Leading from The Front

Hardly akin to the Manchester Apollo, this cosy venue could have you fooled into thinking you were in your own front lounge and not in a bar, to witness this four piece Indie outfit, The Front.

After a comfortable soundcheck, babyfaced Matt kicks off the set with ‘Learn to fly’ and some sharp, abrasive vocals immediately merge fluidly with plenty of good, crispy riffs, instantly sealing this lot as a seriously dedicated bunch.

The single original material of the night, and my personal favourite, ‘Wait’, shifts the group up a gear, propelling John into overdrive. Chris appears to be settling in nicely as he churns out a bucketload of gritty bass.

Announcement of the Nirvana cover ‘Slither’, brings on the hardcore crew for a particularly vicious spot of moshtastic frolicking as the dark, brooding storm cloud that is Wayne continues to lurk in the corner, delivering rough edged, hefty chords in abundance.

Sliding effortlessly into ‘Lithium’, The Front manage to transform an already anarchic moshpit into a hotbed of frantic shenanigans, putting Chris right off his dreamlike dynamic strumming, and he’s off to seek necessary refuge behind the Amp!

Faltering slightly amongst the reigning disorder, The Front soldier bravely on into ‘My Hero’. Luckily, the chaos looks like it’s loosened the band up a bit, as Matt’s sandpaper vocals bode neatly with the rest of these industrial noisters, creating a good, tight, penultimate set.

Sticking themselves in the ‘Indie’ bracket does The Front no favours, as their music capacity is far broader than this.

A talented and versatile group of lads, these guys are a serious, dedicated bunch, frighteningly melodically mature with ‘me-thinks’ far to go.