Tonight is a special show in a skate shop, scheduled just before High Vis embark on a tour of Australia.
The shop has a big glass storefront window and the bands are set up just inside it, meaning that you can easily watch the bands from outside. I hear the first band but I'm not really paying any attention. I'm concentrating more as Step Beyond take to the stage, and I watch them from outside. They play hard edged old school hardcore with a Floorpunch influence. It sounds pretty dynamic from where I'm standing and I'd be interested in watching them again.
High Vis open the set with '0151' and it sparks mayhem right away with everyone piling on top of each other to sing along with Graham. Maybe it's because they're playing a venue much smaller than they've played in quite a while but there is a palpable energy running through their performance. 'Walking Wires' still has a baggy feel, but a punk potency runs through that and everything they do. 'Talk For Hours' is a glorious singalong. 'Altitude' is blistering and the chorus sees people going crazy. Even standing on the sidelines, I find myself being slammed into the wall a few times. 'Mob DLA' slows it down a touch but still has a groove that people can get down to. Graham is putting everything into his performance, and this helps to ensure that 'Trauma Bonds' is as emotionally charged as ever. 'Choose To Lose' has the same effect as lobbing a molotov cocktail into the place, as it is incendiary. It is also a very fitting end to probably the most visceral performance I've seen by the band.
High Vis *****
Step Beyond ****
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