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REVIEW gig While She Sleeps Hometown Show @ Leadmill 29/12/15

While She Sleeps Bring 2015 To A Chaotic, Perfect End

Published by Blaine Marshall

Steel City metalcore mob While She Sleeps are a band who you may have seen live, but never actually listened to – I managed to accidentally see them 5 times in a 6 month period in 2015 (including festivals plus their support slot on Bullet For My Valentine’s extensive UK tour in October). If there’s anything I’ve learned throughout the year, it’s that While She Sleeps are very much an acquired taste.

By the time the band announced their December 29th hometown show (their first since 2012), they’d grown on me enough to get me pretty stoked. The Leadmill, located at the heart of Sheffield, turned out to be the perfect venue to host what was guaranteed to be a pretty wild night.

Excitement was high as Loz (Taylor, vocals) and co. walked on stage looking happier than any of the other times I’ve caught them this year – so high in fact, that people were bouncing before the first notes even resonated through the venue.

When the thick, dirty opening riff of “Brainwashed” was finally played, the entire venue underwent a swift transformation, becoming a workout zone with Loz as the personal trainer; whether you like it or not, the entire 900-capacity room began moving, a feature of the show which persisted until the very end. As it has done on every other occasion this year, “This Is The Six” immediately followed “Brainwashed”, and the already-exhausted crowd somehow mustered up a little more energy, and things got a little more rowdy.

Loz is on form tonight. Clearly determined to see out the year properly, he’s relentless, pushing his body and voice to the limit, while the rest of the band are equally flawless. In terms of setlist, fans were treated to equal doses of 2012’s ‘This Is The Six’ and 2015’s ‘Brainwashed’ albums, with a couple of tracks from 2010’s ‘The North Stands For Nothing’ thrown in for good measure. A single highlight of the night is difficult to identify, as the whole set was incredible – high after high – though the enormous chugging riff near the beginning of “Trophies of Violence” is a strong contender. Closely following this was “Your Evolution”, during which a very giddy Loz Taylor managed to crowdsurf all the way to the sound booth at the back of the room.

The gentle, almost soothing minute-long build-up to huge set closer “Four Walls” gave everyone a chance to catch their breath in preparation for one of their last moshes of 2015. Unsurprisingly, the words “everybody dies with a debt” being belched out by the raucous beast that is Loz set of the crowd for one final pit; the perfect closer to a fantastic performance.

As the band walk off stage “Ace Of Spades” is blasted throughout the venue as a celebration of Rock and Roll and a welcome to 2016. As everyone leaves the venue in high spirits, drowning in sweat, it’s clear as day that While She Sleeps have gifted nearly 1000 lucky individuals with the perfect gig to close out another excellent year of music.

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