Music
Kerrang Tour, O2 Academy, Glasgow
Jonathan Geddes
Three stars
Last year's Kerrang Tour featured a headliner in Limp Bizkit that both harked back to the past and also provided a reliable draw. This year the format went for pushing younger talent with less obvious star power, a decision that perhaps explained the Academy having its seated section roped off.
It also led to mixed musical results. After American rockers Beartooth opened the night, Bury Tomorrow handled themselves well in the second slot. In singer Dani Winter-Bates they have a powerful front man with a hearty scream, and although their metalcore was at times rather earnest, it was suitably thumping, while Winter-Bates' declarations that we should enjoy all sorts of music indicated a gooey-hearted centre beneath that aggression.
It was harder to judge the following act, Young Guns, added to the bill late on. Their set consisted of only three songs, and while it displayed knowledge of a big chorus, it simply felt like a teaser trailer rather than an actual attraction. Brevity would have been welcomed for We Are The In Crowd, the gig's nod towards pop-punk. While singer Taylor Jardine bounded around, both she and guitarist/vocalist Jordan Eckes struggled to assert their vocals over the noise, and the actual tunes were mostly as anodyne as the genre gets.
Headliners Don Broco don't seem ready to fill Academy-sized venues, but they are entertaining lads nonetheless. Their goofy streak saw a dance routine during the lively Priorities, and an impromptu badminton match prior to kick-starting a mosh pit on Thug Workout. Unashamed cheerfulness pervaded their alt rock with some pop on top, and the funky Superlove, gigantic Fire and danceable Fancy Dress possessed enough verve to off-set their duller moments.
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