‘Pain Resides’ as the end of an era ensues at Gassed Up’s final show.

With a large range of support acts we started the night out by watching Starved, who warmed up the growing audience with an excellent portrayal of a classic hardcore gig with their rave lifestyle influences clearly highlighted through the use of lighting and each member's expressiveness and aggressive nature whilst performing. As more metal fans flowed into the venue the pit was opened and the first glimpse of what was to be a great night of music and audience interaction was seen as Starved finished their set with their highest streamed song “flytrap” offering a familiarity to the fans in the audience and opening a circle pit once more and leaving us blown away and eagerly awaiting the next act.

After replenishing drinks and stepping outside for air as the venue continues to get more packed the next support act , Azazel, come on stage and blow us away with their tech twist on traditional UK Hardcore metal. The Nottingham based band being the only band on the line-up I hadn't yet heard of, impressed me with their heavy bass lines and dark guitar riffs, the lead singer ,Tristan Hill’s live vocals being comparable to legends such as Will Ramos (Lorna Shore)  and Bryan Garris (Knocked Loose) his ability to switch from low guttural growls to a perfectly executed vocal fry manufactured the perfect atmosphere for their two-stepping, circle-pitting fans.

As the final support act, Bitterwood, come on stage Rebellion is filled with eager Rap metal fans awaiting the final set of a beloved band they're greeted with the genre hopping delights of the 4 piece heavy band from Aberdeen and the atmosphere is immediately changed to a jaw dropping display of perfect pig squeals and incredible energy from the first song to the last William Whyte an excellent vocalist or ‘street poet’ as he describes himself on his Social Media and an even better hype man, this band serves as a perfect support act exciting the crowd and warming them up for what is the be the main event.

“Manchester, are you ready?” is exclaimed as the drums begin and the aggressive notes of Gassed Up’s latest release ‘Gumanji’ are played out into the excitable audience and the pit is opened for one final set. The band are perfectly portraying the classic Gassed Up gig with the high energy vocals of Dan and the incredible instrumentalist in the rest of the band. Before the second song, ’Pain Resides’ Dan makes a connection with the audience by announcing this next song is about those who suffer with depression and anxiety, this attempt to show a parallel between the band and the audience is successful and draws us in to not only the lyrics and incredible musical talent portrayed on the stage but offers a personal link between the audience who may have experienced such problems and the band. Whilst performing it is clear the vocalist is becoming teary as the reality this is their last gig inevitably sets in, he exclaims his love for the audience and even thanks people personally for their support over the bands 8 years of music. Throughout the gig the classic Metal and Grime performance from Gassed Up and their ability to sustain the audience's energy made for an excellent last gig, Dan's great vocals filled with the high emotions of the moment, the super tight drums and guitar riffs, ending with everyone on stage for one last photo and chanting “Up the Gassed!” 

Overall, this was an excellent last gig for Gassed Up and acted perfectly as a sharing of audiences between the band and their younger and newer support acts. It was an incredible display of different types of hardcore within the scene and didn't once feel lethargic or repetitive as some metal gigs can become. By taking themselves away from the UK metal scene there will be a huge loss however their imprint on rap metal within the north of the UK will always be remembered.