Londons’s SSE Arena, Wembley was packed last weekend full of diehard music fans looking forward to an incredible lineup featuring Issues, Neck Deep and Don Broco. With each act have a distinctly different vibe from one another, the night was full of diverse and electric performances that brought the 12,000 seat arena to life.
American rock band Issues opened up the night with an eight-song set list that featured songs that covered all of the band’s discography. Kicking off their set with “Hooligans,” a slow ballad that opened up their 2014 release Diamond Dreams, Tyler Carter’s distinct vocals rang through the speakers and instantly caught the attention of all those in attendance. “COMA” followed next, a guitar and percussion heavy track that showcased the energy Issues are able to bring to their performance, Tyler Carter pacing around the stage while fans in the audience jumped and screamed the chorus back to the members onstage. Although it has been three years since the band last released a full-length album, Issues’ presence is still strong in the scene, something that was made clear by just how many fans in the crowd knew the words to their songs and got involved in the set. With other hard-hitting tracks included in their performance like “Hero” and “The Realest,” both off of 2016’s Headspace, Issues were able to showcase their versatility in sound, influence and vocals during their short set, putting on a performance worthy of a headlining slot. Closing out their performance with “Mad At Myself,” off of their 2014 self-titled album that is undoubtedly their most popular song to date, fans sang along to the song louder than any of the others, bringing their set to a close on a high note. Issues may not have released new music in a while, but if their performance at Wembley was any indication on what is to come from the band, it is clear that they are still a force to be reckoned with in rock music.
Since the release of their 2017 album, The Peace and The Panic, Neck Deep have been nonstop touring around the world, gaining momentum wherever they go. While the departure of bassist Fil Thorpe-Evans earlier last year, the band still managed to put on an energy-filled performance despite being short one member onstage. “Motion Sickness” opened up their set, a hard-hitting guitar heavy track that also opened up The Peace and The Panic. As soon as the first note kicked in, it was clear that there were as many fans there to see Neck Deep as there were for the headliner Don Broco, the pit full of fans seeming to break out into a frenzy once the song’s chorus kicked in. The second song in their set “Gold Steps” is where things really kicked off, crowd surfers emerging from the pit of people and soaring over the barricade, a typical scene that occurs whenever Neck Deep play any songs from their 2015 album, Life’s Not Out To Get You. Playing tracks off of their two most recent releases, Neck Deep also included their cover of “Torn,” that was featured on the charity compilation album, Songs That Saved My Life. While most people in the arena knew at least a few songs by Neck Deep, their cover of “Torn” had everyone singing along to the popular chorus, allowing for an unexpected moment during the night. Following “Torn” was “In Bloom,” a new and recent fan favourite off of The Peace and The Panic that showcased Ben Barlow’s vocal abilities as well as the band’s ability to compose and perform a song that is not all about heavy guitar and pop-punk melodies. Ending their set with “Where Do We Go When We Go,” Neck Deep put on another solid performance in their career that proved as to why they are one of the biggest names in pop punk. With a set that not only attracted new fans in The SSE Arena, their performance will also keep fans happy as the band disappears to write and record their next album later this year.
As one of their biggest headlining shows to date, Don Broco had one objective in mind last weekend – to put on an unforgettable performance for years to come. With a massive 20-song setlist, the Bedford-based band opened up their set with “Come Out to LA,” an overly energetic and catchy tune that is featured on their latest album, Technology. Vocalist Rob Damiani stormed the stage, captivating the entire crowd with his powerful and distinct vocals and charismatic energy that made it impossible to look away. Especially during “Stay Ignorant,” Damiani’s strong and crisp vocals that were displayed would have left many rock vocalists envious, his voice unlike anything else in rock music right now. Included in their set were fan-favourite songs including “Pretty,” “Superlove” and “Everybody,” all moments in the night that left the crowd singing over Damiani. The band’s performance of “Further,” off of 2016’s Automatic, allowed for a beautiful moment between the band and all those who attended that night. Stripping the song down acoustically, it was as if Don Broco had their own personal choir, Damiani holding out the microphone to allow the crowd to sing the emotional and incredibly written song, the high notes in the chorus creating harmonious echoes of voices throughout the entire arena. “Automatic” greatly displayed the musicianship of Matt Donnelly (drums), Simon Delaney (guitar) and Tom Doyle (bass), the funk influenced guitar heavy song sounding as good live as it does on the album, the catchy guitar riffs and bass line leaving everyone in the crowd bopping their heads and dancing along. Closing out the night with a three-song encore of “Half Man Half God,” “Thug Workout” and “T-Shirt Song,” the band took another moment to thank everyone for coming to the show and for supporting their band over the years, showing a great amount of humbleness for a band that was playing to over ten thousand people. Closing out the entire night with “T-Shirt Song,” the sea of fans rose their shirts in the air and swung them over their heads, sparking one of the most electrifying moments in the entire night. As the band exited the stage once the final notes were played, it was inevitably clear that those in The SSE Arena witnessed something incredibly special. As Don Broco continue to tour and get their name out there, it’s only a matter of time before they will be headlining arenas around the world.
