonight he appeared to have made a full recovery, allowing him to play with full force and enthusiasm – something that was visible throughout the entire show.
Conclusion
Crossfaith delivered an extremely energetic show that is worthy of the heavy metal title, or like they call it themselves: Japanese Future Metal. Showing both their old audience that they still have what they started with six years ago, but also show new fans that they’re very accessible and welcoming to new people joining their moshpit.
If you enjoyed the current album “EX_MACHINA”, you will definitely enjoy Crossfaith’s current live show, because they really make the album come to life with their live stage.
Crossfaith are ready to take on the world with their latest work, and don’t show any signs of stopping their rampage in the near future. If you enjoy an energetic performance with heavy music, Crossfaith is definitely an artist you should put on your list of bands to see live!
Crossfaith // World Tour 2018 at Patronaat (Haarlem, NL)
01. DEUS
02. CATASTROPHE
03. DESTROY
04. FREEDOM (SE)
05. JÄGERBOMB
06. HELL
07. WILD SE
08. MAKE A MOVE
09. SYSTEM X
10. XENO
11. PHOTOSPHERE
12. SE (MC)
13. DAYBREAK
—ENCORE—
14. INTO THE NIGHTMARE
15. NIGHTMARE
16. MONOLITH
Follow Crossfaith
       |
 |  |  |  |  |
雪 (Yuki) is the owner and driving force behind Arlequin.
She originally started the project in 2009 as a photographer under the name of Arlequin Photography, but developed an interest in journalism and translation ever since. Because of these interests interviews and reviews were added to the project, until it eventually hit the limits as a "photographer" in 2021, and Arlequin Magazine was added to the mix.
雪 (Yuki) is a native Dutch speaker with a graphic design degree, which means she is also the main person behind Arlequin Creations.
After all these years she is still the main person who does interviews the interviews and live photos that you see on Arlequin, but also a large chunk of the reviews and behind-the-scenes work and communication goes through her.
She speaks Dutch and English on a native level, but also understands Japanese and German.