Boys Like Girls / Cute Is What We Aim For, Astoria 2, London
Boys Like Girls are well rehearsed but lack spontaneity and the spirit that CIWWAF and We The Kings have buckets of.
"Are you guys ready to party?" hails emo rockers We The Kings front man Travis Clark, and with that the adoring crowd take part in a race to the front. The band kick off with extreme charisma and they have everyone singing along in 5 seconds flat. Not bad for the opening support band of this double headline tour, and even though We The Kings play a short set, their set - especially closer 'Check Yes Juliet' - goes down a storm and they have the crowd pumped and ready for the rest of the show.
After a quick change over Cute Is What We Aim For set about a meet and greet with the crowd. "Allo allo allo" says lead vocalist Shaant, who literally has the room in the palm of his hands just by standing there. They begin their set with 'Newport Living', and although the sound seems to have quieted, every word and every move is still imitated by the delighted fans while the whole band put their heart and soul into the performance. After a great start the band is joined by You Me At Six front man Josh which both surprises and excites the power pop hungry crowd, only to then slow down the atmosphere with an acoustic heartbreaker. The crowd is brought back to life with 'The Curse Of Curves' and closing with 'There’s A Class For This' they leave the crowd sufficiently stuffed.
After enjoying a massive year or so in the States, including a successful stint at the 2007 Warped Tour, Boys Like Girls are exactly what you would expect from an American pop rock act on Columbia records. Even the techs are smartly dressed ready to catch or aid pitch perfect front man Martin Johnson. The band address the crowd with an arrogance that they know what they doing and while not exactly humble, it's proof that the rock stars are in the room.
Boys Like Girls start their set with a seriously hyped up crowd, an Apollo launch style backing track intro and the fantastic John Keefe smashing through his drums. The atmosphere approaches that of a stadium show and with perfect sound, the likes of 'Hero-Heroine' - whilst it might be the cheesiest song ever - have the entire crowd singing along. At some points the set gets a bit of the corny side with Martin gazing at guitarist Paul DiGiovanni whilst singing.
Overall, Boys Like Girls are well rehearsed and larger than life but lack spontaneity and the spirit that Cute Is What We Aim For and We The Kings have buckets of.
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