Welcome back, Vanguard.
As 2025 becomes a distant memory, the mists thin just enough to reveal what has been wrought. What began as an uncertain march has become something far louder, far heavier, and far more real than we ever expected.
This is a report from the front.
🜁 The Year the Fen Spoke
We did not expect this.
In our first year, Shadow Fen took to the stage five times, each show stronger than the last, each step deeper into the living metal scene that is roaring back to life around us.
Our first stand was our own debut show at Here We Are. From the first note, the support was overwhelming. That night did more than launch a band, it confirmed that the Fen had a place in the world.
Not long after, we took the stage with Hereward at The Met Lounge. The atmosphere was electric. Bands lifting bands. Crowds fully present. A scene that feels alive again.
That spirit deserves to be said plainly.
Right now, metal is supportive, generous, and fiercely communal. Every band we have shared a stage with has brought nothing but encouragement, energy, and solidarity. We see you. We respect you. We love this scene.
🜃 Victory at the Maw
Then came Battle of the Bands at Mama Liz’s.
We won.
And it was an honour.
Every band that night was formidable. A special salute goes to Sacred Starfish, our brothers in metal. Their feral, unapologetic chaos has earned them a unique and sacred place within the Vanguard. Seek them out. Legends do not always smell clean.
Winning changed things. In the best possible way.
🜄 The Path Ahead
Because of what this year became, our release plans have evolved.
Here is what lies ahead:
• Victory Brew
Our next single. Recording is being finalised and it will be unleashed soon.
• Battle of Shadow Fen
Forged as a direct result of our Battle of the Bands victory.
This track will be recorded professionally and accompanied by a full video, using part of the prize we earned. Release is planned for late March or early April.
🜃 Forthcoming Assault: Cambridge
Our next major incursion into the mortal realm is confirmed.
Atomic Asylum presents
FireFall
With
The Last Bastion
Shadow Fen
Of Concrete Gods
📍 The Six Six Bar – Cambridge
📅 23 January 2026
⏰ Doors 19:00
🎟 Tickets:
https://www.eventim-light.com/uk/a/63d3b3cc2b8ecb1a9684eec9/e/69600a86f0f9b525f16b1211
This one matters. If you can stand with us there, do.
🜁 Relics of the Vanguard
Merch is now available via the shop.
This is not fluff. It is one of the only ways you can directly support what we are building. Shadow Fen is forged on limited resources and many gold coins vanish into the mist to make this happen.
If you wear the sigil, you keep the fire lit.
🜄 Eyes on the Fen
A final salute to Gigs on Video, who captured live footage and helped us begin assembling a proper showreel. Their work ensures the Fen leaves a record behind it.
This year surprised us.
Next year will be deliberate.
Thank you for standing with us, sharing the word, and believing early.
Until the next dispatch
Steel sharp. Voices loud.
The Fen endures.
– Shadow Fen
