A Stunning Performance
You may think that all music is either emo or indie right now, but you'd be wrong. Pop-punk is certainly not dead, and tonight was the proof!
First up were Hit The Lights and I must confess that all I'd heard from them before was a video for their breakthrough single 'Bodybag', a catchy tune they kept to finish the set with. The first thing to notice was that the band seemed to be wearing all the same t-shirts as the video and were performing the same moves: the guitarists were rocking out in unison and the singer seemed to be able to make standing in one place as energetic as possible. After a stunning vocal harmony in '309' and a storming performance of 'Bodybag', Hit The Lights departed and Early November came to the stage.
The set from Early November was not quite as catchy as Hit The Lights, the songs were more involved but the music was engaging and when they pulled out a cover of Oasis's 'Champagne Supernova' half way through a song the crowd went wild.
After two amazing sets I was wondering how things could get any better, and then New Found Glory appeared, immediately the entire room went crazy from the front, right to the bar at the back. After a brief intro the first riff of 'Understatement' rang out and we knew we were in for a treat. NFG were on form tonight, you'd think for the last night of the UK leg of a punishing two and a half month world tour the band would be a bit tired, but it certainly didn't show. Jordan's voice was exceptional throughout the whole set, showcasing his surprising range and versatility that's not always come across on their earlier albums.
The riffage was intense, I'd wondered how the band would manage to translate the massive production of the new record to the stage but it was all there; although I felt a bit sorry for the man behind the amps playing the keyboards. It was rather odd as on their last tour the keyboardist (whether it was the same man I have no idea!) shared the stage with the band, but this time all you could see was his silhouette behind some red canvases which were masking the amps!
The band played almost every hit tonight, including several songs from their eponymous album to please the older fans, it was clear the newer tunes were the crowd favorites though. The only song I was hoping to hear but didn't was 'Truth of my Youth', although the band have played a slightly different set every night of the tour so other parts of the country probably will have heard it.
All in all it was a fantastic gig with three incredible bands at the top of their form.