Sunday 3 February 2013

We The Kings 30/01/2013 Scala, London


Firstly, I would like to mention that I think Scala is a fantastic venue and I hope to see more bands play there in the future. It is easy to get to (just outside Kings Cross station), is surrounded by shops and restaurants and is a perfect size inside. I arrived at the venue during Blitz Kids set and was a little bit disappointed with this band, I felt they struggled to get the crowd pumped and their music was not memorable for me. However the second band, Natives (whom I saw with Mayday Parade in October 2012) was the complete opposite. Immediately, they had the audience dancing and captivated. I am already a fan of their songs 'Big Plans' and 'This Island' and so I was excited to see these songs performed once again. Natives have a few unique quirks when they perform such as getting the whole crowd to get down on the floor then jump up and start dancing which is great because, when you are an opening act, crowd participation is a good way to get everyone involved and enjoying themselves even if they have never heard of you before. Natives have brilliant rock songs, talented musicians and awesome stage presence and if they continue opening for popular rock bands hopefully they will obtain the recognition they deserve.

 

With the lead singer of Natives after the show!
Scala has a dance floor and also a balcony for the audience but I held a firm position at the front in the centre surrounded by fellow buzzing teenagers with a restless desire for We The Kings to enter. Before long the lights when down, 'N****s In Paris' started playing, and the familiar ginger locks of Travis Clark were right in front of me. Their first song, 'She Takes Me High' initiated complete madness in a mosh pit as the excitement that had been brewing suddenly erupted into a frenzy of dancing, jumping and singing as the drums pulsated through the audience. We The Kings played all of their crowd pleasers including 'What You Do To Me', 'Friday Is Forever', 'Party, Fun, Love and Radio' and 'Secret Valentine'. There was no faulting Travis' vocals or the band's playing and I genuinely could not see anyone around me that did not look like they were having an amazing time. They played a cover of 'Im Yours' by Jason Mraz, which is one of my all-time favourite songs, that then escalated into one of their most well-known singles 'Heaven Can Wait'. The band also covered 'Don’t You Worry Child' by Swedish House Mafia and 'The Middle' by Jimmy Eat World. The highlight of the show for me was when Travis announced they were about to play a 'new song' that the crowd might not know, he then proceeded to play the first few chords of 'Say You Like Me' and the whole audience in unison sung the first verse of the song, this amazed the whole band and showed the power and emotion a whole crowd of people singing at the top of their voices in sync can have. The whole set was so much fun to watch as the energy onstage was imitated by the sweaty dancing on the dance floor. We The Kings ended their set with their hit 'Check Yes Juliet' and even though this was an encore, everybody still wanted more! It was an unforgettable night and We The Kings and Natives are two bands that I highly recommend you see perform.