Review: The Rock Orchestra at Rock City

Words: Natalie Owen
Photos: Natalie Owen
Thursday 02 December 2021
reading time: min, words

The Rock Orchestra, presented by Festival of the Dead, took to the historic stage of Rock City On Thursday 25 November to showcase their beautiful playlist of iconic rock cover songs…

If you like rock music then you will absolutely love The Rock Orchestra. They cover memorable rock and metal songs from the last thirty years - but with an orchestral twist.

Nottingham has completely sold out Rock City and the place is packed for a Thursday night. As guests walk through the doors, you can hear gasps of how spectacular the stage looks, as the nightclub is transformed into a bewitchingly lit stage with candle lights.

The venue lights dim and out come two men dressed in Day of the Dead outfits and make up.
Harrisen Larner-Main (who also provides vocals on the orchestra’s vocal numbers) takes to the piano and Santiago Luna takes to the cello to fire up the audience ready for the main event.

The crowd are excited and ready for the night ahead after listening to the two very talented musicians. A neon skull begins to move at the back of the stage and LED lights begin to flash as the musicians, all dressed in black and face painted with skulls, take to the stage for their opening song Sweet Child O’ Mine by Guns and Roses. Nottingham is in awe of how beautifully a classic song can be orchestrated as they clap and cheer for more.

Many songs throughout the night get the audience singing and dancing; one song in particular is Chop Suey by System of a Down - not one person in that venue isn’t enjoying the alternative version of the classic hit. The violinists play their heart out to this song and it is absolutely beautiful.

The night ends with the song Killing In The Name Of by Rage Against The Machine, getting the crowd to really go for it, bouncing up and down. The audience love it so much they demand an encore, and the musicians come back to the stage to perform a final song - Eurythmics’ Sweet Dreams.

Overall the night is amazing and the musicians are sensational. Their singer shouts out to everyone that it is their honour to play at such an iconic venue as Rock City, where so many rock legends have performed in the past. We are sure they will be back!

festivalofthedead.co.uk

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