McQueen at Manchester Academy
McQueen are back in Manchester tonight! And what a big night it is! It's the first time I've sat outside the doors, at the bar and seen an actual queue of people waiting to get in. Sure, this is common for Academy 1 but not so for the smaller, union venue. Of course, the crowd seem to be here for W.A.S.P. with a pretty wide range in ages. A woman who looked to be in her seventies, with a mac and and shawl and everything, trundles past me. A strange start indeed. Feels like this might be a tough crowd to please.
McQueen strut confidently onto the stage, with the "Great Escape" theme tune making an appearance. Always an added bonus. The crowd have been calling for W.A.S.P. all night and are still shouting as the girls walk on, but they are totally unfazed. Opening up with 'Not for Sale' and moving into 'Running Out Of Things To Say', McQueen show us what gritty, hard-rock is all about. 'Dirt' and 'The Line Went Dead' are soon to follow. Strangely, Leah didn't heckle anyone tonight but she did end up right down at the front of the barrier, in amongst the fan-boys.
By the time 'Blinded' comes along, the applause from the crowd has reached the peak. McQueen are certainly winning the crowd over. 'Neurotic' proves popular with the crowd and of course, the ever final 'Bitch' sends the crowd into a hail of applause. The big finish with masses of extra drumming from Hayley and guitar shredding from Cat builds to a final, mighty "BITCH!" from Leah, leaving the crowd stunned.
Generally, the crowd seemed not to be into the sound but they were won over in the end. Very little movement from anyone but plenty of applause. Given the fact that the ladies had no sound-check beforehand, the sound was excellent with only Hayley's toms sounding a little off. This is the biggest stage I've seen McQueen play on, and definitely the biggest crowd. All the problems considered, McQueen played blistering hard-rock that should get anyone's blood pumping!