Catfish and the Bottlemen really just came out of nowhere! I'd heard their name whispered a few times last year but recently I can't seem to go a day without reading something about them or hearing one of their songs played somewhere. Either I was really out of the loop during their rise to fame or it really was just over night success. Nonetheless, I had to go and catch a glimpse of the band causing all this commotion...
I had no idea who their support act would be and so I was pleasantly surprised when to ladies walked on stage and announced that they were in fact Scottish band - Honeyblood. Another band that has been making waves recently and now I know why - they were really good live! What is it with all of these new two piece bands and 'blood'? Unlike Royal Blood, their lead played guitar instead of bass. Each member was very talented, the lead playing the guitar effortlessly over intricate lyrics and pounding drums (the drummer was absolutely brilliant). Honeyblood reminded me a little bit of PINS actually. Although the crowd seemed somewhat unreceptive during their songs, they played a fantastic opening set.
Before Catfish and the Bottlemen came on, I looked behind me at the crowd and the place was packed out! I mean there were people squishing to get a place on the stairs at the back of the room - the joys of sold out shows! When CATB started playing it was like something completely took over the crowd. Honestly, judging by their response to Honeyblood I wouldn't even have thought that they had it in them. It was frenetic. I was completely shocked. This was only CATB's first record and the crowd already knew all of their lyrics. For such a new band to have such a strong following at this early stage is no small thing! Their lead singer had great crowd interaction. Although, I would have preferred it if he didn't introduce every single song - would've been nice to have a bit of mystery and anticipation between songs, but it's not a huge deal. The crowd was just in the palm of their hands, one crowd member even throwing them a bouquet of flowers mid-set! In terms of their actual performance, it was tight and well delivered but it didn't really feel like anything different from generic indie music these days. HOWEVER, it was a great and electric show for such a new band. They are coming up at lightning speed - I'm just glad I could catch them at such a small venue. If you haven't heard of them yet, get listening - 2015 will be a good year for them.
Overall Rating - 7.5/10
Here are some pictures from the night...
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