Taking Back Sunday // UEA - 30.08.11

Support from The Xcerts & The New Regime.

Kicking off the night in the half full UEA is Aberdeen trio The Xcerts, bringing with them some great indie alt-rock tunes and a strong stage presence, which is sadly somewhat ignored by many who have turned out to watch the first support. The band’s large rock sound fills out the room and it’s clear their style is well suited to tonight’s headliners. Halfway through their set the sheer confidence in their songs manages to catch the attention of those at the front of the crowd and they start to move along and pay attention to the 3 onstage. As their short but sweet set comes to a close singer Murrey finds himself jumping into the crowd and those who have paid attention are left looking impressed and hopeful for the rest of the night.

Next up is former Lostprophets and Nine Inch Nails drummer Ilan Rubin’s solo project ‘The New Regime’. There is no doubt in saying that the drummer-turned-front man has a lot of enthusiasm and good songs, its just originality that he is lacking. Seemingly unfazed by the lack of attention him and his band are getting, he plows his way through song after song, ignoring a quiet heckle and continuing to strut around the stage, delivering some quite unexpected guitar solos. Receiving what can only be described as polite applause, the band make their way off the stage.

After what has so far been quite a mellow night audience-wise, I am stood here wondering what kind of a response headliners Taking Back Sunday are going to receive. However, as the band explode onto the stage, it’s obviously the crowd have been waiting solely for this moment as the room booms into madness to the sound of new track ‘El Paso’. From the word go, the Long Island 5-piece own the crowd and the stage and even in this large room, make everyone feel involved. Crowd favourites ‘MakeDamnSure’ and ‘Liar (It Takes One to Know One)’ are loyally screamed back at the band as they modestly swagger around the stage, taking in the crowd involvement and feeding from it. Lazzara’s all round showmanship is brilliantly complimented by the band’s sheer energy and knowledge of their instruments. New songs ‘Faith(When I Let You Down)’ and ‘This Is All’ are met with excitement and, if possible, even more movement from the crowd. The band slow it down some for a cover of Straylight Run's 'Existentialism On Prom Night’ which is widely enjoyed by the audience before bringing the energy back up again for the crowd requested ‘Spin’. After singer Adam performs the majority of the song ‘You Got Me’ within the crowd, the band make their way offstage, and then back on again to finish the night with ‘There’s No I In Team’ and ‘Cute Without The E’. Overall, the band’s performance tonight can only be described as fantastic. Not only did they bring with them massive songs, they also brought great stage presence and an eye-catching show which left the crowd wanting more even after the band had finished their 18 song setlist.

Ellie Smith