The Leeds Cockpit venue is certainly a very cosy and intimate place to see a band, and especially good to watch a band that has five alluring women. Tonight The Crüxshadows, a successful underground Dark Wave band from Florida attracted a die hard crowd (if not a little on the sparse side) which started to stir once the keyboard and violin players came out to set up their gear. ‘Eye Of the Storm’ was the opener and frontman Rogue started the show in the crowd and made his way to the front of the stage. This cycle was repeated several times during the set and was great to see a frontman who takes the time to get up close and personal with his fans, as did the entire band after the show.

‘Sophia’ from the successful Dreamcypher album got a great reception, as did ‘Deception’, with Rogue dancing an Irish Jig with a crowd member! With new guitarist Valerie Gentile and new violin player JoHanna Moresco looking like they have been in the band since day one with great performances (and great looks!) as well as the controlling presence of keyboard player Jen Jawidzik also very appealing to the eye, but I digress yet again. The band was in great form, the new single ‘Immortal’ went down a storm, and after going through a set of some of their best songs including ‘Foreverlast’ and ‘Winterborn (This Sacrifice)’ the last song of the set was another successful single ‘Birthday’ again from the Dreamcypher album.

Rogue then came back for a solo encore of the Jefferson Airplane classic ‘White Rabbit’ before the final song ‘Marylin My Bitterness’ wrapped up a pretty much spotless performance. With dancers Jessica Lackey and Sarah Kilgore producing a sweat dripping performance of physical endurance, and a very synchronized show from the rest of the band, this was a great visual and musical show, showing just why The Crüxshadows have achieved their success in a musical world that never makes it easy for acts of their nature. With a hectic touring schedule and a physically demanding show, it was also nice to see the band spend time with their fans after the show.

Definitely a good way to spend a thursday night in space age Leeds!

Rating: 4.6/5.0

Review and Photography by Alexander Shaw