A year ago, after Helloween’s show at Spodek in Katowice, I found myself wondering whether Beast in Black, then opening for the German legends, would be able to draw a crowd to PreZero Arena in Gliwice on their own. Even back then, they already had an exceptionally devoted following in Poland – fans who knew the lyrics and celebrated as if the evening’s headliner were already onstage. Twelve months later, I had the chance to see just how far this Finnish-Greek-Hungarian collective had come. This time, Beast in Black were the headliners, joined by Finland’s Sonata Arctica and Italy’s Frozen Crown. It promised to be a true heavy-metal feast. Did it live up to expectations?
The stands in the Small Arena were filled almost to capacity, although there was still a little open space here and there on the floor. The crowd covered a wide age range, but it was unmistakably metal: from younger listeners to longtime devotees of the genre. Raised horns, applause, and singing accompanied us from the very beginning of the evening. There was certainly no sense of people simply waiting around for the headliner. As usual, I also stopped by the merch booth. T-shirts were priced at 150–180 PLN, while hoodies ranged from 300 to 350 PLN – concert economics have their own rules. That said, the prices here were actually quite reasonable. The sound also deserved praise: clear and well defined, allowing individual instruments to be picked out even in the denser passages. With this much guitar and so many galloping drums, that is by no means guaranteed.
Frozen Crown started right on time at 7:00 p.m. The Italians opened with „Kings” from their debut album „The Fallen King”, before moving into „The One” from „The Legend of the Six Kings”, released just a month earlier. That pairing alone showed how the band has developed its own take on power metal, enriching it with more elaborate arrangements and elements of melodic death metal. „All right, Poland!” came the shout from the stage, and before „Neverending” from „Crowned in Frost”, the musicians tested just how ready the Gliwice crowd really was. During that very song, the drummer’s microphone slipped from its stand, but a technician quickly brought the situation under control. The minor mishap did nothing to dampen the band’s enthusiasm. Watching from the side of the stage was Beast in Black vocalist Yannis Papadopoulos, who at one point even started filming his fellow musicians. A nice little reminder that musicians can simply be fans too.
The latest album, „The Legend of the Six Kings”, was represented most heavily. In addition to „The One”, the band played „Who Wants to Burn in Heaven”, the sing-along-friendly „Reborn”, and „Iris”, their successful interpretation of the Goo Goo Dolls hit. The latter provided a welcome change of pace after all that intensity. For a moment, you could slow down and sway along without losing touch with the metallic character of the arrangement. Giada Etro delivered a solid vocal performance, although the biggest impression came from the guitar intensity and the energy of the band as a whole. I did notice, however, that I could not see a bassist onstage. It is possible that, for whatever reason, he was absent from this tour, although I was unable to find any official information. Closing number „I Am the Tyrant”, once again taken from „The Fallen King”, brought the set to an appropriately powerful end. Four of the seven songs played therefore came from the newest album – it would be difficult to make the Italians’ promotional intentions any clearer. My only real complaint? Far too short. Half an hour left me wanting much more, and I would gladly see Frozen Crown again, this time with a full-length set.
At 7:45 p.m., it was time for Sonata Arctica. Just before the show, AC/DC’s „Are You Ready” came over the speakers. The question was largely rhetorical – everyone had already proved that they were. The Finns, celebrating their thirtieth anniversary, opened with „I Have a Right” from „Stones Grow Her Name”. Tony Kakko once again asked, „Are you ready to rock?”, and the enthusiastic response from the audience was rewarded with „Black Sheep” from „Silence”. During the guitar heroics, the frontman jokingly mimed playing the instrument himself, while between songs he showered the crowd with smiles and encouragement to join in. At 51, he still impresses with his energy and his ability to connect with an audience. There were moments when I felt he seemed slightly tired and some vocal passages no longer had quite the effortless quality they once did, but that did little to diminish the enjoyment of the performance. What mattered more was the atmosphere and the fact that these songs still work wonderfully live.
Before „Paid in Full”, Kakko announced that songs about human relationships would definitely be part of the set. And sure enough, the atmospheric „Tallulah” had the audience lighting up the arena with their phone flashlights and swaying their arms. „The Last Amazing Grays”, meanwhile, was preceded by a reflection on the circle of life, children growing up, and the hope placed in future generations. After the energetic „Closer to an Animal”, there was still room for the delicate „Shy”, originally released on the „Successor” EP. There were quite a few ballads, but nobody lives on full-throttle metal alone. The variety of tempos and moods actually became one of the strengths of the performance, especially in contrast with the uncompromising momentum of the headliner that would follow. The album represented by the most songs was „Silence”, with two: „Black Sheep” and „Tallulah”. It was also good to hear how material from different eras of Sonata Arctica’s career could still form such a cohesive and emotionally rich whole.
Then came my personal high point of the evening. „FullMoon” from the debut album was greeted with a huge roar from the crowd, and the words „Sitting in a corner all alone…” were sung by hundreds of voices at once. For me, it was a genuine time machine. This was the song that began my journey with Sonata Arctica back in 2008, when I was in sixth grade. Eighteen years later, all it took was a few opening notes to send me back for a moment to a time of fewer worries, discovering new bands, and becoming fascinated with heavy metal. Places change, people change, everyday responsibilities change, but some melodies can still open doors to memories we do not even think about in our daily lives. I will not pretend it was not moving. These are exactly the moments that make me love concerts – emotions that simply cannot be recreated by listening to a record at home. Unfortunately, it was also a sign that the end was approaching. „Don’t Say a Word” followed, before the band wrapped things up with the traditional fun of „Vodka”. Kakko also reminded everyone how important it is to support artists, promoters, and concert venues: without audiences, music would have nowhere to live. The Finns will return to Poland on April 22, 2027, at Klub Kwadrat in Kraków. I intend to be there.
At around 9:10 p.m., Rob Halford’s „Resurrection” came over the speakers – an obvious choice, given that Beast in Black’s current run is called the „Resurrection Tour 2026”. Just before the musicians appeared, we also heard the theme from „Mortal Kombat”, another nod to pop culture, something your humble correspondent happens to have a soft spot for as well. When the lights came up, the audience was greeted by a stage set featuring two enormous fans, industrial structures, and pipes that periodically blasted smoke into the air. There were no screens or pyrotechnics, but there was a distinct steampunk character. The visual design fit the music well, a sound in which classic metal has long met futuristic imagination. Nothing needed to explode for the whole thing to make an impression. The band made a bold start with two new songs: the as-yet-unreleased „Mighty Dragon”, which had made its live debut only a few days earlier in London, and „Fear the Beast”, the single previewing their fourth studio album. It was a clear declaration that Beast in Black are looking ahead rather than relying solely on their established hits.
For years, Beast in Black have combined traditional heavy metal with synthesizers and an ear for hooks inspired by the 1980s. Those proportions are not always perfectly aligned with my own personal preferences, but there is something undeniably appealing about the band’s consistency and distinctive identity. During last year’s performance at Spodek, I paid particular attention to the extensive use of electronic backing tracks. This time, however, I got to see the band in the context of a full-scale headline show, where every element – the sound, the stage design, and the musicians’ energy – came together convincingly. „Hardcore” from „Dark Connection” triggered a genuine explosion of joy. „It’s hardcore, Gliwice!” Yannis Papadopoulos shouted to fire up the crowd. Moments later, he introduced new guitarist Markus Venehsalo, who joined the group in June. His flashy solo left no doubt that he had settled comfortably into the lineup. It was good to see Beast in Black performing as a five-piece again. A year earlier in Katowice, Daniel Freyberg was still filling in for Kasperi Heikkinen on guitar. In Gliwice, the band already looked relaxed, confident in its own vision, and fully prepared to command a much larger stage.
After Markus had his moment in the spotlight, the band launched into „Born Again” and „The Fifth Angel” from their debut „Berserker”, the album that kicked off the rapid rise of the group Anton Kabanen formed after leaving Battle Beast. Next came the title track from their second album, „From Hell with Love”, followed by „Beast in Black” and „Sweet True Lies” – another song from „From Hell with Love” and one of my personal favorites in the band’s catalog. It is in melodies like these that you hear most clearly where Beast in Black’s popularity comes from. The choruses lodge themselves in your head almost immediately, and live they automatically turn into mass sing-alongs. „Sweet True Lies” was followed by „Enter the Behelit”, the 2025 single created around the collaboration between the world of „Diablo IV” and the „Berserk” manga. It is difficult to imagine a better example of Anton Kabanen’s pop-cultural obsessions, which have been woven into Beast in Black’s music for years. „To the Last Drop of Blood” raised the temperature again, and before „Die by the Blade”, Yannis tested just how well Gliwice knew the band’s catalog. The answer was more than satisfactory – the massed singing left no doubt that plenty of devoted fans had gathered in the arena.
The new „Lost Children” provided a brief moment of relief. When Yannis asked whether we wanted to hear some fresh material, the audience responded enthusiastically. Phone flashlights lit up the venue, and for a few minutes everyone could take a break from the relentless pace of the show. It was essentially the only clear slowdown in a performance that otherwise felt like a first-rate heavy-metal assault. „Zodd the Immortal”, another track from „Berserker”, restored the heavier impact, as did „Cry Out for a Hero”, the opening song from „From Hell with Love”, sung back at the band by the entire crowd. The audience needed little encouragement to jump and throw up the familiar metal horns. The energy coming from the stage and the energy being sent back from the floor created the kind of connection that cannot be manufactured through special effects or volume alone. You simply need the songs, and you need to play them in a way that makes people want to be part of every single chorus.
The best, however, was still to come. I had already enjoyed „Power of the Beast” during last year’s concert at Spodek in Katowice, especially because of its obvious anime-music influences. This time it sounded even bigger. „One Night in Tokyo”, meanwhile, turned the arena into a full-blown metal disco. Markus danced alongside Yannis and the rest of the musicians, and their genuine sense of fun spread through the crowd almost instantly. At moments like these, nobody cared whether a particular section leaned more toward power metal or dance music – all that mattered was having a good time together. The finale belonged to „Blind and Frozen” and „No Surrender”. The band spent a long time saying goodbye to the fans as Survivor’s „Burning Heart” played over the speakers, handing out guitar picks and drumsticks and thanking the other performers and the audience for helping keep heavy metal alive. It was an ending that captured the atmosphere of the entire evening perfectly: no unnecessary distance between stage and crowd, just a great deal of gratitude and the simple joy of playing music.
The evening in Gliwice showcased three different faces of melodic metal. Frozen Crown impressed with their energy and left us wishing their set had been longer. Sonata Arctica reminded us how powerful songs can become when they have accompanied us for years. Beast in Black, meanwhile, proved that they have grown into the role of headliner not only musically, but also in terms of scale and stage confidence. Looking at how far they have come since „Berserker”, and at the reactions of the Gliwice audience, I get the feeling their greatest successes may still be ahead of them. Knock Out Productions also deserves separate praise: getting into the venue, leaving after the concert, and even getting out of the parking lot all went remarkably smoothly. Small details, perhaps, but after several hours of intense music they can make a real difference. So I returned home convinced that heavy metal is in excellent shape, but also carrying one especially personal memory with me – those few minutes of „FullMoon”. Because while music cannot stop time, sometimes it can let us return to it for a little while.
Szymon Pęczalski