| There's no such thing as an unsatisfied YOU ME AT SIX fan... |
| Written by Sarah Mudgway |
| Wednesday, 22 September 2010 23:44 |
 Before they took to the stage at The Studio, I was already impressed with YOU ME AT SIX. It wasn’t from watching their insane performance to 50,000 fans at Reading Festival, and it wasn’t their catchy second album ‘Hold Me Down’... it was their choice of pre-set music. New Found Glory, Paramore, Set Your Goals - a pop-punk fan girl like myself (hey, I’m not ashamed to admit it) couldn’t ask for more, but more is what we got. You Me At Six have been touring non-stop throughout 2010 and the practice showed throughout their blistering 45 minute set in Auckland. With an average age of 20 years old, it would be easy to assume their brand of pop-rock would be performed decently, but not exceptionally... but the British boys proved any skeptics wrong, delivering an energetic mix of old and new, proving that age knows no limits.  Opening their set with ‘The Consequence’ before launching straight into fan-favourite ‘Kiss And Tell’ from deluxe edition of their 2008 debut album ‘Take Off Your Colours’ - the impressive level of love the audience had for the band was obvious from the get-go. While You Me At Six had only recently attained New Zealand mainstream media’s attention, when the band launched into ‘Safer To Hate Her’ followed by ‘Finders Keepers’, the volume of the crowd's sing-a-longs never waivered, and neither did their endless enthusiasm.  ‘Jealous Minds Think Alike’ and ‘Playing The Blame Game’ followed, the later of which had the entire bottom floor of The Studio up on their feet jumping on vocalist Josh Franceschi’s commands, resulting in an endless and infectious smile across not only Franceschi's but the entire band's faces. Twitter followers of the band will have followed their desperation to play in New Zealand, and the glowing smiles across the boys faces suggested that the wait was worth it.  ‘Trophy Eyes’ saw the first, and only circle pit of the evening, which soon turned into a jumping dance party with sing-a-longs loud enough to drown out Franceschi to current single ‘Stay With Me’. ‘Liquid Confidence’ continued the sing-a-longs, also showcasing the raw vocal ability and strength behind Franceschi’s voice.  A paramedic friendly version of the Wall Of Death occurred midway through ‘If I Were In Your Shoes’ in which You Me At Six got the audience to part down the middle and moonwalk towards each other. It was this light-hearted humour which really connected the band to their audience, and kept the entire evening upbeat and fun. Ending with ‘Save It For The Bedroom’ followed by ‘Underdog’, You Me At Six firmly cemented their place in their genre, and showcased just why the UK has been falling at their feet for the past couple of years. Here’s hoping they find a way to return this way ASAP!  |
