It’s been 18 months since most people in the sweltering Bristol Academy last heard any live music, so to say the anticipation was high, would be a massive understatement. The task of ending that drive spell is given to Brighton based three-piece Tigercub; so, one could say that they are under an immense amount of pressure to be able to deliver the experience of a live concert in front of the masses.
The cheer greeting them on stage is louder than for any headliner you would usually hear for any headline act, such is the buzz in the room. They open with the title track of their latest album “As Blue As Indigo”, already one of the most solid rock releases of the year so far. The first minute builds with a solitary guitar and Jamie Hall’s vocals before culminating in an absolute wave of noise which is at once shiver inducing and overwhelming. Stood in a room that is just radiating heat from everywhere, the sound comes at you and gives you chills, setting off every hair on your body to stand on end. This is what we have been missing for the last year and a half.
It’s a precedent that is laid out for the rest of the set. Everything is turned up to 11 for maximum impact and it feels like a physical experience as well as an audible one. The bass on “Sleepwalker” makes you feel like every bone in your body is shaking in the best possible way. What’s refreshing to see is that you look out at the crowd and nobody is on their phones. They are all there in the moment, soaking up and enjoying everything they’ve missed for so long.
“In The Autumn Of My Years” feels like a proper grunge type throwback in the best possible way particularly during its breakdown in the later half of the track. The set is finished with “Beauty” which has a riff so dirty you cannot help but bang your head along with it. Undoubtedly they are given a rapturous applause for bringing back what people have missed for so long. You get the feeling that the crowd would be more than happy to go home now after what they have witnessed.
What’s frustrating is how short the set actually feels. Within half an hour they’ve blasted through half a dozen songs and it feels as though no time has passed at all. The fact that it feels like this is a testament to how much of an impact they have made tonight. Seven years ago, I remember seeing Tigercub supporting Royal Blood in The Globe in Cardiff and even back then they made an impression. However, over that time, they’ve managed to grow into a whole different beast that’s bigger and bolder than before. If tonight is anything to go by, the only way to go is clearly upwards.
As great as the openers were, the crowd tonight have come to see Royal Blood who after several years away have come back with their third number one record “Typhoons”. Before coming out the energetic crowd are raucously singing along to Arctic Monkeys being played over the PA and it feels like a special moment of everybody being together again for the first time in what seems like forever.
As the lights go down at 9:00pm on the dot, the cheers are deafening as the band take to the stage. From the off you can tell that this is a special moment for them and everyone in the venue tonight. Opening with the title track “Typhoons”, it just feels like you’re home again. Nobody is being conservative or shy in the crowd, they are all going for it from the get go and it is a sight to behold. Ditching the trademark bass for a regular guitar during “Boilermaker” sees the duo at their most “QOTSA” with that groove that you’ve come to expect from them. The new tracks see the group expanded with backing vocalists and a keys player which only increase the size of the sound on stage.
Two songs in and you can see the smiles on their faces almost as if they can’t believe that they are back doing this. Bassist and vocalist Mike Kerr apologises in advance if they are a little rusty, with this being the first proper show they’ve done in front of a crowd in almost two years. Any signs of lack of match fitness are nowhere to be seen as they rattle through a set that covers their entire back catalogue. “Come On Over” and “Lights Out” still sound as smooth as they always have done and anybody who says that they wouldn’t get chills listening to the outro of “I Only Lie When I Love You” is just kidding themselves.
As the lights at the back of the stage turn red, you can see the two of them building up to drop something huge and then the drums kick in for “Little Monster” which sends everyone into a frenzy. During the chorus you can barely hear the vocals on stage such is the noise from the people in the Academy. It all culminates into a glorious, extended drum solo from Ben Thatcher which feels like it could go on for ages and no one would be disappointed. Anything with added cowbell involved, instantly makes it 100 times better.
New tracks such as “Trouble’s Coming” and highlight of the record “Oblivion” fit perfectly into the set without compromising their trademark style. It feels as if it is all killer and no filler and with three incredibly solid records to pick from, the setlist feels like exactly the right blend of old and new. They finish the main set with a four-song run from their debut record of “Blood Hands”, “Loose Change”, “Ten Tonne Skeleton” and “Out Of The Black” with each one building from the previous. Everything still feels as fresh as the first time seeing them over seven years ago in smaller venues than this. With them being the arena and award-winning titans that they are now, it’s a really special opportunity to experience them in an intimate setting like this.
Kerr and Thatcher return to the stage triumphantly and soak in the atmosphere that surrounds them. They say in front of everyone how this is one of the best nights of their lives and it’s clear to see why. As the riff for “Figure It Out” plays, there isn’t a single person in the room who isn’t clapping along in the build-up. At every possible opportunity, the crowd go crazy at the drops whether it’s the bodies in the mosh pit or the others jumping in the air. The energy in the air is palpable before they merge straight into “Limbo”; probably their most “disco” track they’ve recorded so far. Whilst still sounding great, you can’t help but feel the energy has taken a slight gear shift down in comparison to the previous song. That’s not to say there aren’t people still dancing, it just feels a little more mellow than what has come previously in the night.
It doesn’t detract from what has been an incredible evening. A thousand sweated drenched revelers are still reeling from being able to experience live music again. With Tigercub blowing open the doors first thing and Royal Blood keeping the bar high throughout there isn’t a person leaving who won’t be still buzzing for hours to come. Welcome back…we’ve missed you!
