As far as UK venues go, the O2 arena is right up there with the most highest honours for any aspiring band to play – if not for the capacity, then certainly the grandness of the place, and this weekend’s brace of sold out shows mark yet another landmark in the cresting pop-punk wave.
First up this evening are FUN.[2.5/5], who, for all the grandstanding and theoretical suitability for larger crowds, still have a tendency to fall a little flat. They’re not a terrible band, nor are they by any marks bad live, but the band, and vocalist Nate in particular, come off as labouring feverishly to stand out,
They’d be far more enjoyable if the music was allowed to speak for itself, rather than being drowned in bravado.
Conversely, B.O.B.[4.5/5] shows up and absolutely rips the roof of the place. Big tunes and production here are matched with fantastic showmanship from the man himself, and by the time Hayley Williams joins in for ‘Airplanes’ at the end of the set, it’s confusion for a few, but a party for the rest.
Hit single cash in opportunity aside, it’s great to see a varied line up, and it was an inspired choice.
PARAMORE [3.5] finish the night off with a show that they’ve clearly been wanting to put on for years.
Despite their best efforts, it’s a bit of a shame that the band will never really get beyond ‘Hayley and the Paramores’, and there’s plenty of reasons I can think of not to drop an acoustic ‘sofa session’ in the middle of playing to 16,000 people – but the band certainly know how to put on a show.
Paramore are a band that are a perfect example of doing the right thing at the right time, and there’s much to be said for the way they’ve gone about things. The slower songs being strung together sucked the energy away in places, but they’ve always been best when they’re at their paciest and the hits are delivered with precision.
Photos from the night
Here are some photographs taken from the gig – go to the following link to see the rest, and the photos section will also have galleries available.
Maryam Hassan’s Flickr Collection
Paramore
B.O.B.
Fun.
