AN avant-garde band which mixes sounds of African-American spirituals with black metal will perform at a historic entertainment venue this weekend.

Zeal & Ardor, which was launched in 2013 and is fronted by Swiss-American Manuel Gagneux, will perform at Colchester Arts Centre, in Church Street, this Sunday.

The project initially started life as a solo endeavour but three years later expanded to a full line-up after Gagneux signed with MVKA Records in 2016.

Gagneux is, therefore, now backed-up by vocalists Denis Wagner and Marc Obrist, guitarist Tiziano Volante, bassist Mia Rafaela Dieu, and drummer Marco Von Allmen.

Now based in Basel, Switzerland, having been started in New York City, Zeal & Ardor will perform tracks from their first two albums Devil Is Fine and Stranger Fruit.

Songs from their first EP Wake of A Nation are also likely to be given a runout, while previously unheard releases from their forthcoming album could also be debuted.

The venue’s door will be opened to audience members at 7pm on the evening of the sure-to-be enthralling show.

Tickets for the standing gig cost £17.50 and can be purchased by visiting colchesterartscentre.com or calling the box office on 01206 500900.