Kentish Town Forum
14.10.09
The Ghost of A Thousand are more than a support act tonight. Much more. They command the stage with the confidence and sheer ability that the months of touring since their ‘New Hopes, New Demonstrations‘ record was release. With their matching outfits and full-on participation in circle pit antics, TGOAT set the bar very high indeed this evening.
This is a band that tinged their hardcore with full-on rock’n’roll and pummel the crowd into submission with their intense riffery and near-perfect propelling drumbeats. The band’s stance however is rather more anti-violent than the heavy nature of their music might suggest as they encourage the crowd to hug an high-5 each other in the culmination of a ‘wall of death’ that would usually end in carnage. The band sound beefy tonight and this is just a hint of the direction they’re moving in.
Four Year Strong sound a bit messy in comparison. Their effervescent pop-rock with an edge is bubbly and bright but does not convey the same amount of vigour or talent as TGOAT’s music does tonight. Still, it’s enjoyable enough and there seems to be plenty of people into it, singing along.
Anti-Flag‘s long-standing tradition of politically-minded punk-rock provide yet another completely different facet of musical input to the night. Songs like ‘Die For Your Government‘ emit raw punk vibe of the old school variety and provide a little contrast to the other acts featured tonight. They are nothing new, that’s for sure, but they actually sound refreshing in this context, if a little out of place.
Alexisonfire are very clearly the main event tonight. The band have gone from strength to strength with each of their four albums and their live following reflects this growth. An enthused crowd is singing their heart out as soon as Dallas opens his mouth. And new tracks are received with the very same amount of fervour as the old classics. His silky smooth vocals paired with George’s (more gravelly and gutteral than it used to be) enthused yelp satisfies the hardcore and the melodic with ease and versatility. All in all, the crowd response is uproarious and rightly so. The whole reaction is clearly fuelling the band’s performance with George bouncing around on stage like a child who consumed too many E numbers. The biggest singalong hits prove to be newie ‘Young Cardinals‘ and ‘Crisis‘-era ‘We Are The Sound‘ and ‘This Could Be Anywhere In The World‘.
The band take it further back to their roots as it passes 11pm and they show no sign of flagging. ‘Accidents‘ provides a massive woooooah singalong. Older tracks also dominate the encore as Alexis climax in a finale that proves they’re at the top of their game and worthy of every smidgen of adulation poured on them.
Winegums.