Home Gigs Gig Review : Rise Against : The Telegraph Building Belfast

Gig Review : Rise Against : The Telegraph Building Belfast

9 min read
0
0
1,785

Review by Catherine McCauley

There was a great atmosphere approaching the Belfast Telegraph building tonight despite the chill in the air. Everyone appeared revved up for the night ahead to see the Chicago Punk band Rise Against at their first gig in Belfast since 2009 at The Spring and Airbrake.

First on stage at 7.30pm was Spiritual Cramp an American Rock Band formed in San Francisco California in 2017.

This energetic band creates a fusion of new wave, classic punk, reggae and alternative rock.  I wasn’t sure what to expect of the band considered part of the California Coast hard-core scene on hearing the backing tracks and synth sounds which commenced their set.

The band exploded with a chaotic energy, a series of concise and catchy tunes which had the beginnings of tonight’s crowd enticed by their antics on stage and the fusion of the music genres.

As the venue began to fill up nicely L.S. Dunes burst onto the stage. A super group from Chicago formed during the Pandemic consists of vocalist Anthony Green of Circa Survive, Frank Lero guitarist of My Chemical Romance, guitarist Travis Stever of Coheed and Cumbria, and bassist Tim Payne and Drummer Tucker Rule of the band Thursday.

L.S. Dunes are a Post-hardcore emo punk rock band. Their energy is contagious and they have the crowd eating out of their hands with a series of riff heavy anthems.

Throughout their set Green quips about Spiritual Cramps commenting on the lack of energy in the crowd, disputing this opinion and telling the crowd how great they are encouraging the frenzy at the front of the crowd.

He bounds about the stage swinging his microphone whilst his band mates captivate the crowd with supercharged punk energy.

Green announces they will play their track ‘Violet’ off their new album of the same name. The crowd are enthralled by the ferocity of Greens vocals and the melodic layers of the guitars, bass and drums of the new track.

L.S. Dunes certainly have the eager Telegraph crowd warmed up for the headliners.

Everyone eagerly awaits the arrival of the main act and there is a great buzz in the Telegraph Building. Rise Against, the punk band hailing from Chicago kicked off their headlining tour in Dublin last night following a Tour of Australia with Blink 182 in 2024.

The band burst into ‘Satellite’ which have the crowd enthralled from the opening note. Vocalist Tim McIlrath unleashes a mega phone whilst chanting out the songs chorus “That’s’ why we won’t back down we won’t run and hide” which has the audience energetically chanting along with conviction.

Tracks “Injection” and “Worth Dying For” continue to capture our undivided attention. The crowd energised by the bands contagious energy and engagement are hungry for more.  Despite the size of the venue and the eye catching lights and plumes of smoke Rise Against’s charm and genuine accolades make the gig feel intimate.

Rise Against are renowned for their social commentary on political injustice, animal rights humanitarianism and environmentalism.  

However, Tim McIlrath and the lads perform with such endearing charm that from the first song the audience is mesmerised not only by the lyrics but by the bands warm and inviting presence on stage. Guitarist Zach Blair commands the crowd, arms out stretched and clapping in unison along to the catchy number. Blair continues to welcome the crowd to clap along unified with the music throughout the set.  

McIlrath reflects with the concert goers on how long it’s been since they last played in the city and his experience of living in Chicago especially during the colder periods and compares this to the weather in Belfast.

The stage empties the lights go down and McIlrath performs a beautiful acoustic set comprising of “People Live here” and “Swing Life Away”. I notice people using the torches on their phones and couples swaying along soaking up the atmosphere with devotion. Rise Against can deliver catchy hooks, aggressive sounds and rapid tempos and then switch to beautiful and sentimental melodies which is indicative to how versatile they are as a band.

The band then reappeared and we were treated to the single “Nod” from the new album which is due out in June, which had the crowd returning to chanting along with the catchy anthem “Just nod if you understand me”. Rise Against clearly have a solid fan base in Northern Ireland as the audience happily sing along to track after track.

The band conclude the night with “Nowhere generation”, “Six Ways” and the mighty “Savior”. Tonight’s gig was something special and clear evidence of how influential Rise Against remain as a band using their Punk platform to sing about issues which remain relevant in today’s society.

As the fans decanted the Belfast Telegraph there was an air of solidarity amongst us as we shared the bands passionate beliefs through their enigmatic performance. What an experience!

Photography by MPM

Load More Related Articles
Load More By admin
Load More In Gigs
Comments are closed.

Check Also

L.A. GUNS: After 40 Years L.A. Guns Are Still Grinding With A New Album, ‘Leopard Skin,’ Out April 4

It was almost 40 years ago that L.A. Guns established themselves as the undisputed sleaze …