As I approached the Corn Exchange in Cambridge my ears were greeted by what can only be described as mania as Atreyu prepared to open the show with a few riffs which had the crowd gathering outside really wanting more.
When I finally snaked through the line and got to the door, I was greeted by hundreds of people from all walks of life waiting to get in, I was shown to my seat and prepared for the night’s entertainment.
Mic checks ensued, lights were dimmed, guitars were shredded and then the show was ready to begin.
Atreyu opened the night and I have to say their whole set was phenomenal and as they powered into fan favourite ‘Blow’, it got everybody pumped and ready for the night ahead, their set seemed to last for ever and was enjoyable from start to finish even with a giggle thrown in when Brandon broke into his rendition of “I wanna dance with somebody”. Everyone was going crazy for Atreyu by the end.
Next up was Ukrainian metal core heavyweights Jinjer, I’d never heard of them before but my mind was blown throughout by their stunning stage presence and unique vocals. Now the vocals can only be described as unsettling…in a good way though.
When Tatiana first opened her mouth we were greeted by an almost angelic voice with crisp clear vocals, then the party started and she promptly switched from an angel to what can only be described as channelling an inner demon!
I still haven’t worked out how such a small package can channel that much energy and attitude in her voice. Everyone was in awe of her stage presence and the crowd absolutely lapped it up, it was a definite crowd pleaser. Great set from start to finish.
Then we come to the main act, the one I’d been waiting for, Bullet. The actual opener, ‘Knives’, was somewhat underwhelming and one song just seemed to fade into another with seemingly no gaps between them, which although it was enjoyable, it was a slight disappointment as their set seemed to be over and done with very quickly of unlike the supports who had a warmer connection with the crowd. The only real engagement was when Matthew called out for a few riffs to be played so they could get a pit going, circle pit ensued and they broke into their set again and by this time the crowd were going absolutely mental!
Shortly after this they closed the set with ‘Tears Don’t Fall’, they initially commenced the song by getting the crowd to participate, which was a feast for the ears to say the least and once they had the audience fully consumed, they wound it back and started the song for real.
This particular piece was fantastic and something you could actually distinguish from the other songs they performed which sort of seemed to meld together into a hardcore medley.
Tears was by far the highlight of the gig and the crowd went insane for it, shortly after the song was over, the gig was over too with Bullet just seeming to stop and that was it, there was a thank you at the end but it was a little underwhelming having only lasted for a short while compared to Jinjer and Atreyu.
The crowd, the atmosphere, heck, the whole night was absolutely electric. I personally would have liked to hear more of Bullet than we got and it would have been better if they’d played some of their classics, but it was still a rocking show nevertheless.
BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE UK HEADLINE TOUR DATES:
4th MAR – Barrowland, Glasgow
6th MAR – O2 Academy, Leeds
7th MAR – O2 Academy, Birmingham
8th MAR – O2 Guildhall, Southampton
10th MAR – Arena, Swansea
11th MAR – Roundhouse, London
