6th November 2023
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Biffy Clyro‘s Fingers Crossed Tour kicked off with a bang at Liverpool’s Mountford Hall on October 29th, having been rescheduled from April (…can’t think why?)! The trio took the opportunity to play six intimate venues, that they haven’t visited in the last decade. Due to honour their critically acclaimed A Celebration of Endings, they actually made an entire new album to celebrate on the tour, The Myth of the Happily Ever After. Originally alluded to as a collection of B-sides from A Celebration of Endings, they rewrote many of the songs throughout lockdown to make an album which I think might be their best yet.
Fingers Crossed was an apt name for the tour. This was the first gig I’ve been to alone, nay, the first gig I’ve been to. I was terrified and everything that could go wrong absolutely did. I drove to the train station and was delayed by a rogue set of road works that hadn’t been there earlier in the day – I pulled up as the train pulled away. Not one to give up, I drove 45 minutes to the next station, scrambled to get to the train I was due to connect to and found that it was delayed.
I was doomed to miss the show and what’s worse, I went to get a drink and discovered I had left without any money, after opting for a smaller handbag (which was definitely a good idea!). After calling my mum and giving her instructions on where to find my card and the details I needed, I rapidly set up my Apple Pay, got a drink and tried not to panic that I’d miss the whole thing.
I was aiming to be at uni for 7pm but didn’t end up arriving at Lime Street until 7.40. I waited for an Uber in the cold and when it arrived, the driver was listening to upbeat Columbian artist Juanes. When we promptly pulled up to a massive line of people queuing and I wasn’t the only one outside, I was pretty relieved!
Biffy’s chosen opener, grime-punk duo Bob Vylan, consists of Bobby and Bobbie Vylan. As I entered, Bobby announced it was time for a meditative session. With a relatively calm manner and simple percussion, I almost believed him. Within mere seconds, there was a cacophony of sound and he was head banging like no-one’s business. I was unprepared.
As he launched into I Heard You Want Your Country Back (HA, SHUT THE FUCK UP) it was clear where the punk anarchy overlapped with the grime tone. He then stated, “kill the fucking Queen, she killed Diana” and made a couple of dedications, one to people who booed him at the first statement, “this one is a little motto we like to live by and we’d like to dedicate it to the loud-mouthed drunkard over there somewhere, it’s appropriately titled, Chat Shit, Get Banged.” and a second dedication to “a special group of people, that group of people is the London Met Police and every other racist fucking piggy there is, ’cause the only good pig is a dead pig.”
Looking around the room, it was fair to say they did their job of setting the crowd up for Biffy Clyro – whether people who were emboldened, horrified or, like me, just bewildered.
The lights went dim and anticipation soared through the crowd as the spacey opener DumDum began. A song which serves as the beginning of The Myth of Happily Ever After, it lays the foundation for letting go, promising, “this is how we fuck it from the start”. Everyone was motionless and just stood taking it in.
A Hunger In Your Haunt is one of my favourite tracks from the album and as I was very much present in the mosh pit, I let go and gave in to the movement of other people. Unbridled by any feelings of self-consciousness, as I went by myself, it’s safe to say I’ve never felt so taken in by an atmosphere before.
During Denier, people jostled me endlessly as they ‘broke their rules’ and during Separate Missions‘ weird, offbeat electro melody, I took the opportunity to skirt to the sides of the crowd, away from the girl who had poured more beer over me than she’d drunk and to somewhere which felt a tad safer for a girl on their own, who is just over 5’ 4″, in a sea of very tall men whose elbows were seemingly everywhere.
This meant that I was in a perfect spot for Holy Water, which lulls you into the false sense of a ballad before taking a loud and depressing turn. At that point Simon had also removed his jacket and was topless, strumming his acoustic guitar. Not saying it made the set better but it was a plus. Taking a chill route through Errors in the History of God and Haru Urara, I had time to breathe before Unknown Male 01. My favourite of the album, it’s elegant and angelic. It speaks of companionship and symmetry before a rock crescendo kicks in and Simon lets go. His concerns about the unknown and a jumble of feelings conveyed in short bursts, it is a dark and raw exploration of what it is to be alive.
I know what I like and like what I know, so as we progressed into the band’s older content, I was happy. An acoustic God & Satan was accompanied by Simon’s bidding, “let’s hear it Liverpool” and who can refuse that accent? The crowd obliged, as he stepped back from the mic and gave them their turn at the chorus. Mountains was a staple on Kerrang! when I was a teenager and at that time, I had an entire wall in my room covered in cutouts and posters – many of which were Biffy, so I always most associate the album Only Revolutions with the band. Bubbles and Many of Horror also proved to be favourites live. As their more emotion-driven and heartfelt (and less noisy) songs, they’ve always been contenders for the crown.
The winner for me was Space from A Celebration of Endings. Unsurprising, as it was the song I listened to most throughout the year according to Spotify. Simultaneously the most and least Biffy song, it is a sincere look at relationships and soulmates. Every word of Space feels like it fits and in such an intimate venue as Mountford Hall, it felt like Simon was singing it right to me and saw it resonate in my soul.
Initially, I was hesitant about going to a gig by myself. In fact, everyone I told couldn’t believe I’d put myself out of my comfort zone that way. What I found was that it actually threw me right into my comfort zone and I’d recommend it to anyone. When you’re free to flow into the music and not concerned with trying to maintain a conversation or look after anyone else, it’s a sense of freedom like no other. After leaving, I was slightly battered, felt too much adrenaline pounding through my body and heard a buzz in my ears. I craved more and immediately got tickets to see them again in Berlin.
