Lightfire
are first up tonight, a four piece alternative
rock band from the local area. The band are very
energised from the start, with some strong vocals
and riffs alike and have certainly lit a fire
with the ever growing crowd. Job well done guys!
Fort Hope are up next, a band that has risen from
the ashes of My Passion. The very young crowd
really enjoy the set, and the bands presence from
the start. 'Earthquake' is a slower paced track
but does not dampen the spirits any. Nice clear
vocals, some top notch melodies, outstanding guitar
playing from Simon by far, the most
livliest of the band closely followed by drummer,
Jamie. Last track tonight is 'Control', which
picks the pace right back up up again, but not
too much, there are some awesome riffs in it towards
the end. Fort Hope receive a decent applause and
have continued to warm us up nicely for the first
of our two headliners tonight. It would be nice
to see the guys on their own tour soon!
Ahhh The Maine are in the room, so many teenage
girls, hey can't knock them, I used to be where
they are many years ago! The Maine are a 6 piece
band, quite energetic, creating a good atmosphere
as the surprisingly not full Slade Rooms,( maybe
due to Anberlin pulling out of the tour?),sing
and bounce along to the pop punk goodness. Mid
set, the band break for a bit of banter with the
crowd, attempting the British accent when someone
in crowd wants some water. The band gel so well
together, the sound is larger than life for the
most of the set, even when John takes to the keyboard
for slower track 'Into your Arms' where the crowd
are very much in unison for the chorus. Another
brief banter break to discuss buttholes, and feeling
more comfortable around girls if they are thought
to have really bad runs, leading nicely into latest
track 'Love and Drugs'. 'Girls do What They Want'
sees crowd member Tom, invited up to stage to
sing the chorus. 'Beast of Burden' by The Rolling
Stones is played as John
advises us to leave social networking sites, to
drink some milk, make the most of your life etc
and say Thank you to the crowd, before taking
things down a notch with final track tonight,
'Misery'. Can't say I have heard a bad track from
these pleasant lads with a rock n roll edge tonight.
Sadly, the crowd has suddenly become quite thin,
as We Are The Ocean enter the stage I can only
put it down to the last minute switch to step
in for Anberlin? After seeing the lads earlier
this year at the Slam Dunk festival, it's nice
to see them in a more intimate setting, although
these lads are true professionals and play to
the room like it's their biggest gig to date still.
Kicking the set off with 'Trouble Is Temporary,
Time Is Tonic' and followed up with a good
varied mix of old and new tracks, 'Confessions',
'Waiting Room', and 'Machine' all go down a storm
with the smaller crowd that stands before them.
'Chin up Son' is a sweet acoustic break in the
set with Liam solo on stage, and the house lights
up accompanied by the singing few. 'Waiting Room'
and 'Young Heart' are two fantastic set closers,
ending the evening on a high note, just as it
started off. A flawless performance with true
showmanship from We Are The Ocean tonight
Lightfire 2.5/5
Fort Hope 3/5
The Maine 4/5
We Are The Ocean 5/5
Review By Jude Onions
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