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Anberlin - Live Review
posted on Saturday, 22 January 2011 @ 15:46 | permalink
Originally published in Issue 49 of Pugwash NewsAnberlin (support: Hawthorne Heights, What Now) Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms 21/11/10 What Now opened the show, giving a solid yet somewhat generic performance to a relatively unresponsive crowd with movie soundtrackesque songs and performance of catchy new single Toy Soldiers. Special guests were Hawthorne Heights, probably taking some of the crowd back to their teenage emo phase, with a small contingent of very excited fans singing every word. The band were quite slow to get into their stride, despite starting with plenty of energy something seemed to be missing. Performances of well-known tracks This Is Who We Are and Ohio Is For Lovers marked the performance finding its feet and the crowd warming to the band. Material from new album Skeleton showed a slightly more mature sound, although still definitely pandering to their emo-pop style, and ended with a singalong to Niki FM, which had anyone with memories of the song mouthing the words. Anberlin took to the stage with raptuous cheers and immediately incited movement into the previously static crowd with We Owe This To Ourselves, and the words were bellowed back at them during Paperthin Hymn. New material from latest album Dark is the Way, Light is a Place played a big part in the set, with songs such as 'Take Me (As You Found Me)' and 'Pray Tell' recieved just as well as the older songs. Vocalist Stephen Christian's performance was pitch-perfect and energetic - his impressive vocal far surpasses that of any X Factor contestant or two-bit 'popstar', and was showcased perfectly on acoustic track 'The Unwinding Cable Car'. The downside of this was that in parts, the show could've done with more of a 'live feel', and the band's interaction with the crowd was very limited. However, using samples and instrumentals to link between each song gave the whole show a sense of flowing seamlessly, and combined with a forest backdrop, the whole performance had a very atmospheric feel. After disappearing briefly, the band treated the fans who had been chanting for the song all night with Ready Fuels, and the explosive reaction showed just how much this show had been enjoyed and appreciated. Download 2010 - Wellies, Wombling and Wonderfulness - Sunday
posted on Wednesday, 16 June 2010 @ 09:49 | permalink
 Some weird and wonderful people. A less bands-packed day than the previous one, we caught the last song from August Burns Red, Composure, which showcased their unforgivingly heavy style that has transferred them from a small tent to the second stage in the past two years. Switchfoot were next reminiscent of stadium rockers Nickelback. Slowing it down for movie-moment ballad Dare You To Move, they added deeper layers of instrumental to the song giving it a heavier sound, perhaps more appropriate for the Download crowd. Singer Jon Foreman's vocals were brasher and grittier than on record - however, this proved a positive thing as it gave the songs a new kind of depth. Ending on Meant to Live, featured on the SpiderMan 2 soundtrack, the crowd perhaps didn't know much about this band, but seemed to enjoy them nonetheless.  What do you get if you cross Anthrax, Fall Out Boy and Every Time I Die? New 'supergroup' The Damned Things consist of Rob Caggiano (Anthrax), Joe Trohman and Andy Hurley (Fall Out Boy) and Keith Buckley (Every Time I Die) on vocals. A strange mix, but one that seemed to work, with heavy riffs and manic drumming, a far cry from the sugary pop-punk of Joe and Andy's previous band.  One of my favourite flags of the weekend... During Dillinger Escape Plan, the gorgeous weather that had been working overtime turning me the colour of a mahogany dining table gave up, and the heavens opened. Having to head back to my tent for wellies, I managed to miss a fair few bands, including the inimitable Steel Panther, who covered Backstreet Boys track I Want It That Way (expect a post about that soon too!), so the next band I managed to catch were pop-punkers Zebrahead while sheltering in the Pepsi Max tent. Playing catchy and fun songs, even those who had simply ventured in for shelter from the rain were bopping along, and joining in the charming chant of 'MINGE'.  Closing the day's proceedings, and the festival itself, were the legendary Aerosmith. Opening with the classic Love In An Elevator, Steven Tyler gyrated around the stage in tight trousers and sequins. Despite being 62 years old, he had the energy of a 20 year old and a strange kind of sex appeal that I don't quite understand, but there were definitely plenty of ladies hot under the collar - especially when he stripped the sequins to reveal a tight vest. After a stunning rendition of Cryin' that showed Tyler's voice had certainly not diminished with age, Joe Perry took on lead vocals at points and gave the eager crowd 'a lot of blues in a short amount of time'. The lights went down, and some famililar opening strings were heard, and the crowd went crazy for power ballad Don't Wanna Miss A Thing. With lighters and glowsticks in the air, the mass singalong to the song gave me (and probably everyone in the arena) goosebumps. After a short break, their encore featured dramatic and theatrical Dream On, one of my personal highlights of the set, and had Walk This Way had everybody dancing. Thanking us and each other before they left the stage, Aerosmith were easily some of the best headliners I've seen in my 6 years of attending the festival, and more than worth facing the rain and mud for. A massive thanks go to all the people I camped with, met and spent time with this weekend. I love you all! Labels: download, festival, live Download 2010 - Wellies, Wombling and Wonderfulness - Saturday
posted on @ 09:46 | permalink
 Hanging out with two gorgeous ladies before Thursday's Boardie BBQ Up and about earlier than the previous morning, I paid a wonderful visit to the Luxury Loos hair straightening facilities for a very un-festivalish grooming session, before heading for the second day of music. Managing to catch 15 minutes of The Blackout playing an acoustic set at the Jagermeister truck, and despite the band's admission that it was out of their comfort zone, their songs translated well to the stripped-down session. This was cut short by a wander to the Main Stage, where Atreyu were playing early due to a switchover with Flyleaf, who were running late. When performing at the festival a few years ago, the vocal performance was poor, with drummer and clean vocalist Brandon Saller often out of tune. This year however, he showed his talent as a musician by keeping both the vocals and drumming perfectly tight. Combined with frontman Alex Varkatzas providing the more agressive, screaming vocals, the band gave a solid and exciting performance.  Everybody loves a man-train! Comparisons of Flyleaf singer Lacey Mosley are often made to Evanescence's Amy Lee, however Flyleaf blew Evanescence's shaky 2007 performance out of the water today. Mosley could well be one of the best female vocalists in rock, with not only a pitch-perfect voice with incredible range, but also the ability to emit agressive, angsty growls and screams. The rest of the band were energetic and engaging, with one guitarist climbing onto a speaker stack and diving off, all while keeping musically tight with the rest of the band.  Sticking at the main stage, Five Finger Death Punch brought the aggressive metal sound they are known for, with an attitude to match. A band that split the crowd, there were both cheers and boos when their set was cut short due to Ivan Moody inciting crowd mayhem during Dying Breed. Perhaps in a fashion that could be considered arrogant, the band wore their own t-shirts, but arrogance aside, the band's fans seemed satisfied despite the shortened set.  After casually taking in Lamb of God (not a massive fan, but clearly popular with the Download fans), avoiding Megadeth and taking some boys shopping (yep, I didn't even buy anything!), The Blackout gave their fourth performance in just two years. The sextet had a special addition, Kids In Glass Houses drummer Philip Jenkins, and a charming 'Fuck The Blackout' banner which summed up their faux-egotistical yet self deprecating manner perfectly. Singalongs were inevitable and rousing, particularly to the beyond infectiously catchy This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things. The band also gave an instrumental tribute to headliners AC/DC and Rage Against The Machine, as they had done in 2009 with the year's big bands.  Deftones on the main stage were a big draw for the crowd, with their trademark etheral vocal style teamed with heavy riffs and musical backing translating perfectly to the festival setting. Their set proved an excellent opportunity to sit and relax while taking in their unique, melodically intricate songs.  Headlining the Ronnie James Dio Stage were US rock outfit 30 Seconds To Mars, fronted by actor Jared Leto, who sported an outrageous pink mohawk. Theatricality definitely proved a part of their act, with constant guitar swapping and the inability to stand still from Mr. Leto himself. During a few songs, he left it to the crowd to sing along with the choruses of well-known hits such as Attack, perhaps leading to questions on whether he could remember the lyrics he had written himself...luckily, the fans seemed to know what they were doing! As well as filming for their new video, and a Happy Birthday singalong to a friend, the band were joined by a special guest for breakthrough hit The Kill, Deftones' Chino Moreno, whose vocal complimented the chorus perfectly. For the finale, Leto invited fans to 'come on stage' (yes, I laughed. Quite a lot) and sing along to perfect summer anthem Kings and Queens - and plenty took him up on this offer, making the performance one to remember for plenty of them - and a stunning ending to a stellar day of music. Labels: download, festival, live Download 2010 - Wellies, Wombling and Wonderfulness - Friday
posted on @ 09:34 | permalink
 All aboard the shuttle bus! All over the web, there are probably plenty of blogs cropping up about the weekend - and plenty of pictures. So I've decided to illustrate mine with a personal touch. Instead of professional looking pictures of the acts, expect to see shots of what really made my weekend - the people, the moments, the things that made the weekend truly memorable, accompanied by little anecdotes from the weekend. They're likely to be posted on the wrong days, as they cover the Wednesday and Thursday too, but hopefully they'll give you all an insight into how it's so much more than the bands that truly made it a fantastic weekend. 36 Crazyfists were on their usual excellent metalcore form, despite below par sound quality, and the personal peeve that their best known track, Slit Wrist Theory, was played at a faster speed - something which seems to often happen at their festival performances. They also showcased new tracks from their upcoming release, however it was clearly the oldies that had the afternoon moshpit fiends working overtime.  After a run (well, a leisurely stroll via the hog roast stand!) over to the second stage, this year named the Ronnie James Dio stage as a tribute to the fallen metal superstar, A Day To Remember played a storming set. Two years ago, the Florida clan were playing to a small but devoted crowd, but this year presented a huge mass of bodies extending back into the space, showing how far these guys have come in such a relatively short time. During their set, it's easy to see why, as their mix of catchy tunes and crunching breakdowns had the crowd singing, stomping and causing a riot.  Chilling with boardies at the Download Forums Boardie BBQ. And yes, that gorgeous vision in shocking pink is my boyfriend. Back to the main stage, Killswitch Engage (replacing Wolfmother, who were forced to pull out due to illness) showed exactly why they are considered a Download favourite. Despite yet more problems with the sound, a seemingly running problem, the crowd's voices were in full force for their closing track, their cover of Dio's Holy Diver, not unusual as a closer, but this year, it felt understandably more poignant.  When it comes to supergroups, Them Crooked Vultures hold some of the rock world's most prestigious stars, drummer Dave Grohl, . However, their set was middle of the road, relatively dull and certainly didn't put the 'super' in supergroup. A newish conception with just one album to their name, most of the punters seemed to know exactly WHO they were, but when it came to what they were playing, it was a different story. The set did serve as a nice opportunity for a few to indulge in a nap though, before the evenings headliners...  Now, I'm torn on AC/DC. Before discussing the set, lets look into their appearance with regards to Download Festival itself. Their name was missing from merchandise, they didn't appear on the lanyard or programme, and it generally felt as if they were playing a gig at Donington Park, that happened to coincide with the festival. Fair enough, the band are a massive coup for the organisers to book, especially as they vowed never to play a festival, but many seemed to feel the band were snubbing the festival. Controversy aside, the band blew the majority of the festival punters away. Issues with vocals and a ridiculously long solo were thrown aside as the band blasted out their biggest hits, sending the crowd wild to Back In Black, You Shook Me All Night Long and the other songs that have made a massive impact on the history of rock music. The stage show was as epic as expected, with a large train and blow up doll - 'Rosie' to those who know a bit about the band. As someone who's not a massive AC/DC fan, I probably didn't appreciate it all as much as the die-hards, and disagree with their snubbing of the festival. Despite this, they managed to impress me and entertain, giving a performance that could easily be remembered as legendary. Labels: download, festival, live A Day To Remember - Pyramids Centre 15/3/10
posted on Tuesday, 30 March 2010 @ 09:01 | permalink
A Day To Remember Support: Architects, Your Demise Portsmouth Pyramids Centre 15/3/10  Entering the venue, I breathe a sigh of relief that, as with the seeming trend of gigs these days, my 5ft 1 self actually has a hope in hell of seeing, thanks to a large portion of the audience being barely in their teens, and therefore pre-growth spurt. Ignoring the monstrosity that is a ‘Mrs Oli Sykes’ t-shirt, I make my way to catch Your Demise open with a bang to an excited crowd – although it’s clear to see they’re mainly here for the headline act. Architects gave a strong performance, however seemed muted at points despite vocalist Sam Carter’s efforts to get the crowd going, who were seemingly less responsive, excepting a small portion of loyal fans. A shame that a large portion of the crowd probably only knew them due to Carter’s vocals on Bring Me The Horizon track The Sadness Will Never End, as they currently lead the way in the growing British hardcore scene. The last time the Pompey crowds saw A Day To Remember, they went down a storm supporting Bring Me The Horizon (yep, them again...) hit the stage to rapturous cheers and applause, hitting hard with ‘Fast Forward to 2012’, an unexpected yet appreciated opening song. The Ocala boys had clearly aimed their set at fans who had been there from the beginning, playing tracks from earlier released ‘And Their Name Was Treason’ and ‘For Those Who Have Heart’- although it was standout tracks from latest album ‘Homesick’, such as singalong-friendly ‘The Downfall of Us All’. Despite these recieving an eager reception, the excitement of die-hard fans to hear old favourites was clear, and the crowd as a wholewere generally consistent, with just a few lulls when rarer or slower tracks were played. Things were slowed down a little with the frankly stunning cover of The Fray’s Over My Head, and Have Faith In Me - the only downer was the band’s slightly sexist claim that they ‘had’ to play the soft songs ‘for the ladies’. A notable omission was the removal of previous 'set staple' Kelly Clarkson cover, 'Since You Been Gone', showing the band moving onwards and upwards, and being known for their own original work. After ending on arguably their best known track ‘The Plot to Bomb the Panhandle’, and the young’uns poured out to waiting parents, it’s easy to see that A Day To Remember are a band that aim to please their fans - and succeed. This review can be seen in Pugwash News Image credit (for illustration purposes only!) Labels: A Day To Remember, live, review |
