LIVE REVIEW: Futures, London XOYO, 10/07/2012

Futures went on their first headline tour this month and played East London’s XOYO, along with support acts The Natives and Don Broco.

Don Broco have really been making a name for themselves over the last few months and are headed for great things. Their supporting set was fantastic, and really got the crowd going and pumped for Futures. They started off with their most popular song, Priorities, which was the perfect way to begin the set and had the fans excited from the onset. They also played some old favourites (Beautiful Morning and Dreamboy), before also playing their latest track, Actors, which the fans loved. They had a great live vibe and created a pretty decent moshpit for their heavier songs.

By the time Futures came onto the stage, the crowd was already buzzing and ready for them. Lead singer, Ant West, immediately started with their album’s – The Karma Album – opening tracks: Start A Fire and Islands in the Sea. Both songs were loved by fans and had a lot of energy to them. The audience loved singing along to both really catchy songs and it was clear that the band enjoyed every minute of being on stage. Get Out followed full of energy once more, but Say My Name was a clear favourite for fans as it really got the crowd involved, singing along and dancing.

West did a great job with the atmosphere and the band had an amazing vibe on stage. The band played songs from both their new album and their first album, Holiday, and they worked well together, especially when West ended a song by gradually turning it into Lana Del Rey’s Video Games. The mixture between old and new was perfectly balanced and each song flowed on perfectly from the one before.

West’s vocals were stand out throughout the whole set. His voice sounded great whether he was rocking out to some of the heavier songs or softly singing one of the more ballad-esque songs, such as Million Lights. That song in particular sounded stunning on stage, and was very beautifully sung. Highlights of the set were Indigo and Karma Satellite. Both songs were sung with perfection and, at times, even sounded better than on the album. Karma Satellite especially was performed flawlessly by the whole band. It’s a slower song compared to the rest, but West and the band managed to capture the whole of the XOYO with the song, making it a brilliant experience to listen to.

Futures did a fantastic job during their set, and clearly made bigger fans out of their already loyal following. The band will be playing various festivals over the rest of the summer, including Relentless Boardmasters, which will particularly be an exciting experience for them. They’re a very talented band who put a lot of energy into their live shows, making them fun for themselves and for the fans.