The air in Nottingham was charged with anticipation on Friday, November 12th, for Alexisonfire.
Fans lined up outside Rock City for hours waiting to catch the Canadian super group on the last night of their UK tour. Supported by Devonshire natives The Computers and fellow Englishmen Chickenhawk from Leeds, the tour has stormed its way around the UK before descending upon Nottingham for the last show.
Kicking off the night’s proceedings, The Computers stunned those in the crowd that had turned up to the gig early. Mixing rockabilly with a decent amount of post hardcore, The Computers are a band destined for big things. While the cacophony produced by the foursome was adrenaline fuelled and entertaining enough, it was their onstage performance that pushed The Computers to the next level.
Throwing themselves around the stage like men possessed, the energy of the performance was infectious. Much of the crowd that had first viewed the band with mild interest, transformed into cheering fans after only a few songs. Topping off the show by literally playing in the middle of the crowd, it’s safe to say The Computers are out to impress. Something they do very well.
After the body fluids had been wiped from the stage it was the turn off Leeds based metal outfit Chickenhawk to assault the steadily filling Rock City. Starting the set in slow and doom filled style Chickenhawk played their set with faultless musicianship. However the Gauntlet for high energy performance had already been thrown down by The Computers, with a crowd hoping for music to go crazy to the Leeds boys failed to capture the full attention of their audience.
Intersecting frantic metal tracks such as “Kerosene” with sludgy slow tempo songs meant the pace of Chickenhawk’s show was lacking the magic punch to the gut which The Computer managed to deliver.
As they left the stage Rock City had been entertained, but not blown away.
The anticipation that could be felt at the start of the night, had built up so much in the moments before Alexisonfire took to the stage that it threatened to spill out over the whole of Nottingham. As the lights dimmed and the venue filled to breaking point with expectant fans, the energy had turned the air electric. At one point even the stage crew were receiving cheers for simply being on stage.
When Alexisonfire finally took to the stage, not a single person in Rock City kept still. As the Canadian quintet ripped into their perfectly constructed set with first track “Young Cardinals”, the audience exploded. Screaming, cheering and crow surfing all occurred within the first few moment of the show. As the set continued with mega hits such as “Boiled Frogs” the crowd were ripped up into such frenzy that waves literally rippled through the sold out Rock City, slowing down only for a few moments to chant away to “Rough Hands”.
Although Dallas Green had been suffering from a sore throat through the tour, the entire band played a ferocity and level showmanship that can only be gained from a decade of touring. Every member put on a fantastic show, the “final show” feeling coming across strong as Alexisonfire said goodbye to the UK in fantastic style.
As the carnage continued into the bands encore, crew members and topless friends took to the stage. Throwing in a few tracks from new experimental EP “Dog’s Blood” and a fantastic rendition of “This could be anywhere in the world” Alexisonfire succeeded in shaking Rock City to its very foundations.
The party atmosphere continued as the final notes rang out and the feedback took over. As crew and band members alike threw themselves into a beer drenched crowd, it’s safe to say Alexisonfire left the country after giving Rock City one of its most memorable gigs in a long time.