Modestep are set to dominate!
Modestep’s performance in Manchester as part of their ‘London Road’ world tour is initially quite difficult to categorise. At the beginning of the night, as Culprate is on stage dropping beats, the dancefloor resembles something of a school disco.
The tone of the night changes drastically as Modestep approach the stage – lights go way down, the crowd gets significantly louder, and a large gap appears in the centre of the room, in preparation for the carnage that Josh Modestep will inevitably demand. In a matter of seconds, the entire room was transformed from a rave to a true rock show.
Modestep tread the fine path between being a dance act that plays at parties and clubs, and being a rock band that takes over festival season. Minutes into this cold, Sunday night performance, the band clearly display that they’ve effortlessly made this line their own. With Josh’s unmatched control over this 500-strong crowd to compliment the ever-infectious electro-riffs and bouncing melodies that make up their songs, this London quartet can do whatever the hell they want.
Given that this show is part of the ‘London Road’ World tour, it’s no surprise that we were all treated to a large amount of material from this fantastic sophomore album. The sing-along anthem that is “Make You Mine” brought the crowd together in unity, 500 pairs of hands in the air and 500 pairs of lungs woah-ing back the chorus in surprising harmony. “Seams” and “Machines” get the expected response, with the latter still being sung along by contented gig-goers as they leave the venue after the show drowning in sweat.
We are of course treated to the classics from Evolution Theory too, including “Feel Good” and “Another Day,“ as well as “Show Me A Sign,” but volumes reached a whole new level of loud during “Sunlight”. The most impressive thing about Modestep’s performance is the sheer level of crowd engagement; there couldn’t have been more than 30 people at that show that weren’t actively dancing – from the people wearing Thy Art Is Murder hoodies to the 6-foot-7 60 year old man in a Prodigy shirt, to the wary parents concerned about losing their children in the pit, I’ve personally never seen a higher level of engagement, which serves as testament to Modestep’s overwhelming presence and uncanny ability to appeal to all kinds of people.
Josh’s affectionate use of the term “Manny” to refer to the city, along with his vivid memories of his experiences here is a very humbling listen, and with a brilliant live set featuring a mosh pit that quickly reset and re-opened after each and every song, this show was truly something special. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – catch Modestep live in these intimate settings as soon as you get a chance, ‘cus they’ll be selling out major venues in no time at all.
