{"id":72365,"date":"2018-11-09T13:00:35","date_gmt":"2018-11-09T13:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=72365"},"modified":"2018-11-08T19:52:38","modified_gmt":"2018-11-08T19:52:38","slug":"live-review-anti-flag-cancer-bats-and-worriers-manchester-academy-2-manchester-04-11-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/live-review-anti-flag-cancer-bats-and-worriers-manchester-academy-2-manchester-04-11-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Live Review: Anti-Flag, Cancer Bats and Worriers \u2013 Manchester Academy 2, Manchester – 04\/11\/2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AntiFlag\"Anti-Flag<\/strong> have been making a nuisance of themselves since 1988 and with a wealth of material under their belt, they\u2019ve brought their brand of punk rock anarchy to the UK with a couple of heavy-hitting bands in support.<\/p>\n

Brooklyn\u2019s Worriers <\/strong>(3\/5) are bolstered by Em Foster from Nervus on second guitar. It\u2019s a solid performance, which might have come over better if anyone could have heard them properly. The sound system is doing no one any favours tonight, and Lauren Denitzio\u2019s voice often gets lost. Hence the crowd is pretty unresponsive, which is a shame as the band work hard. On some songs, their punky style really flies, but others leave you wishing they had as much fire as their mid-set speeches. (3\/5)<\/p>\n

After playing a string of tiny hardcore shows to promote their new record, Cancer Bats<\/strong> (4\/5) bring a storm of energetic riffs to the stage. Yet, to begin with, it\u2019s wasted. Maybe it\u2019s the rubbish sound mix, but the packed room just isn\u2019t into it. Four songs in, when even the crushing breakdown on \u2018R.A.T.S.\u2019<\/em> doesn\u2019t stir more than a tapping foot, vocalist Liam Cormier takes the crowd to task. Oozing charisma, he\u2019s warm and friendly, but when he says “You\u2019re tired, I\u2019m tired\u2026”<\/em>\u00a0he\u2019s blatantly lying (energy crackles from him as he leaps around the stage). However, the pep talk works. Subsequent song \u2018Hail Destroyer\u2019<\/em> opens up a massive pit. The whole room nods along to a crushing rendition of \u2018Lucifer\u2019s Rocking Chair<\/em>\u2019 while \u2018Trust No One<\/em>\u2019 and an untouchable airing of \u2018Bastard\u2019s Waltz<\/em>\u2019\u00a0 finally receive the response the band has worked so hard for.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re going to take the stage after such a savage display, you\u2019d better be damn sure of yourself. Anti-Flag <\/strong>(4\/5)\u00a0certainly have the experience and the songs, but half the crowd has left by the time they arrive on stage. The remainders are in for a real treat, as both Justin Sane and Chris Barker have a tonne of stage presence and boundless energy. They play with a huge American flag as a backdrop and their incisive bouncy punk has never seemed so relevant, as they\u2019re keen to point out during their frequent calls to arms.\u00a0 You can\u2019t escape their political rhetoric; it\u2019s just a shame they string together defiance into limp near-meaningless ramblings. Luckily, their songs work brilliantly.<\/p>\n

Clearly, the set has been designed with the biggest choruses in mind and Barker delights in getting the crowd to sing back his lines. Every song has a little trick to keep people entertained, be it the pauses in \u2018Turncoat\u2019<\/em> or the solo on \u2018Broken Bones<\/em>\u2019. Newer songs sit comfortably beside numerous cuts from 2006\u2019s \u2018For Blood and Empire\u2019, <\/em>which provide the best response. \u2018The Press Corpse<\/em>\u2019 is amazingly slick and even a fairly ropey rendition of \u20181 Trillion Dollar$<\/em>\u2019 prompts a sing-a-long. This short blip is quickly swept away by \u2018This is the End (For You My Friend)<\/em>\u2019. Played like this, it belongs in an arena. Finally, on \u2018Brandenburg Gate<\/em>\u2019, they drag the drumkit into the crowd for a huge finale.<\/p>\n

4\/5<\/p>\n

Words by Ian Kenworthy (@WhisperingSand<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anti-Flag, Cancer Bats and Worriers recently brought some punk rock anarchy to the UK.<\/p>\n

Here’s what AH’s Ian Kenworthy witnessed in Manchester.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":72463,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[555,4072,15621,5881,1233,16200,2645],"class_list":["post-72365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-live-reviews","tag-anti-flag","tag-cancer-bats","tag-ian-kenworthy","tag-live-reviews","tag-manchester","tag-manchester-academy-2","tag-worriers"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nLive Review: Anti-Flag, Cancer Bats and Worriers \u2013 Manchester Academy 2, Manchester - 04\/11\/2018 - Already Heard Staging<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Anti-Flag, Cancer Bats and Worriers recently brought some punk rock anarchy to the UK. 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