Simon Rushworth
@ Newcastle O2 Academy, April 26 2012
A monolithic meeting of metalcore minds meant Thursday night was no ordinary night in Newcastle. Pouring rain preceded a flood of classic riffage from both sides of the Pond as two of the most relevant bands on the planet went head-to-head in the quest for fan adulation.
If there was a winner it was a tough call to make. But one thing was obvious from the off: bruising Brits Bury Tomorrow were in no mood to play second fiddle to the evening’s hard-as-nails headliners.
Ensuring the audience was bouncing even before singer Dani Winter-Bates had sung a note, theirs was a performance rich in passion and screaming power. Tight, enthusiastic and jaw-droppingly heavy throughout, the Hampshire crew caused controlled mayhem from start to finish.
Had anyone walked in midway through this brilliant BT set, without realising they weren’t watching the main event, they would surely have departed convinced this band were the headline act.
Support bands don’t come any better and it’s a fair bet Of Mice And Men felt the pressure in the moments before they took to the stage.
If they did then the Californians didn’t show it. Matching BT note-for-note, and playing with the confidence of seasoned campaigners, OM&M started with a bang and ensured the crowd had a blast.
At times it was impossible to believe this was a band just three years old and yet Austin Carlile’s departure from Attack Attack! has never looked more timely.
2011’s Top 30 US album The Flood is a fantastic showcase for metalcore as a genre and OM&M more than did justice to that record’s prime cuts during a set that shimmered in its brilliance.
Taking up the challenge laid down by BT – and beating the willing home country heroes at their own A-game – Carlile and company appeared to have the time of their lives on Tyneside. The feeling was mutual as a throng of fans filed out of the Academy still buzzing from the after-effects of a metalcore masterclass.
Michelle Armstrong