LIVE REVIEW: Counterparts @ The Underworld, London
Following the postponement of THE AMITY AFFLICTION‘s UK/EU tour, COUNTERPARTS decided to still make their trek across the pond to perform for their fans over here. Having less than a month to put it all together, it’s a true testament to their love for the scene as they pulled together a pretty impressive tour in such a small timeframe.
CAULDRON, hailing from Birmingham were the first to hit the stage with a 30 minute set aiming to warm the crowd up and get them ready for JUSTICE FOR THE DAMNED and then COUNTERPARTS. Whilst the crowd was sparse to begin with, they didn’t let it faze them and launched into an energetic set that certainly got the audience moving. Whilst they might look like your standard hardcore group in shorts, baggy tees and Dad hats, they understood the crowd’s needs and created the perfect environment for the audience to go wild.
Though they didn’t speak much in between songs other than introducing each track, they did encourage people to buy their merch as they’d been given a parking fine – that’s what touring the UK is like for you. Whilst the crowd generally had fun through all of their set, they clearly ended on a crowd favourite. As soon as they announced the track Futile, a pit immediately opened and it was quickly understood why. CAULDRON certainly hit the nail on the head with that release, if they continue with bangers like that track, they’ll be headlining The Underworld themselves soon enough.
Rating: 8/10
JUSTICE FOR THE DAMNED were next up for a slightly longer set, around 40 mins, but it went by quickly as they played hit after hit. Having travelled all the way from Sydney, Australia, the band certainly didn’t come to mess around. JFTD were marginally heavier than CAULDRON but still legible and fit well with the atmosphere, mixing it up a bit with a fair amount of spoken lyrics alongside the rough vocals.
Notable tracks from their set are The House You Built Is Burning, Please Don’t Leave Me and Pain Is Power. The latter of which was dedicated to women in the UK and around the world – especially Iran. The best song from their set has to be Dragged Through The Dirt though, it’s a filthy banger that had a circle pit going around the pillar in the middle of the crowd (a sight to see).
Rating: 9/10
After being sufficiently warmed up by CAULDRON and JUSTICE FOR THE DAMNED, the crowd were unhinged from the second COUNTERPARTS took the stage to the moment they left. Though they had to downsize from the Electric Brixton to The Underworld, COUNTERPARTS were eager to impress, with singer Brendan Murphy explaining how they were just excited to be back and to “still fuck shit up” regardless of the venue.
With a 17-song setlist they played something for everyone, with older songs like The Disconnect, Witness and Compass alongside new five tracks off of their newest album A Eulogy For Those Still Here. Crowd participation will always make or break a concert, if there is a disconnect the crowd can be quite flat, but too much encouragement leads to mayhem and COUNTERPARTS almost had the latter.
Seeing two security guards anxiously watching a sea of crowd surfers, stage divers and crowd killing around a pillar was an entertaining experience. Surprisingly, the only ‘accident’ on the night was a slew of drinks being left onstage and subsequently knocked off, resulting in an ice rink of a stage. Even though towels and blue roll were brought out to try and contain the spills, singer Brendan couldn’t contain his ten-minute-tangent about putting drinks onstage.
If COUNTERPARTS ever don’t work out for whatever reason, Brendan could definitely pick up a stand-up comedy career with his insane charisma and stage presence. Hearing a crowd of 500 chanting ‘put a fucking bullet in my head’ should have been concerning but it was oddly unifying. No matter what the content is, any amount of crowd chanting or singing along will always give butterflies.
Rating: 10/10
Check out our photo gallery of the night’s action in London from Adriana Vasile Photography here:
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