By: Adam Harrison (@AdamRHarrison) –
Biffy Clyro. (Photo: Adam Harrison/Aesthetic Magazine Toronto)
Anyone who has seen “Searching for Sugar Man” knows of the diversity that is spread in the arts and pop culture. Much like Sixto Rodriguez’s popularity in South America, Biffy Clyro is one of the biggest acts in Britain right now. Their latest album,Opposites, went number one on the UK charts and they’ve played in front of huge audiences in venues like Wembley Stadium and the O2 Arena. So it was a real treat to see them in such an intimate venue such as Toronto’s Opera House last night. Even the 850 capacity crowd was mostly filled with members of their cult following.
English alternative rock quintet Morning Parade, who last visited Toronto when they opened for The Smashing Pumpkins last year at the Air Canada Centre, opened the show and on this night sounded like they took a page from Placebo’s playbook, as they played a selection of songs from their self-titled debut album, including “Under The Stars”, “Us and Ourselves” and “Headlights”.
With the set times being an hour later than normal, they received a rather large and boisterous crowd, however it seemed most of the energy was in anticipation of Biffy. Morning Parade is a band with potential, but perhaps it will be with their next album that they will find a strong North American fanbase.
Last night’s show was Biffy Clyro’s third appearance in Toronto this year, after playing two shows in April, opening for Muse. The trio from Kilmarnock, Scotland entered the stage to the Sister Sledge classic “We Are Family”, all shirtless and splitting the stage in three. On the left, lead singer and guitarist, Simon Neil, on the right, bass player and vocalist, James Johnston, and in the middle was brother, drummer and vocalist, Ben Johnston. They opened their 90-minute set with the lead track from Opposites, “Different People”, which had a slow intro before exploding into utter chaos, causing the passionate fans to spill into frenzy.
Biffy’s energy on stage is unparalleled. From head banging, thrashing and jumping to even sprawling across the stage, Biffy does it all. Instrumentally, they’re fantastic too. Proven during the intro of “Living Is a Problem Because Everything Dies” which showed off some impeccable timing and synchronization. The band even fully froze for an extended pause during the last bridge of the number.
Biffy Clyro songs are incredibly unique because they are able to transition from heavy, fast-paced riffs into rhythmic powerful melodies. Some other main set highlights that grasped the most energy from the band and audience alike were Opposites’ single “Biblical” along with “Golden Rule” and “Many of Horror” from their 2009 breakthrough album,Only Revolutions. The crowd characteristically participated in every song. During “Bubbles,” they swayed to the first part of the chorus singing, “You are creating all the bubbles at night, I’m chasing round trying to pop them all the time.” Then jumping uncontrollably to the second part and shouting, “There’s a girl, there’s a girl, there’s a girl, there’s a girl, and she’s down by the river.”
At one point in the evening a group of fans had even managed to sneak backstage, one of them even managing to get on stage through a gap between two amps. “How the fuck did she fit through there?” Johnston joked after the song had finished.
The encore break queued the “Mon the Biff” chant as the fanatical supporters obviously wanted more. Biffy Clyro returned for encore, starting with “Opposites,” a slower song by Biffy’s standards. Allowing everyone to conserve energy for what was to follow. “Stingin’ Belle” came next, a pump up song by all definition. Everyone went ballistic and another fan managed to climb on stage and perform an epic stage dive before security could reach him. Lastly, the band performed “Mountains,” arguably their most successful song and one last sing-a-long for the crowd.
It’s clear why Biffy Clyro has so many followers in the UK. They are a tremendously talented and unpredictable band. Hopefully North America is just behind in discovering Biffy Clyro (like with Muse) and their story won’t require a documentary decades later to find these Sugar Men.
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Biffy Clyro
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Set-List:
1. Different People
2. That Golden Rule
3. Who’s Got a Match?
4. Sounds Like Balloons
5. Biblical
6. God & Satan
7. Glitter and Trauma
8. Bubbles
9. Spanish Radio
10. Folding Stars
11. Living Is a Problem Because Everything Dies
12. 57
13. Many of Horror
14. Modern Magic Formula
15. Black Chandelier
16. The Captain
Encore:
17. Opposite
18. Stingin’ Belle
19. Mountains
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Morning Parade
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Set-List:
1. Shake The Cage
2. Us & Ourselves
3. Broke The Mould
4. Reality Dream
5. Alienation
6. Headlights
7. Culture Vulture
8. Pure Adulterated Joy
9. Under The Stars
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