Everything and all things musically inbetween!

Hi Kids Can’t Fly, lets start by you telling us a little bit more about yourselves for those who haven’t heard about you before? 
Robin: Basically we’re a pop punk band with a horn section, and we like to have fun! That’s about it.
 
Are you excited to be headlining the Southampton Music stage later today? 
Robin: Yes, yes we are! Takedown is probably the biggest music event in Southampton especially for our genre so to be put at the top of the local music stage is pretty cool!

Hey Joe, can you tell us a little bit more about Blitz Kids for those who don’t know about your band?
Um yep, we’re just 5 guys who are all friends we’ve been doing it for a while for like six years now. Just really playing music we love trying to do it for as long as possible until end up like really poor. It’s just feel good music really.

Hi D.E.A.D! Let’s start by you telling us a little bit about yourselves for those who don’t know about you already?
Jake Lucas: We’re pretty young this is our second show today it’s been amazing, we won a competition to get here. We’re all from pretty different backgrounds; I came from a heavy hardcore band so I should’ve been on the other stage really. These guys are from all the Isle of Wight and I’m from Southampton so I feel like the outcast all the time. It’s quite a varied music background.

Blitz Kids were never going to have it particularly easy tonight at Takedown, headling the Big Deal stage whilst people were flocking to get a good spot at Skindred’s set they were just starting off theirs. But this wasn’t going to affect this talented Crewe/Nantwich quintet, with a small but dedicated following it was clear this thirty minute set was going to be something special.

A Day Overdue are a pop-punk/rock quintet from Glasgow, Scotland signed to Only Sky Records. Over the three years they have been formed these guys have played over 100 shows across the country, been through numerous line up shuffles creating a huge dedicated fanbase along the way. Despite the line up changes it’s clear 2012 is set to be a big year for them, and single Storylines is the first step on their road to success in 2012.

Ego-Kicks are a quartet formed in April 2011, being hailed as a unique combination of Rap, Nu Metal, and Pop Punk with Electronica and Hardcore music. Being formed less than a year these guys have racked up a large tally of gigs playing up and down the county alongside acts such as Blitz Kids, Our Famous Dead and Under The Influence to name a few. We were delighted to get the chance to listen to their EP Fighting for the Weaker Side recently!

Eyes Like Knives are a four piece punk rock and roll band from Southampton / Salisbury in the UK. Formed in the summer of 2011, this quartet have fused together elements of rock ‘n’ roll, punk and also hardcore music. In the short time they’ve been a band they’ve played with established artists such as Heart in Hand, Hildamay, Polarand Brotherhood.

Florence and The Machine have gone from strength to strength in the past years, being nominated for numerous awards (and winning many along the way) whilst going from playing tiny clubs to selling out arenas on the Ceremonials tour. Being the second night of her sold out UK tour we were excited to see how the night would go….

First support act Spector in our opinion sounded very much like Hurts, and this is certainly not a bad thing. Being the first support tonight it was really nice to see the full audience participation during particular numbers, something which we haven’t seen from many other first on support acts. Single Never Fade Away had the crowd singing by the first chorus showing that this quintet are ones to watch. A very very impressive start to the night.

More known of the support acts The Horrors had been allocated a longer stage time, something which they sadly didn’t seem to deserve. I had high hopes for these guys but they just didn’t deliver sadly, it seemed as if they didn’t really want to be here performing to the sold out crowd. In our opinion they just wanted to get through the set as quickly as possible by just running through songs without stopping to interact with the crowd. It didn’t do them any favours either with the crowd almost standing still for the duration of the set, the opposite of the response unknown Spector received.

Just under three years ago Florence and The Machine had sold out Bournemouth O2 Academy, now tonight they were playing to a sold out crowd at Bournemouth’s largest venue. With a very simple stage set, accompanied only by her band and three backing singers it was clear Florence Welch intended on using her vocals to enchant the crowd, rather than visual effects. Met with a stunning instrumental introduction, the show kicked of with ‘Only If for a Night’ Florence’s flawless vocals out shone from the very start proving how all the success she’s been getting is extremely deserved. Simply stood in front of a mic matching with the art deco stage setting all eyes were on Welch, cameras flashed almost in sync with the drum beats and the audience changed from standing observing as done during The Horrors set to chanting back the lyrics like their life depended on it, swaying from side to side.

Playing a set featuring tracks from debut album Lungs along with current release Ceremonialsit showed that many of the Lungs songs performed received a much more vibrant crowd reaction. This was down to no fault of the bands own with the second album receiving significantly less publicity than the debut. Fan favourite, Dog Days Are Over saw Welchbounding across the stage without allowing her vocals to be affected in any means. This track had allowed her to get her foundations in the music world and for many was the very first song fans here tonight heard giving a phenomenal sing along and unity within the crowd. The energy felt on stage had passed through into the crowd with smiles on their faces, considering it was a Sunday night and many had work the next day they gave it all they had dancing, moving, clapping and cheering in response.

Welch was supported heavily by her ‘machine’ consisting of Isabella Summers, Rusty Bradshaw, Robert Ackroyd, Christopher Lloyd Hayden, Tom Monger and Mark Saunders. Simply on stage they were responsible at times for captivating the crowd’s attention with their awe taking performance throughout. This is another thing which sets Florence and The Machine apart from many other generic bands, the line up features a harpist, guitarist, drummer, pianist, bassist. The bands line up also allows them to appeal to a wide audience range, with tonight’s varying from young teenagers to the much older generation, showing the bands likeability.

Mid set we were provided with a twist, two short acoustic numbers Heartlines and Leave My Body. Heartlines provided four minutes of calm and crowd serenity, showing off the captivating qualities Welch’s voice has. In a large arena the acoustic would either sound spectacularly good or spectacularly bad, and it worked perfectly tonight. They’d taken one of the faster paced tracks off Ceremonials and turned into a slow serenading number, which resulted in a sea of hands being aimed towards the stage swaying in time with the beat.

Although tonight had been strong throughout, there was one song in the set which had let them down. Cover of The Source’s You’ve Got The Love, just lacked the power needed to continue the set as it had started, Welch’s vocals seemed to be weakened. The recorded version of this track had such a fast pace behind it, it just couldn’t be kept to without the vocals being put under strain whilst moving across the stage. The original in many opinions was too good to be covered to the standard expected, which was a shame considering how well the night had gone so far.

Ending with breathtaking power ballad No Light No Light, Welch gave it all she had like her life depended on it, not allow her vocals falter at any point. Playing a 16 song strong set this was the perfect finish allowing a rerun of her stunning Brits performance, the vocal range of Welch is truly phenomenal hitting each and every note with ease. Something which was really shone through was the fun all members on stage had tonight, with smiles never leaving their faces and energy not running short at any points in the fast paced set.

Leaving the stage to a roar of thunderous applause it was clear that all involved tonight had enjoyed it, however for us something was missing. Seeing the band performing three years ago in a significantly smaller venue meant that tonight it just wasn’t as intimate and near to but not perfect.

However one thing you can’t deny is that Florence Welch is one of the best British vocalists around at this time. Whilst The Machine have an endless supply of electrifying talent, which has been shown both live and on recorded albums. Unlike so many other established live acts their onstage performance relies solely on her and her band rather than a large stage display. What you see is what you get, which is something that makes Florence and The Machine such a unique act, who I thoroughly recommend you see live sooner rather than later.