GiggingNI.com

Rise Against

With Comply or Die;

Well, I arrived at the Spring and Airbrake around 9pm and walked straight into a packed bar. There was a mixed crowd of young and old all there to enjoy the craic and good music, which was extremely good to experience. As y,ou can tell I missed the support band, Comply or Die (thanks to work!), but I over heard bits and pieces from those who did manage to catch them and apparently they did a good job of warming the crowd up. Click here to give those guys a listen!

For some short time before the band took to the stage cheers, whistles and chants of "Rise Against! Rise Against!" echoed through the venue and the anticipation was certainly thick. When the band graced the stage with their presence, they broke out hard hitting, fast, infectious beats that penetrated the heart like a dirty big metal bar being hammered into something just as dirty and big. The energy and drive had everyone moshing along with the music and my only cooling source was the beads of sweat I obtained from a guy who was head banging in front of me. It was a little bit dirty but then again, who doesn't love a bit of filth?

The band entertained the crowd for roughly an hour and a half. Most of that time was upbeat songs like 'Collapse (Post-Amerika)' which is fast, gritty and makes you jump around and go just a wee bit mental. The song says "This is not a test, this is cardiac arrest". I totally agree. When this song kicked in I felt my teeth begin to loosen, slightly worrying, but then again I was at a punk gig and I certainly wasn't as bad as the guy who left with a busted nose. Unlucky mate, I hope you're not too damaged.

"We have some friends who are over and they are playing a gig in Auntie Annies. They are from Santa Barbara and they're called the Mad Caddies! Put your hands together for them, we spent a lot of time on the road with them so if you guys are looking for something to go to carry on with your festivities when this show lets out please go down to Auntie Annies, they go on at twelve. So lets send this song out to the Mad Caddies! This is 'Audience of One'" The song was filled to the brim with heavy guitars, aggressive drums and catchy lyrics blending it all rather nicely into a euphonic treat. Their encore consisted of five songs in total, two acoustic and three electric, which to me is pretty impressive. Their second acoustic song was 'Hero of War' which is one of my favourites. The audience seemed to be enjoying it too as they sang along through the entire song waving their arms in the air and swaying. Beautiful. The sheer emotion of the track hit me sending shivers down my body, tingling me from head to toe.

If you are a regular reader of Gigging NI you will notice I had an interview with Joe, not so long ago. When I asked how they felt about playing Belfast I got the impression that they hadn't a clue what to expect. On stage they seemed to be having a ball of a time and had only kind words to say - "This is our first time in Belfast, thank you so much for having us, we've spent the day walking around your beautiful city, and it is great here. Thanks and we hope you are enjoying yourselves as much as we are". All in all, those who were at the gig enjoyed themselves immensely and I left feeling a little bit sweaty, very nearly deaf, buzzed up and a tad broken. I'm not sure I'll be the same after that but I did have a good night out and I'll leave you with the most poignant quote of the evening. "Every corner of the world people ask about the differences. The differences in scenes, in venues, in countries, in crowds but it's not the differences we should all focus on, it's the similarities. The similarities bring us together. Music is the universal language."