Biffy Clyro Live - AECC 25/11/2010

Aberdeen had been hit with a bout of heavy snow tonight, however Biffy Clyro were here to warm up the AECC. Could they set this action on fire? Biffy are now on their 5th album which gave them the transition from academy venue band to arena band. Could they take their more intimate show and expand it to fill the AECC?

The stage tonight saw the introduction of the “ego ramp” to Biffy’s stage setup, complete with an interesting lightbulb “chandelier” atop it. Hey, if I had written The Vertigo Of Bliss I would feel deserving of an “ego ramp”... It would seem Biffy had taken their stage setup to the next level.

As the lights went down, the roar of the crowd picked up and started clapping along to the drum beat of The Captain. As Simon hit the first chord of The Captain, it all just seemed slightly anti-climatic. Now do not get me wrong, The Captain is not a bad song, it just lacks the raw energy that is always felt at the beginning of a Biffy set. This showed in the crowd too, there was not a mass of jumping and moving that is normally synonymous to a Biffy opener. Compared to openers like Glitter and Trauma and Living Is A Problem..., it just fell a bit flat.

Nevertheless, following straight into Booooom, Blast & Ruin, the gig really kicked off. Simon, James and Ben complete with touring guitarist Mike Vennart of Oceansize, crashed through this brutal three minute song. They all played with the power and determination of athletes, Biffy Clyro were showing us why they are one of the UK’s most exciting live bands. Hitting straight into the opening chords of 57 Biffy showed us they were not taking their feet off the gas anytime soon. Unfortunately some of the crowd appeared to. 16 year old girls looked around at each other muttering “is this a new song?!” They need not have worried anyway; they might manage to get a fleeting glimpse of Simon’s bulge in his tight white jeans. Or at least that is what they appeared to be there for.

Continuing through the set by marching through a handful more songs off the new album, including Bubbles and Whorses, then straight back into older material, Joy. Discovery. Invention and Liberate The Illiterate. They all sounded excellent next to each other, the distinction between old and new became somewhat hazy and it was all just perfectly executed. Well there is the distinction that parts of the crowd fell flat during older songs, but I think this has come to be expected in a crowd so big.

After playing through more songs Simon walked to the end of the “ego ramp” clutching an acoustic, at the time I thought this must be for Machines. Instead, to some surprise, Simon hit into the chords of Folding Stars. It had previously been retired from live sets. Being played with real sincerity and sentiment, it was one of those moments that choked you up slightly if you were aware of the song’s meaning. As the crowd sang along to the last line, Ben and James joined Simon on the end of the ramp.

Being a little bit observant, I noticed Ben did not appear to have an instrument with him... Cue a drum kit and keyboard rising out of the ramp. I am afraid I am struggling to find words to describe how incredible this truly was. “This is a song we haven’t played in God knows how long...” said an excited Simon launching into Diary Of Always. Music is a deeply beautiful thing, but rarely does it reach the heights of this, this was stunning. Sadly only myself and one other fan near me appeared to know the song, I hope all others surrounding know how truly lucky they were. Adding Machines to this little acoustic break, Biffy then launched back into their electric songs with Who’s Got A Match? and eventually finishing up on Many Of Horror much to the delight of a lot of the crowd.

As the crowd chanted for "one more song" there was an air of disappointment and confusion as an electronic intro kicked in, no Biffy Clyro did not trade in your beloved Mountains for an electro song, this is Glitter & Trauma. As Simon hits the distortion pedal, a couple of mosh pits broke out, complete with an entourage of topless 16 year olds lads, which was worth avoiding. These same kids continued moshing during the entirety of Justboy, why is beyond me. Finally the moment a lot of the crowd had been waiting for arrived. Simon began singing the intro to Mountains, setting the whole crowd off in cheers and a mass sing-along. As the AECC erupts into cheers at the end of Mountains Biffy walked off stage, having just wowed the Aberdeen crowd.

Tonight saw Biffy playing a career spanning set, including some of their biggest hits and some fan favourites. For those that did not know their earlier work I am sure that Biffy has wet their appetite enough tonight to make them invest in it. I can assure them it is worth it.

More shots from the gig can be found at Flares n Seagulls
For more info on Biffy Clyro visit www.biffyclyro.com

Biffy Clyro played:

The Captain
Booooom, Blast & Ruin
57
Bubbles
Born On A Horse
God And Satan
Whorses
Joy. Discovery. Invention
Liberate The Illiterate
That Golden Rule
Living Is A Problem
Shock Shock
9/15ths
Folding Stars
Diary Of Always
Machines
Who’s Got A Match
Saturday Superhouse
Know Your Quarry
There Is No Such Thing As A Jaggy Snake
Many Of Horror

Glitter And Trauma
Justboy
As Dust Dances
Mountains

RT