Music
The Menzingers play us their new album at London’s KOKO
Following the release of their new album, The Menzingers headed to the UK for a string of headline shows.
Earlier this year, Philly four-piece punk outfit The Menzingers released the excellent After The Party, and soon after headed to the UK for a bunch of shows with supports from The Flatliners and The Dirty Nil. We checked out the band’s headline gig at London’s KOKO last week.
There are few things that make a show as enjoyable as the perfect set of support acts before the headliners take the stage. In the case of The Menzinger’s show, they picked a pair of brilliant bands to warm up the crowd. Canadian punks The Flatliners and The Dirty Nil got the room to just the right temperature (aka boiling point) and ready for more. More dancing, more singing, more mosh-pits and more punk rock, that is.
The Menzingers kicked off their set with one of the best upbeat tracks from After The Party – setting the tone for the evening with Tellin’ Lies asking: “What are we gonna do now that our twenties are over?”. From the first track to the last, Greg, Tom, Eric and Joe wore their hearts on their sleeves and were rewarded with a devoted crowd who knew the words to every single song off a record that was only released a few weeks prior.
With fans embracing the new songs as much as the old tunes, the room suddenly became a little smaller and a little more intimate. The Menzingers did something not many bands can achieve – they took the 1,400-capacity venue and gave it the feel of a tiny bar in Philadelphia. They played songs from virtually all albums including Mexican Guitars, Irish Goodbyes, Gates and more.
The set ended with Bad Catholic, the second release off the band’s new record and an absolute banger of a track. It was filled with those signature relatable lyrics and melodically striking sound. “To everyone, you’re such a sweet church girl, but I know your secret. Bad Catholics, weren’t we, darling? Always dipping out before communion started,” the crowd chanted along.
The encore kicked off with their newest hit-single Lookers which was released last year and led the excitement for the band’s new album. Casey followed shortly after and KOKO became a party pit from the downstairs standing to the third floor balcony. The Menzingers sent us off into the night with In Remission, from their 2014 album Rented World. A track that reaffirmed just what makes the four guys from Philly stand out in a vast sea of punk rockers – heart-on-sleeve lyrics with soaring guitar riffs and a room full of fans who hang at their every word.
The band are playing a show at Brighton’s The Haunt in July and tickets are on sale Friday via our friends at Ticketweb.co.uk.
