LIVE REVIEW: The Callous Daoboys @ Rebellion, Manchester
Manchester’s underground scene thrives on chaos, and that energy was in full force the moment the doors opened for THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS‘ stop in the city in support of last year’s I Don’t Want To See You In Heaven. With support from LOVE RARELY and KNIVES, the night promised something abrasive, unpredictable and loud enough to rattle the walls and it absolutely delivered. From the first distorted notes to the final cathartic breakdown, the show felt less like a neatly packaged gig and more like a collision of noise, emotion and pure unfiltered intensity.
First up were LOVE RARELY, who wasted no time in setting the tone for the evening. Their sound leaned into jagged riffs and volatile rhythms, creating an atmosphere that felt deliberately unstable in the best way possible. The band played with a restless energy, throwing themselves into every moment as if trying to tear the stage apart piece by piece. Vocals from Courtney Levitt cut through the dense instrumentation with a raw, almost desperate edge, while the guitars oscillated between chaotic noise and sharp, punchy hooks. For an opener, they commanded the room impressively well, pulling the early crowd into their whirlwind and leaving little doubt that this was going to be a night defined by intensity.
Rating: 8/10
Next came KNIVES, who took the momentum and cranked it up several notches. Their set felt like a controlled explosion: frenetic, urgent and impossible to ignore. Blending punk ferocity with jagged alt-rock textures, the band delivered a performance that was as physical as it was sonically aggressive. The rhythm section thundered through each track while the guitars carved through the mix with gritty distortion, and the vocals, delivered by Jay Schottlander, rode that chaos with a fierce confidence. The crowd began to loosen up here, with heads nodding, bodies pushing closer to the stage, and the first real surges of movement appearing in the pit. KNIVES didn’t just warm the crowd up, they ignited it.
Rating: 7/10
By the time THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS finally took the stage, the room was primed for something explosive. Known for their genre-defying blend of mathcore, metal, and chaotic experimentation, the band delivered a set that felt like a sonic rollercoaster with no intention of slowing down. From the opening moments, their performance was relentless. Guitars spiralled between technical precision and complete sonic meltdown, drums hit with machine-like intensity, and the vocals swung wildly between searing screams and theatrical flair.
What makes THE CALLOUS DABOYS so compelling live is how unpredictably everything unfolds. Songs twisted and shifted in ways that constantly kept the audience on edge, blending crushing heaviness with moments of strange melody and unexpected groove. The band’s chemistry on stage was undeniable, each member feeding off the energy of the others while still leaving space for those bursts of unhinged individuality that make their sound so distinctive. It felt chaotic, but never sloppy; wild, but clearly deliberate.
The crowd mirrored that energy perfectly. The pit became a constant swirl of movement, with bodies colliding and arms raised in chaotic appreciation. Yet there was also an undercurrent of admiration running through it all, those quieter moments where the audience simply watched in awe at the sheer musicianship on display. Even amid the noise and disorder, the band’s technical prowess shone through.
By the end of the night, the room felt like it had been through a storm of distortion, sweat and adrenaline. LOVE RARELY sparked the chaos, KNIVES amplified it, and THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS unleashed it in its most unrestrained form. It was loud, unpredictable and gloriously overwhelming, exactly the kind of show that leaves your ears ringing and your brain still trying to process what just happened long after the final note fades.
Rating: 9/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in Manchester from Libby Percival here:
Like THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS on Facebook.