Kerrang! Tour 2014, Manchester Academy, 17.02.14

Almost a year since they headlined the second stage at Download Festival, treating the UK audience to a set list of epic proportions, Limp Bizkit mark their return by headlining the 9th annual Kerrang! Tour. With help from Japanese electro-metallers Crossfaith, Californian power-metallers Nekrogoblikon and Nottingham speed-metallers Baby Godzilla, Limp Bizkit had all the help they could want to create a night to remember.

Upon opening the night, Baby Godzilla thought a rearranging of the stage was needed, tending to move the protruding speakers from the stage to the section in between the stage and the crowd, before using them to stand on...whilst playing. Disregarding all personal safety, they were really an excellent spectacle. You'd imagine how terrifying they'd be in a smaller venue, as they wreak havoc as much as their name would suggest.

After a much needed stage tidying, the stage was clear...for a while. Californian quintet Nekrogoblikon, introduced by charismatic mascot John Goblikon as his "favourite band", unleashed head-moving ballads with comic effect, even calling out to the Oxfordshire based 'Hobgoblin' brew to sponsor them, jokingly, of course. It was evident that by the end, Mr. Goblikon had the crowd in the palm of his bony, green hand as he told them to all raise their fists to the roof, which they did so willingly, furthermore creating one of the highlights of the set. Nekrogoblikon compliment metal and humour perfectly, creating the perfect entertainment cocktail- a live bando I could really enjoy seeing again.

Widely renown for being an exceptional live band, the impact Nekrogoblikon made + the anticipation of electro-metallers Crossfaith equals an extraordinary atmosphere even before their set began. The Japanese quintet sounded brilliant, seemingly hitting all the perfect notes. With appealing visuals and fantastic music, Crossfaith really are a perfectly aesthethic, a real entity in the genre they have so deservingly rooted themselves as the leaders of. Celebrating the birthday of guitarist Kazuki, Crossfaith were stellar at being tight and together, being phenomenal at what they do. All biased views aside, these are one of the quickest rising bands in the world, don't be surprised if you see a headline tour very soon!

Headliners Limp Bizkit then arrive a little later than planned, just over 10 minutes- nevertheless they're welcomed by a roar of cheers. Ploughing through a total of 6 cover songs (The Cowboy Song, Welcome To The Jungle, Heart-Shaped Box, Smells Like Teen Spirit, Master Of Puppets and Faith) it could be argued that a set list more Bizkit-focal would have been preferred. They did, however, play Rollin', My Generation and Hot Dog- which, judging by the audience reaction throughout, were blatant fan favourites. The set, which started late, significantly altered the way the show flowed. It turned it from a start-to-finish set into a 'play what songs we can in the time we have' kind of set, which is a shame, but the aspect of the crowd choosing what songs to play was a good idea- with the majority choosing 'Break Stuff' over 'Take a Look Around'. Had the support acts have been as unorganised as Limp Bizkit were, the concert would have been a disaster, but in fact, their brilliance compensated it. Overall, the atmosphere wasn't halted by any of it, a great atmosphere for a great night.

Lamb Of God, Manchester Academy, 19.01.14

Black clothing, beards and beer. Even before Huntress hit the stage, the 2,600 capacity venue was in full swing, with the occasional beer-cup projectile seen high above the crowd and the communial chanting to the pre-show music of AC/DC's 'Highway To Hell'. It was a vibe which was prominent throughout, and it was most certainly one everyone was a participant in, somehow or other.

Firstly, Huntress- the rising 'doom metal' Californian quintet, meeting the expectations of the crowd who were already buzzing prior to the bands introduction. Parading confidently around the stage with her knees up high led Jill Janus, proudly boasting Huntress' fine collection of head-moving anthems, especially 'I Want To Fuck You To Death' which was co-wrote by the golden god of heavy metal, Lemmy Kilmister. Nevertheless, Huntress also wanted to point out that after a seemingly successful set at Download '13, they have been asked to play again this year, at Download '14- which the crowd, that had been won over by their prowess, cheered enthusiastically. Huntress can confidently walk away from the night knowing their fanbase has grown.

Intricate death-metallers Decapitated were next, throwing speedy bass drums and exciting riffs the crowds way, resembling a Pantera/Machine Head-esque style of music that was hard not to enjoy. With dreads down to his calves, Rafał Piotrowski screamed venomously, which left the crowd chanting for more- when they weren't in the pits, that is. Needless to say, Decapitated did brilliantly in preparing the crowd for the headliners of the evening. 

Then the leaders of groove metal arrived. The almost 24 year old going-strong band claimed the stage- Chris Adler's phenomenal, envy-inducing double bass drum kit taking up a large portion, may I add.

A new face was even welcomed too among the Lamb Of God lineup, as temporary guitarist Paul Waggoner (from the band Between The Buried And Me) filled in for Mark Morton. Lead singer, Randy Blythe, stated that his abence was due to him having to be with his family, and for them, "family comes first, no questions asked". Their justification on their choice of guitarist was "he had long hair, so why not?" joked Randy, before unleashing their flawless monster of a set.

The sound inside the Academy complimented them brilliantly; emphasising Randy's superb vocal range, Chris' drumming (which has been the best I've heard in a long time) and the guitar riffs, which Paul nailed, cementing himself as an exceptional cover guitarist. The sound was only outdone by the level of energy in their performance, which forced time-outs for the frontman so he could douse his head in water to cool down, even claiming "I'm sweating more than a whore in church".

For what seems to be an exciting year for Lamb Of God with the release of their documentary 'As The Palaces Burn' which comes out on February 27, they've most certainly started the year with a bang.