Rock Sound Impericon Exposure Tour @ O2 Academy Islington 23/02/2013 Review

It's six o'clock on a blisteringly cold Saturday evening, and the N1 shopping centre in Islington, normally frequented by Oasis and New Look regulars, is now packed with a hundred or so hardcore kids waiting outside in the biting wind to witness the mayhem that is the Rock Sound Impericon Exposure tour. Some might argue that this is just yet another corporate sponsored tour to add to the list, but from just looking at the line-up alone, it's obvious that this is not the case. Supporting both new and old, British and International talent, this tour is one of a kind. It's no wonder that this gig sold out even with Your Demise, who headlined this exact same tour last year, playing down the road. 

Even I hadn't anticipated the popularity of this tour, and also how intent people were on getting to the show early to see openers Landscapes. So to my dismay, after rushing out of the Emirates Stadium, scoffing down my Fish and Chips and turning up at the O2 at 6:20pm when Landscapes were due to start, I only managed to catch the very last song of their set. From what I could tell, the Landscapes set was probably quite disjointed due the sheer amount of people outside in the queue like me who were desperate to see them but only catching a mere fraction of their set. But not to worry! I only have to wait a month to see them at Dead Swans last ever show, so there will be a review eventually!

And so it was left to Stray From The Path to make up for my disappointing start to the gig, and they did not fuck about. If you had come to this gig, being unaware of any of the bands, you would have thought that this band could have been the headliners judging from the response of the crowd. The last time I saw them, was in support of Every Time I Die which was only 4 months ago, and I can say that Stray From The Path have come miles since then. Songs like Damien and Negative and Violent felt like hardcore classics and the pit was (I really hate this word but I really can't think of another word that does it justice!) brutal. Though they did suffer from poor sound as the classic Stray From The Path distortion and reverb just sounded like a broken mic.

Next up was British metalcore up and comers Bury Tomorrow. With their release of The Union of Crowns, which was arguably the best British metal(core) release of 2012, they again were definitely worthy of a headline shot. Though I was amazed that Bury Tomorrow seemed to get an ever shorter set that Stray From The Path, and probably only played about half a dozen songs. this might be part of the Rock Sound/Impericon deal or that the gig had to finish early due a club night, but with a band like Bury Tomorrow, they really deserve a much longer set that that. Nonetheless, even with their severely limited time slot, they managed to play some old favourites such as Waxed Wings and ended with the already classic Royal Blood. But they unfortunately still had to miss out some set regulars like You and I. I'm sure most people were in the same mind set as me when Bury Tomorrow left the stage, they NEED to do a headline tour soon. 

If Bury Tomorrow and Stray From The Path hadn't tired you out enough yet, there was still The Ghost Inside to finish you off. Undoubtedly, 2013 is going to be The Ghost Inside's year. A couple of years ago, it would have been unthinkable that they could have sold out a venue the size of O2 academy Islington and actually out-sold Your Demise. It feels like yesterday I saw them supporting Comeback Kid at ULU to a crowd that barely surpassed a couple of hundred. Today, The Ghost Inside rival the likes of Parkway Drive on stage. And with their new release Get What You Give, which saw them push the boundaries of hardcore and metalcore and develop their sound to incorporate clean vocals to create a more melodic sound. The Ghost Inside seem to have an unbeatable combination of breakdowns, gang-vocals, clean vocals, melody and emotion. 

Exploding onto the stage with Get What You Give opener This Is What I Know About Sacrifice sets the crowd off to a vicious start with an immediate breakdown, which TGI know how to do all to well. They were not going to give us any kind of breather or warm up as TGI sustain this anarchy with the second track off Get What You Give: Outlive. Instantly, O2 Academy was seen getting ripped apart from the inside by flailing wind-milling limbs. 

Despite the success of Get What You Give, the more established track from the TGI back catalogue were not neglected, notably Provoke and Faith and Forgiveness off their debut release commanded impressive pits and Unspoken and Chrono demanded throat-wrenching gang vocals. Nonetheless, it was still TGI's new releases that were the real highlights of the night, and foretell the inevitable success that they will achieve in hardcore. Closing with the, by now, most popular TGI track, Engine 45, saw by far the biggest pit and crowd sing-a-long of the night. Out of nowhere, Jonathan Vigil launched himself over the barrier and into the crowd along with his mic, ensuing sheer chaos. The mic is immediately lost among as it's grabbed and snatched by various anonymous hands, and before you know it, the gig is over before it's even 10 o'clock!

This is without a shadow of a doubt, the most enjoyable gig of 2013 so far with quite possibly an unbeatable line-up. That being said, every band on the line-up could have done with much more time. Either doors should have opened earlier to let people get in in time for Landscapes, or club nights should not be given priority over gigs! I'd rather the latter.