LIVE: A Day To Remember @ Koko, London 05/05/2013

By Chris Marshman

Tonight is A Day To Remember’s only UK headline show this year, and needless to say, it sold out pretty sharpish. Koko is absolutely rammed tonight, and it’s a special show for all involved, including Your Demise. This will be one of their last shows before their split next year, so it’s a last chance to see them tear up the stage.

This is undoubtedly one of the best shows Your Demise have ever played: they bounce around the stage with an insane amount of energy and the passion on display makes it even more of a shame that they’re coming to the end of the road. But nevertheless, it’s a glorious goodbye for those who won’t get the chance to see them again. Your Demise, you will be missed.

Next up: the main event, A Day To Remember. ADTR haven’t been on our shores for over a year, and everyone is champing at the bit to see them play live again. They burst onto the stage with new track ‘Violence (Enough Is Enough)’ and although the energy is there, the sound is a little dodgy and it’s definitely not a flawless entrance. Nevertheless, they tear into ‘2nd Sucks’ and from then on, the setlist is just incredible and their performance is fantastically energetic.

They play the best mixture of all their albums: from hits like ‘All Signs Point To Lauderdale’ to oldies like ‘Fast Forward To 2012’,possible they keep everyone happy. Tonight’s highlight is probably when they play ‘Another Song For The Weekend’, a track off ‘Homesick’ that they’ve never played in Europe before. It’s an incredible moment, and Koko has probably never seen such passionate singalongs.

After ending on ‘The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle’ and keeping the diehard ADTR fans happy, they come back on for an encore. First up is an acoustic rendition of ‘It’s Complicated’ before branching into the beautiful ‘If It Means A Lot To You’. It’s a breathtaking moment, but it’s only the calm before the storm. Last but not least are ADTR’s two biggest hits, ‘All I Want’ and ‘The Downfall Of Us All’. The room completely and utterly erupts, and it’s times like these that make you remember how bloody fantastic music is. Great work, A Day To Remember.

LAIS MW