Review: Boston Manor at The Old Fire Station, Bournemouth

The Blackpool-bred Boston Manor returned to touring the UK this autumn and this saw the band stop by Bournemouth’s Old Firestation. The band have spent a large proportion of 2019 touring, including a European stint with pop-punk legends Good Charlotte and joining A Day To Remember on part of their world tour in America. Their summer was spent playing chaotic sets at festivals like Reading & Leeds and Slam Dunk.

Despite the pouring rain and the coastal winds, fans were queuing well before doors outlining the anticipation many fans had about seeing Boston Manor finally headlining a tour in the UK again. The night was started off incredibly by the fantastic Gender Roles who most definitely made a whole bunch of new fans from this tour with Boston Manor. Modern Error, an upcoming and popular new band also supported and helped to create an energetic atmosphere in the Bournemouth venue.

Boston Manor arrived on stage to an extremely warm reception. With no hesitation, they dove head-first into the huge new single ‘Liquid’ which saw a frenzy of moshpits and crowd surfers ignite. With little to no break, the band broke straight into the single ‘Lead Feet’ from the hugely popular album Be Nothing. The first taste of vintage Boston Manor created pandemonium inside the relatively cosy venue. Frontman Henry Cox took time to ask the fans if they had by chance listened to their most recent album Welcome To The Neighbourhood before saying the next few tracks would be from the album. ‘England’s Dreaming’ continued the controlled madness that was brewing inside. ‘Funeral Party’ blew me back, despite it being a song I regularly skipped when listening to the album. The band failed to miss a single note and I found myself chanting back almost every lyric. The stream of songs from the new album continued with the absolute anthem in ‘Flowers In Your Dustbin’, a very relatable and catchy single which saw frontman Henry ascend over the barrier and be held aloft over the heads of those in the front few rows.

The band continued with ‘Digital Ghost’ before taking a brief moment after to thank the support acts for playing and stating just how much they were excited to see Gender Roles playing every night for the remainder of the tour. As guitarist Ash Wilson and bassist Dan Cunniff finish off tuning their guitars, the remarkably recognisable opening note of ‘Bad Machine’ tickled the audiences ear drums before the charming vocals of Henry Cox entered. The crushing intro of the rest of the instruments forced you into an immediate headbang. Being one of the most popular releases by the band, you could hear everybody in the venue singing the words back. We were treated to another track from their debut in ‘Burn You Up’. Despite being a big fan of the new album, it was refreshing to hear some old material from the boys. Presumably others inside The Old Fire Station agreed since the song went down an absolute treat. After being told to find somebody in the audience that you hate and stick your middle fingers up to them, Boston Manor jumped straight into 5th gear with the irresistibly catchy ‘Hate You’. In true Boston Manor style, the band closed the night with two huge tracks ‘Laika’, which saw the audience split directly down the middle for the most chaotic song of the night, and finally ‘Halo’. Henry kindly told the audience that the record crowd-surfers for one gig was like 30 and suggested that we beat that during this song alone, ultimately (to the security guards’ dismay) I’m almost certain that they smashed this record a few times over. There were limbs everywhere, it was delightful. A gig like this shows why Boston Manor are an incredible force to be reckoned with in the alternative and pop-punk scene. I honestly cannot wait to see them again.

The rest of the tour is officially sold-out, but make sure you keep an eye on their social media for future dates.