Gig

Mayday Parade - Gig Review & Photo Gallery 12th October @ The Enmore Theatre, NSW

Walladmin

Heavy Metal Wordsmith

/10

Oct 13, 2017

7 min read

Mayday Parade
Enmore Theatre, Sydney NSW
12th October 2017
Supported by: This Wild Life

Let’s be real; you’ve cried to a Mayday Parade song at least once in your life. Whether it be throughout your emo phase or the soundtrack to your goldfish dying, it happened. The band undoubtedly knows how to right a heart wrenching tune and after 10 years since their arguably most heart wrenching album, the boys are back to prove it. Yes that's right folks, another anniversary tour. Years ending in 7 clearly come out with some great music.

The venue was almost at capacity, so it was no surprise that acoustic rock, duo This Wild Life, were a well received opener. Playing an array of songs from their latest album Clouded, the boys balanced banter and setlist quite well and made for a surprisingly dynamic show despite being, essentially, an acoustic set. Out of nowhere, halfway through the set, they pull out a venue shaking drum sequence that brings their performance from an 8 to a 10, something about that extra atmosphere had the crowd singing and dancing. Over It (a personal favourite) gained a particularly enthusiastic response. This was followed by an ode to dogs Puppy Love, which was prefaced with the discovery that a concerningly large fraction of the venue were cat people. I predict a headliner from these guys in the near future because it was very clear from the moment they walked off stage that the crowd definitely wants one.

The lights dim, the crowd screams, the black sheet drops and to the introduction of Jamie All Over, the band of the hour take the stage. They attack the set with 110% the moment they’re on stage, each member running laps of the stage and jumping about like mad men (Despite the sad nature of the song), setting an exciting precedent for the night to come. The same can be said for the incredible light show, which made the theatre seem like a stadium (legitimately whoever the lighting designer was needs a to work for vivid like now). The seamless transition through the energetic bangers, Black Cat and When I Get Home, You're So Dead has me convinced the venue is going to collapse. The crowd screaming back every word, jumping as high as they possibly can and opening the first pit of the night.

Frontman, Derek Sanders, stage presence is genuinely captivating, and every eye in the room follows him as he prances through fan-favourite, Jersey and angst filled hit, If You Wanted a Song Written About You, All You Had to Do Was Ask.

The placing of a keyboard in-front of Sanders signifies the change to fan favourites Miserable At Best, which are treated with the kind of welcome you’d give an old friend. Here also marks the first of many times an entire room of people shed a tear as they sing every word back with just as much passion as Sanders. A chorus rings out filled with purely the voices of the crowd and it's genuinely awe inspiring.

Walk on Water or Drown and Ocean and Atlantic followed, getting the entire room off their feet and dancing their absolute hearts out. By this point everyone is dripping with sweat, and the number of casualties that have been removed from the mosh pit due to exhaustion and heat is rising by the minute. I legitimately think I saw steam rise from the crowd.

I'd Hate To Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About was prefaced with promises of a 20 year reunion. The light show continues to be somewhat of a spectacle; the implementation of strobe lights making me feel sorry for any epileptics in the room.

The rest of the set was filled with the final songs from A Lesson In Romantics, including,Take This to Heart,Champagne's for Celebrating (I'll Have a Martini) and You Be the Anchor That Keeps My Feet on the Ground, I'll Be the Wings That Keep Your Heart in the Clouds. The band's stage presence continuing to thoroughly entertain, eliciting the same passionate response they’d been getting all night from the crowd.

The end of the album had the rest of the band leave the stage while Sanders switched to an acoustic guitar and presented a super out of the blue cover of Punk Rock Princess, which had everyone mildly confused at their choice. However this heightened the absolute madness the spread through the crowd as the first few note of Terrible Things played out. The response comparable to Miserable At Best, except no one was prepared for this so you can bet there was more crying. Special shout-out to the girl a few rows up, who I later learnt had just gone through a breakup… this one was rather rough for her.

Following this was an upbeat take on the very first track from the band Three Cheers for Five Years; immediately contrasted by the only track they played from their newest album Black Line, Keep in Mind, Transmogrification Is a New Technology. Sanders stage presence retaining the passion of even those not entirely familiar with the newer track. This is rounded off with fan-favourite Kids In Love

The encore saw the vibe transcend to a whole new level of crazy, the crowd screaming back every word of the ethereal Stay and iconic pop classic, Oh Well Oh Well. The crowd assuring they had no voice left by the end of the night.

It's clear to see the impact Mayday Parade have had on pop-culture and why they’re not going anywhere anytime soon. Each song is performed with just as much passion as it sounds recorded, coupled with the energy of every member of the band and the flawless vocals of Sanders, who tenaciously holds himself together throughout an undoubtedly taxing performance, genuinely giving his all to an adoring crowd who will remember this night for many years to come. It's a blessing to still be able to see such pure emo gold in 2017.

Review by Bree Vane, photos by Georgia Moloney.