Friday, 22 February 2013

Don Broco – Birmingham Academy 2 – 20-02-13 - With Support from Mallory Knox

Well tonight was always going to be a busy one, not only are the Deftones playing in the main academy but Don Broco are playing in the Academy 2, which was originally meant to be an academy 3 gig, but due to phenomenal sales they were upgraded and then sold out again! That is amazing for a band that where playing the academy 2 as support only 6 months ago, they’ve come a long way in a short time and tonight is a chance to show just how far.  For support they’ve brought another great new British band;

Mallory Knox, are a 5 piece emo/rock band, who take their name from Juliette Lewis’s character in the film Natural Born Killers. They’ve been a band since 09 but have kicking around trying to push through for the past year and if tonight’s performance is anything to go by, they should be touring venues like this on their own in no time. The band are already on stage by the time I get into the venue, and as I push my way to the front past all the sweaty bodies, I can hear this wonderful rocky sound, the band are bustling about the small stage and all have smiles on their faces, they are performing well and the crowd are enjoying in return. They play a setlist off 7 songs; Wake Up, Beggers, Death Rattle, Resuscitate, Signal, Oceans and ending with Lighthouse. During the songs, they entertain, they rock out and they even get the crowd singing along especially in Death Rattle, in which singer Mikey Chapman, barely has to do anything, it seems that the band already have an anthem on their hands.  I really enjoyed Mallory Knox and so did the rest of the crowd, they’ve warmed the room up good and proper, ready for the main act

Don Broco, who in case you’ve missed them over the past year, are a British 4 piece from Bedford. They’ve been around for a while and have spent the past few years touring, pretty much none stop. But this tour is the first since the release of their debut album Priority’s, which has taken the rock world by storm! The stage is dark and the band emerge one by one, from the hallway at the back of the stage, they kick straight into the title track from the album (which is also the name of this tour) Priorities and singer Rob Damiani bounces onto the stage, with a camera strapped to his head, and blasts into his husky vocals which is accompanied in parts by drummer Matt Donnelly, who is doing a Phill Collins.  The room erupts and the crowd goes crazy, all bouncing and singing along, in the short time this albums been out the audience must have had it on constant repeat as they don’t skip a word throughout the whole night!

The sound can normally be a problem in the academy 2, but there’s no problems tonight, the band sound amazing, and everything hi strummed guitar thrash, every heavy beat and every funky bass rhythm is heard, and you can tell these guys know how to play their instruments well, this is apparent in the way they change styles throughout the gig, from playing a catchy rock tune one moment, to playing a thrashing metalesc song like Thug Workout the next, all without batting an eyelid. Whilst playing well, the band jump around the stage, and off the metal crates that are all lined up on the front of the stage, they even take a moment to do a synchronised dance move where they all pretend to be power walking to the front of the stage and then to the side on the spot, it looks great and the crowd love it. They also have some good banter in-between tracks with Damiani taking time to thank the crowd for their love and support, and for making tonight a sell-out, twice!  The setlist is made up off mainly the new album with singles like Actors and Hold On along with their next single Whole Truth but with the odd older non album track in the mix like Beautiful Morning and the previously mentioned Thug Workout, they end their set with their last single Fancy Dress which ends the night on a high, with the band bouncing off stage and the crowd dancing their way out the venue.

Tonight has been a great gig, with up and comers Mallory Knox, proving they’ve got allot to give and how they’ll be getting bigger and bigger in 2013 and Don Broco showing why they’ve done what MK want to do, they’re fun, they’re entertaining and they sound great all things which gets fans involved and will hopefully lead to bigger and better things. Don Broco are great live and have pretty much sold out most of this tour, but if you can get a ticket to one of their up and coming gigs, go and check them out, as they make for a great evening!

Mallory Knox 4/5

Don Broco 4.5/5

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