The six-piece outfit included Singapore as part of their on-going world tour, in support of their latest album entitled "Inhuman Rampage". Inhuman is certainly an appropriate word to define the unrivalled skills of the two axemen of DragonForce. Metallica's legendary guitarist Kirk Hammet once labeled Herman Li and Sam Totman as the fastest guitar players he has ever seen. The duo have been known to deliver guitar solos that defy the laws of speed and it was time to show the crowd in Downtown East, Singapore what the fuss was all about.

The concert started an hour late though, which was considered somewhat acceptable, as the fans have waited for years to pay homage to the power metal juggernaut that is DragonForce. It was such a relief to my ears when the metalcore and emo rock-laden pipe music was replaced by Slayer's "Raining Blood", as the main lights were dimmed and the spotlights ran amok across the concert hall. Several metal-hungry fans were already headbanging to this tune before the six members of DragonForce actually rushed onstage as "Raining Blood" draws to a close. They kicked off the show with "Revolution Deathsquad," followed by another three incredibly fast numbers, before letting the aggressive crowd take a breather when they performed "Trail of Broken Hearts", the only ballad off their latest album.

After a 10-minute interval, Vadim Pruzhanov came out to mesmerise the crowd with a blisteringly fast-paced keyboard solo, displaying his technical prowess and showmanship to everyone in presence. Pruzhanov made clear of his musical influences, as it suddenly seemed like D'Marquee was organising a hard trance showcase instead. The mood swiftly shifted as the rest of the band returned on stage to continue their power metal onslaught right through the second set. The fans continuously headbanged, moshed and crowd-surfed as DragonForce continued to pummel their senses mercilessly with "Soldiers Of The Wasteland," "Storming The Burning Fields" and "My Spirit Will Go On." Li and Totman should be given a speeding ticket for playing twin guitar solos that were too fast to be true, without being off-key. As if to add insult to injury, the two of them actually joked verbally with each other while shredding their guitars spontaneously!

The London-based band then left the stage but came back out five minutes later after repeated cries of "DRAGONFORCE! DRAGONFORCE!" by the fans, who clearly have not had enough. Surprise faces were all around D'Marquee after they took the stage without Li; vocalist ZP Theart claiming that "He has left the building", leading to bassist Frederic Leclercq strapping on Li's guitar and started mimicking his style of guitar-playing. It was not to be though, as Li ran back just as they were about to start the encore, saying that "The guys locked me up when I went to the men's room", followed by a roar of laughter by the audience. Each band member then rocked out one last time with "Through The Fire And Flames" and "Valley Of The Damned" as the two-hour concert was brought to an end.

The droves of fans that turned out, including a number who made the trip from Malaysia, definitely got their money's worth that night. In fact, if there were a "Cirque Du Soleil" of metal, this would be it. Right from the start, DragonForce proved that they are not merely skillful musicians, but competent entertainers as well. The main attraction would be the virtuoso style of playing from their guitarists, especially Li, who let his tongue do the playing during certain parts of the gig. Theart's interaction with the fans, the witty jokes and the energetic performance from the rest of the band also deserved recognition. In the end, it was another hard day's night for the band, who left Singapore that very night for their next show in Taipei, leaving behind a trail of numb necks and aching bodies.