London boys The One Hundred incorporating elements of metal, hip hop, dance and electronica came out swinging. The opening act explodes the night into a flare of crunching breakdowns and intense choruses. ‘Kingsmen’ a soaring gut busting track, see’s Jacob Field’s vocal range go from grime style rap to gritty throat cutting screams. The music responding in an equally diverse way from half time enchanting grooves to bone shaking breakdowns, this intriguing mix certainly has a breath of ‘new breed’ about it, something rare. ‘Downfall’ adds a more dance/electronica edge to the band with an easy to sing along to chorus, and anthems which will be added to your favourite dance/club mixes. This track shows of the broad range of genres within the band while being familiar enough so that you wouldn’t mistake it for anyone else. Jacob’s unrelenting energy and bravery to get the crowd going turns a still room in to moving bodies, and what’s more impressive, they never once seemed out of their depth on such a big tour.I can see big things coming from this band in the near future.
Our Eastern brothers in Coldrain are up next, hailing from Japan, they bring with them a mix of rock and post hardcore with irresistible guitar solos thrown in. ‘The War Is On’shows off vocalist Masato’s effortless transition from clean to roar vocals. This shows not only how much talent he personally has but also confesses him to being somewhat of an emotional singer. The atmospheric start acts only as the eye of the storm, then erupts into a wall of sound as unyielding as a mountain. This, coupled with the vocalists refusal to accept a still crowd, means its not long until head’s are banging and bodies are jumping. ‘The Revelation’ brings a heavier edge to the band. The song styled more to aggressive vocals, this brings out more bellowing roars and much darker instrumentals. Deep breakdowns that catch you off guard, the song has a more melodic feel in the chorus with a flawless transition to clean vocals. This song certainly captures the audience’s attention more. With vocals that never missed a note and a solid backing of hard hitting rock musicianship. Its easy to see how Coldrain have been influenced by Western rock, but by adding their own hint of Japanese magic they have created a sound worthy of the biggest stages around the world.
Really needing no introduction Papa Roach coming all the way from Vacaville, CA have given themselves a reputation for some of the best live shows over the world and tonight, just like any other wasn’t going to be an exception. The lights went out, the crowd cheered these cheers getting ever louder as soon as all the members had made their way to the stage. Launching straight into ‘Face Everything And Rise’ from their most recent album’F.E.A.R’ This track see’s a more groove oriented, djent driven breakdown as its main hook. A far cry from old school Papa Roach but this is accepted by the crowd as if it were. Instantly responding with a hoard of sing alongs, and bodies in motion. Frontman Jacoby Shaddix commanding the crowd with the confidence of a seasoned pro. Getting right up into the crowds face, tagging high fives from the front row, the night was already in full throttle from the first chord strike. Moving to an older favourite ‘Getting Away With Murder’was like passing the pulse of the audience a shot of adrenaline. Musically a more sinister atmospheric song this proved to be just what the doctor ordered. Sending the crowd into a frenzied like mania. ‘Between Angels and Insects’ and ‘Blood Brothers’ seemed to only add to this wild fire. Jacoby seemingly impressed with the crowd continued his onslaught of insatiable crowd interaction, even at one point climbing to the back and standing atop a support pillar.
At the encore ‘Last Resort’ being the climax that unified old and new Papa Roach fans alike the singing was deafening, the song so enticing that even some of the stern faced security were singing the words. Crowd surfers in full flow and the mosh pits at their peak this is the kind of insanity fans are infected with, the good kind. Jacoby is one heck of a frontman his charm and prowess with a crowd means without realising they were doing everything the band needed to feed of them. While at the same time displaying rarely seen humility in such a successful band. Jerry, Tobin, and Tony provide a stunning combination of musicianship and integrity that makes for quite the live experience. After the last chord had been played the four members reunited centre stage to the passionate yells of the crowd, they took a well deserved bow and exited.
This is one of the strongest tour lineups I’ve ever seen and no doubt all 3 of these bands will move on to bigger and better things in their own ways.
Words – Marc Allum
Photography – Kayleigh Warren
