LIVE REVIEW: Brotherhood Of The Lake, OBL, 26/06/12

Tonight in the trendy setting of East London’s The Old Blue Last, a mecca for Shoreditch’s hipster types, Brotherhood Of The Lake are playing a free show for anyone who will listen.

The setting is all too quiet with the dim lighting on a Tuesday night, making the crowd seem sleepy and anxious for something to wake them up from the weekday grind. The first support band Chronos make an adequate attempt to wake the docile audience but, with the monotonous drones of the guitar blending into the sleepy ambience, it’s when the screaming vocal kicks in that the crowd seem really appreciative of some noise and energy.

The atmosphere soon lifts however, as Stu from Gallows makes an appearance to stand and support Palm Reader, of who he is currently manager. It’s easy to see why he’s chosen this fine quintet, as Palm Reader are on top form tonight. With front-man Josh McKeown standing tall on stage, he stares into the audience as they seamlessly roar through songs from their EP such as What Are Friends For and The War Between The Head And The Heart filling the room with heavy rage and gleaming licks to feed any metal kids greatest delight. Now the crowd is definitely awake. With a set that would strike fear into any established Hardcore band Palm Reader are definitely powering their way into the big league.

Finally with the crowd riled up and anticipating the hyped up sounds of Brotherhood Of The Lake they have a hard set to rival after the previous bands triumphant efforts. The Plymouth hailing boys kick off with front man Robert Clark screaming lyrics, which seem bleak and terrifying in such a small intense venue. The band soar through songs such as Every Nerve Ending which is definitely a general crowd pleaser, but as songs seem to blend together its anthemic tunes such as Black Hearts that really strike a chord with the ears. An admirable job from the headliners, however it’s clear from tonight that the real band to sit up and pay attention to are Palm Reader.