Taking Back Sunday & Alkaline Trio - Live Review

TAKING BACK SUNDAY / ALKALINE TRIO / DESTROY BOYS / O2 ACADEMY, BIRMINGHAM / 5TH MARCH 2022

Far too long it feels like we’ve gone on about how venues are killing support acts, due to an inability to get crowds into the venues on time, so it was nice for a band to actually acknowledge this once and even better that it was one of the nights double headliners Taking Back Sunday. But before we start, let’s rewind an hour. As we enter the venue the crowd is growing, ready to watch Sacramento California’s, Destroy Boys who have been given the privilege of supporting the tours double headliners Taking Back Sunday and Alkaline Trio.

Destroy Boys are exactly what is needed on this tour, an injection of youth and energy eager to hype up the crowd on a chilly, damp, Saturday night in Birmingham. It is clear that Destroy Boys are intent on taking full advantage of their place on this bill, and it wouldn’t surprise me if a few people didn’t go home humming some of their catchy pop punk tunes such as Drink or Locker Room Bully. Interestingly the more the room fills, the more Destroy Boys seem to grow in confidence, what an amazing introduction onto the UK scene, with this huge show, we will be watching Destroy Boys closely from now on… 

Taking Back Sunday walk onto stage a full fifteen minutes late, but as they announce after the first song it is with good reason. With a large number of people still trying to get in, TBS delay the start of their set in order for more people to get inside and thus not miss what they are paying for, to watch Adam Lazzara and company do what they do best. Watching TBS, is akin to watching Swan Lake with Lazzara moving around the stage with the grace and poise of a punk rock ballerina. Lazzara is a beautiful storyteller, both through the lyrics that he’s singing and the performance he gives. A lot is made of him being the king of (the mic) swing, but actually what makes Lazzara a true legend is the subtle little things. Speaking like a pastor to a riveted church crowd, Lazzara has true presence, and his southern charm wasn’t lost on us or the audience as he thanks the crowd, “You could be anywhere in the world tonight, but you’re here with us”.

Alkaline Trio are well and truly icons, it doesn’t feel like yesterday that ‘From Here to Infirmary’ was released but just to make you feel old, it was actually 21 years ago that Alkaline Trio truly made their presence known to the world. Nothing beats the experience of a sold out crowd, something that Alkaline Trio seem to be acknowledging when they tell the crowd two songs in that “this is the best show on the tour so far, and we are only two songs in.” Alkaline Trio provide everything you would expect from an experienced band, with the show acting almost as a greatest hits from across the bands back-catalogue, opening up with Private Eye which is the perfect track to introduce the band back to any crowd. 

In the last few months, every gig has felt like a change, like a little piece of normality has finally and cathartically been restored and this show was no different. If the last two years has taught us anything, it is to enjoy these truly special experiences and savour every chance we get to enjoy live music.   

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