Shockwaves NME Awards Tour – Bristol O2 Academy, 15th February 2011 (Live Review)
Wednesday, 16 February 2011
Written by Rob Sleigh
As this year’s Shockwaves NME Awards Tour nears its completion at London’s Brixton O2 Academy this weekend, what has arguably become one of the coolest events on the musical calendar makes its latest stop-off in Bristol to bring the most up-to-date selection of hot, young talent to the South West. This time around, the supercool array of music comes from Canadian electro-punk duo Crystal Castles, dubstep supergroup Magnetic Man and experimental indie-rockers Everything Everything.
As the venue doors are opened at roundabout 7pm, the moderately-sized Bristol venue already begins to show signs of filling to the point of bursting. This is probably largely due to tonight’s opening act, London’s latest group of hopefuls The Vaccines. A few months back, when these four young upstarts were still widely unknown, they were booked for the Shockwaves NME Awards Tour, who safely assumed that these would provide the perfect warm-up to an evening’s entertainment. Who knew that they would end up becoming one of the country’s most sought-after new groups by the time the tour rolled into town?
Anyway, as The Vaccines take to the stage at the bafflingly early time of 7:20, it is clear to see who much of tonight’s audience have come to see. Playing a pleasing blend of post-punk indie-pop and straightforward Ramones-esque riotous punk rock, The Vaccines’ music is the kind of sunshine-friendly, cheerful songs that will no doubt be going down only too well at this year’s summer festivals in a few months’ time. For the first few tracks, as the evening gets suitably warmed up, both band and crowd appear modestly reserved. However, as things kick-off with early single ‘Wreckin Bar (Ra Ra Ra)’ and singer Justin Young finds his rightful place away from the guitar, instead choosing to move wildly around the stage with carefree abandon, the moshpit surges forward in an appropriate frenzy. “That’s more like it,” says Justin. Quite right too.
Next up are Manchester-based four-piece Everything Everything whose appearance, kitted out in matching boiler suits, prompts the first proper cheer of the night, although this is probably more down to the band’s recent commercial success rather than their striking attire. By now, the queue that had previously been building up outside has gone down and the venue has filled up nicely. Keeping banter to a minimum, Everything Everything make the most of the space on stage, seeming to genuinely absorb themselves into the moment and basically rock out, much to the crowd’s approval. Obvious favourites ‘MY KZ, UR BF’ and ‘Photoshop Handsome’ provide the band with their biggest applause of the evening as they make way for the next act.
Croydon-based dubstep trio Magnetic Man should probably have been the odd-one-out of the tour, being a dance act among three indie/rock acts. However, judging by the throng of people cramming themselves down to the front of the O2 Academy, it appears that no one has informed the crowd of that fact. To be fair, bearing in mind the styles of music that the likes of Crystal Castles and Everything Everything play, incorporating electronic elements into their songs, it seems that this type of sound is almost certainly the way forward. Tonight’s audience definitely aren’t going to argue anyway. As Magnetic Man blare out each bone-quaking, bass-heavy dubstep tune after the next, accompanied by their onstage MC Sgt Pokes, even the most hardcore indie kids are struggling not to at least tap their feet.
Tonight’s headliners, Crystal Castles from Toronto in Canada, are deservedly one of the most well-established acts on the tour. Over the past two or three years, the duo have been building themselves a reputation as one of the most exciting live acts on the festival circuit with their weird blend of goth-like electronic music and guitar-less punk rock. Tonight though, Crystal Castles’ usually uncontrollable Alice Glass is behaving slightly more restrained following her leg injury in Japan a few weeks ago. Only slightly though. Despite the understandable lack of crowd-surfing, Alice still manages to spend much of the gig pogoing on one foot and climbing atop speakers. Crystal Castles’ deafening, shouty electro-punk gels with the blinding strobe lights to perfection, creating an altogether chaotic and insanity-inducing live show.
As the prestigious Shockwaves NME Awards approach to give the newest musical innovators their dues at the end of the month, this year’s tour completes another perfect run-up to the occasion. Once again, they’ve succeeded in bringing us not one, not two, not three, but four of the best musical favourites of the moment. Now all that’s left to discover is who is worthy of one of this year’s big prizes.
Stereoboard Rating: 9/10
The Vaccines at NME Awards Show in Cardiff:
Everything Everything at NME Awards Show in Cardiff:
Magnetic Man at NME Awards Show in Cardiff:
Crystal Castles at NME Awards Show in Cardiff:
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Anyway, as The Vaccines take to the stage at the bafflingly early time of 7:20, it is clear to see who much of tonight’s audience have come to see. Playing a pleasing blend of post-punk indie-pop and straightforward Ramones-esque riotous punk rock, The Vaccines’ music is the kind of sunshine-friendly, cheerful songs that will no doubt be going down only too well at this year’s summer festivals in a few months’ time. For the first few tracks, as the evening gets suitably warmed up, both band and crowd appear modestly reserved. However, as things kick-off with early single ‘Wreckin Bar (Ra Ra Ra)’ and singer Justin Young finds his rightful place away from the guitar, instead choosing to move wildly around the stage with carefree abandon, the moshpit surges forward in an appropriate frenzy. “That’s more like it,” says Justin. Quite right too. 
