Blauerosen

Cold In Berlin live at The Lexington

When I listened to the new album ‘Wounds‘, of Cold In Berlin in December 2025 and learned of their planned gig in London at the end of January, I instantly felt nostalgic, remembering their previous gig at the Hope & Anchor 10 years ago. This feeling convinced me that it was indeed time for me to see them again, experience their fiery stage presence, and listen to their new songs live.

But before I get to this stage of the evening, let me praise MOTH SLUT for their powerful live performance and well-thought-out stage appearance. Bringing to mind both Cinema Strange and even Lacrimosa at times, this new band from Manchester, which released its debut album last year, has various sonic stories to narrate, and they did so with incredible power. Some of these stories have strong deathrock elements, and others even black metal ones. The singing styles differ greatly between the two musicians, who otherwise adopt a similar aesthetic when it comes to their outfits. The rhythms and riffs navigated between melodic deathrock and the noisy guitar walls characteristic of black metal music. The delivery of the lyrics was sometimes dark and angry, and other times had almost a pop lightness to them.
The audience was captivated and intensely supportive, and the songs of their set list had an added kick compared to the studio versions – something which one usually sees from very experienced bands. According to their Bandcamp page, the band includes powerful visuals in their gigs but there was none this time. Given that this was the first time I was seeing this band live and loved all the elements in their music, I will keep an ear out for their upcoming releases from now on.

Next up was another treat, NAUT, a new band from Bristol that started in 2018 and, after a few EPs, released their first full-length album ‘Hunt‘  in 2023. A very different stage appearance compared to MOTH SLUT, this band had a strong gothic rock character in their music, which was well supported overall. The theatrical element of their outfits complemented the music and the dynamic delivery of the lyrics and made sure everyone was hooked for the entirety of their set. At times bringing to mind equally the music of The 69 Eyes and the sound of The Sisters of Mercy, NAUT delivered perfect versions of their songs aesthetically close to those on their studio albums.

Cold In Berlin – The Seer and the Outlaw

Ten years ago, in the basement of The Hope & Anchor, I had the pleasure of experiencing Cold In Berlin a year after the release of their album ‘The Comfort of Loss & Dust‘. At that time, even though only six years had passed since their debut album, their stage presence felt very mature and consistent with the atmosphere of their lyrics, and the venue seemed to constrain them as their performance had more generous qualities than a basement could justify.
Fast forward to 2026, and The Lexington offered a much better stage for the theatrical element of this obscure band to be unveiled and appreciated. The setlist kicked off with ‘Messiah Crawling‘, singer Maya appearing from the side of the stage, walking slowly and decisively, wearing a long white shirt dress, eyes fixated as if she was hypnotised like Lucy in Dracula. ‘The Stranger‘ and ‘12 Crosses‘ followed, all from the latest album Wounds. Covering the whole stage with her presence, it was obvious to me that an invisible veil was woven over our heads so that we could all share the mesmerising element of dark storytelling. Heavy riffs, stoner rock, and doom elements in the rhythms and the delivery of the lyrics filled the space with emotional weight that felt as if trees started to grow within us. The setlist went back only as far as ‘Rituals of Surrender‘, the album released in 2019 and also included two songs from the 2024 EP ‘The Body Is The Wound‘.
Towards the end of the show, the dramatic effect of the passing of time on everything around us, including the band’s music, was addressed as Adam admitted: “The world is not as we thought it would be ten years ago“. This sentence alone seemed to address the gap between this album and their previous one, the changes the band has experienced and have had to come to terms with in the meantime. In this same context, we learned that this would be the only gig from the band in London for the foreseeable future, as things have changed significantly in the way gigs are booked and the availability of venues.
The rest of the songs on the setlist were performed both on and off stage. The circle Maya created when she placed herself amongst the audience seemed impenetrable – a result of the slow rhythms and her fierce delivery of dark poetry that characterises all the band’s lyrics. Once inside the circle, it felt like a wormhole with an incredible pull, especially if one looked around at those outside it. This energy was finally released, and the emotional arrest that we had been experiencing became more manageable, when Maya reappeared on stage until the end of the gig. ‘Dream One‘, a favourite recently released song, ‘I Will Wait‘, ‘When Did You See her Last?‘, ‘Your Body/My Church‘, ‘Hangman’s Daughter‘, and ‘Wicked Wounds‘ closed the circle of the official setlist before the short encore.
It was great to see Cold In Berlin again, and experience the way the music, its emotional weight, the symbolism of Maya’s delivery of the lyrics, and connection with the rest of the band and the audience has been cemented into something that has a body and a soul. It was also refreshing to see such great energy among the four musicians on stage, a rare camaraderie. Maya’s smile was magnetic during the instrumental moments between verses, even after words like these: “Reach right through to me/See the end of me (lyrics: “Hangman’s Daughter”). Her signature Dracula hand gestures and her direct gaze came as almost the complete opposite of the smiles.
If Maya was the moving Seer on stage, delivering sinister and symbolic poetry, Adam was the other pillar, emanating a different energy, one of quiet unrest. Looking like an outlaw cowboy, he occasionally provided backing vocals and brought to mind visions of Willie Nelson and Tompall Glaser. Maya approached him at times, as if menacingly addressing her spells to him. He stood his ground as one should do if something seemingly too heavy is approaching, and gradually Maya ‘released’ him from her invisible grip. This, to me, was a powerful symbolic scene, one of many that we had the pleasure of enjoying during this gig.

Until next time…

You can view more photos from this gig here.

Blaue Rosen