Date: 15/02/19
Support: Hartsink, Wrthless, Northern Horizon
The North East. Full of industry, Football and music. It’s no secret that this region of the country is dependant on its influx of musicians and of late, the Think Tank, O2 Academy are the most common venues for fans of the Rock and Pop Punk communities. Some are slow starters but these days here, everyone comes down early to get the full experience of the shows.
The first band of the evening are Heartsink but there’s a twist to their set. It’s all acoustic and it’s their frontman Zac Roughton playing solo. His performance is a charming rendition of the tracks which have made the Yorkshire band what it is but acoustically, there’s just something more which makes it as charming and basic as it can be. I don’t mean to make it as if it’s a bad thing, it’s a wonderful thing and just opens the gig to so much namely, that everyone else on the night has to step up.
Wrthless do just that on their sets. They do help elevate the atmosphere to an extent but one that does get people excited for what’s to come later on the night. Not to say that it wasn’t the best performance that was given but it’s a brightly polished view of what the Scottish Pop-Punkers can do and from here they help showcase that Scotland has a lot to offer than the usual Pop-Rock which is exported from the isles.
Northern Horizon, on the other hand, are just beaming with confidence and for good reason as well. They deliver through their set, a performance that’s entertaining for everyone, especially with their news that they will be disbanding soon. It’s one that’s a shame because they have the makings of a great band. They have chemistry with each other, infectious music and a crowd who just want to see more. Nevertheless, they don’t let that fact impact the performance in any way as they storm through their set, even getting the crowd involved at certain times when they invite two members who know their track as well. Their performance is one that people won’t forget too soon, that’s for sure.
Northshore have had numerous setbacks in recent years. I think they said it’s taken them about four years to get their debut EP, ‘For What It’s Worth’ made because of numerous setbacks and a few lineup changes. But now, it’s out there upon the world and the band couldn’t be happier and for fans on the night, they had the same feeling as well. For tracks such as ‘Be Heard’ and ‘For What It’s Worth’, (the title track of the EP) they prove to be real crowd pleasers where you can feel just how long they’ve been waiting to play live. What’s more, is how well the tracks were received as a few tracks have been released as singles to tease everyone for the full product, smaller bands don’t usually get the reception they deserve when playing a release show. In this case, it couldn’t be anything but as they show just how much of a force they are to be reckoned with. What’s for sure is you’ll be hearing a lot more from Northshore in 2019 as they continue to make this their year.
Almost Anything Music 