Yashin Headline Plymouth Venue!

Yashin are a post-hardcore band from Glasgow, Scotland who formed in ‘06. The band consists of 6 members; Kevin Miles (lead vocals-screamer), Harry Radford (lead vocals-singer), Lewis Millen (rhythm guitar), Andrew McShane (bass), Paul Travers (lead guitar) and David Beaton (drums). Yashin was founded by Paul and Andrew while in school with former vocalist Michael Rice. After the band released 2 EPs ‘Pay to Play’ and ‘Miles Away But Getting Closer’ in ‘08, Rice left Yashin but was quickly replaced by Kevin and Harry. After a year of the new lie up, April ‘09 saw the Glaswegian band go on a 9 date UK tour supporting Madina Lake and The Audition. In February ‘10 Yashin released their debut album ‘Put Your Hands Where I Can See Them’ and September that year they went out on their very first headline tour, which included visiting Plymouth. In early ‘11 Yashin had the opportunity to perform a set opening for American band A Day To Remember at the O₂ Academy in their hometown; Glasgow, which they quickly accepted and got a great response by critics and the audience. A couple of months later Yashin went on tour again but this time supported Florida-based band The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus during their full UK tour; sadly I missed seeing the Plymouth show due to financial reasons and tickets selling out however a friend of mine went to this and said it was absolutely amazing. June and July ‘11 were busy months for Yashin due to supporting KORN at Glasgow’s O₂ Academy, playing Slam Dunk Festival (north and south), Download Festival, a few days later playing Nova Rock Festival in Austria then to top it all off supporting the brilliant band Papa Roach on 2 of their only UK tour dates in London and Sheffield. Along with My Passion, Yashin will be supporting the awesome Black Veil Brides on their first European headline tour during the months of October and November ’11, which I’m ecstatic to announce I will be attending the Lemon Grove show in Exeter.

Embarking on their first ever UK headline tour in ‘10, I was able to catch Yashin play at the White Rabbit, Plymouth on 15/09 with support from Dead Poets (Plymouth), Seize The Day (Plymouth) and Don Broco (Bedford). Due to this show being my first time at White Rabbit, I was slightly nervous about it and I didn’t really know what to expect because I pictured it to be a dark and skanky place where everyone wore stretchers and had sleeve tattoos. I also thought the vast majority of the music played here was pure heavy metal and screaming but it really wasn’t like how I imagined it to be which surprised me a lot. At the beginning of the night I helped on Seize The Day’s merch stall-where at the time, they only had green wristbands and 1 version of stickers, with my sister and one of the guitarist’s fiancé Leona. I was pleased with the level of energy in White Rabbit because I find the more energy somewhere has the more exciting the experience becomes. So my first occurrence at White Rabbit was amazing compared to my sisters’ who nearly started a fight with someone (shame I wasn’t there to witness this) because I was going mostly to support Seize The Day but I’d heard of Don Broco and Yashin a couple of months prior to the 15/09 gig so I was eager to see them in action.

Even though White Rabbit is just a small unit building beside Bretonside bus station and under a busy road, when you’re inside the venue you cannot tell where you really are until you go outside and realise that you’re still in Plymouth because the atmosphere everyone provides is great and you feel that White Rabbit is in a completely different place, which for me makes it special.  When the first support act; Dead Poets, were starting I had a quick look at what was going by standing at the back but there was no need to do this because they hardly had any support on this particular night but I continued watching them. Due to the small crowd gather there wasn’t a good reaction from them and in all honesty I didn’t like them therefore I kind of switched off when they were playing their set. Next up was Seize The Day. I was really excited about this because I know them and I know they’re good but I’ve never seen them live before so I ran to the side of the stage (I didn’t want to be trampled on) just before their intro played; JLS-everybody in love then into the breakdown. The reaction from the crowd was great which you could tell by looking at the bands’ faces and it was great to see them live and doing what they love together as friends. Seize The Day’s set really impressed me. The third support act comes from Bedford, yes it’s Don Broco and again it was the first time I saw them too but I listened to loads of their songs e.g. Thug Workout, on YouTube prior to the gig. This band is full of energy and could have easily been bouncing off the stage at some point. I downloaded all their pre-Big Fat Smile songs and listened to them repeatedly. Don Broco had an amazing reaction from the Plymouth crowd, which was amazing for them to see.

It was time for the headliners. Yashin entered the stage to their official intro then blasted out their first song ‘The First Rule Of Fight Club’ which everyone went mental for. The setlist for Yashin’s gig is as follows:

1. The First Rule Of Fight Club
2. Get Loose
3. Heroes (Alive In Us Yet)
4. Down, But Homeward Bound
5. My Hyde
6. So We’re Named After Saints
7. Friends In High Places
8. Dirty Slut
9. Everytime

I was supporting Yashin from the side of the stage which was actually a pretty good view in all fairness and I was actually enjoying myself even though the venue was so stuffy due to the door near the stage not being open throughout the whole night of Yashin, Don Broco, Seize The Day and Dead Poets. The mosh pit was full of red-faced fans who were trying to get the best view of the Glaswegian band and they were all screaming their names and singing out their hearts along with Kevin and Harry during every single song. At points, Harry went into the mosh pit and nobody could see him surrounded by all Yashin’s fans but everyone knew he was fine because he was still singing solidly. During the penultimate song; ‘Dirty Slut’, Harry ordered everyone to crouch down then as soon as Kevin started screaming near the end of the song, they all had to jump up and start moshing with each other. The finale of the gig was their cover of Britney Spears’ song ‘Everytime’ which in my opinion is incredible and so much better then the original. It was full of energy and from the looks of it Yashin must have thought that Plymouth is great city to play in. Once the gig was over, I was thrilled that I came because it was at the time one of my best nights so far and I wanted to meet Yashin personally and tell them they where great, unfortunately they were really busy with packing up etc that they didn’t come out and see their fans which in my opinion they should have but they needed to leave straight away but I can’t not say I was disappointed that I wasn’t able to say hello, but oh well life goes. However, I did meet Rob Damiani from Don Broco, which made my night to be honest.

Overall, the night was fantastic and totally made me want to come back to White Rabbit. Seize The Day were very good so much better than Dead Poets, Don Broco were brilliant but funny at the same time and Yashin, well I don’t know what to say they were awesome and now I really cant wait until the BVB gig to see them again at The Lemon Grove on 07/10/11!

Visit Yashin's Facebook page for details of any upcoming gigs and songs: http://www.facebook.com/theyashin

Don Broco in Plymouth-February 2011

On the 26th February 2011 Don Broco headlined at White Rabbit in Plymouth ahead of their UK tour. They played from 18:40-19:00 that night and Rob (vocals), Matt (drums and vocals), Luke (bass and vocals) and Simon (guitar and vocals) did an incredible job of putting on the show that lasted the forced 20 minutes of stage time. I found out that the Plymouth-based venue had double booked on this particular night and when they realised, it was too late to sort out the massive cock up that was made. This double booking involved Don Broco (plus support) and Your Demise all performing on the same night at the same venue. A reason why I think White Rabbit didn't rearrange another date for Your Demise was because they were shooting their music video for 'Life of Luxury' therefore if people found out where it was shot then the venue will get publicity which is a good idea in all fairness. However, due to this happening Don Broco only had 20 minutes to do what they do best; entertain their fans with great hooks and memorable lyrics. In my opinion they should've had a longer slot to perform because it was their headlining show before they started their official tour after all.

Before the gig started I was pumped and ready to go watch a band that I absolutely love and who I haven't seen for 5 months. Everyone was feeling the exact same and couldn't wait for the night ahead. The atmosphere inside the venue was amazing which gave the Bedford-born band a majorly positive vibe that came from the Plymouth crowd. If I'm totally honest my only attraction that night had to be Don Broco all the way because they can really put on a great show and I missed them so much. I paid £10 to gain entry to the venue that showcased 5 bands but I only watched Don Broco then left as soon as they finished because (this may sound harsh) I wasn't interested in the support bands or Your Demise (plus be in their video) because I never heard of them before and Your Demise aren't entirely my cup of tea. Actions like this prove that I'm a truly dedicated fan towards Don Broco.

Going to this gig was one of the best ideas I had and followed through with because I had such a great night. Although I felt rough due to lack of sleep and suffering from a cold, that didn't stop me from supporting one of my favourite British bands when they were in my hometown. Don Broco owned that stage at White Rabbit for the short amount of time they had and majorly killed it because it was a hot, sweaty and fast-paced set Donny B produced proving that this night was a huge success as always because they put on a fantastic show with a great set list and everytime livening up the crowd; even with the double booking screw up.

The set list included pre-big fat smile songs and post-big fat smile songs: 

1. Thug Workout 
2. Beautiful Morning 
3. Living The Dream 
4. Top Of The World 
5. Do What We Do
6. Dreamboy

To start off their set Don Broco performed 'Thug Workout' which went down like a thunder storm as always with the crowd who were already in the pit from the very first hook showing their love and support to the band. The second song performed was 'Beautiful Morning' which had everyone singing along with Rob (including me on the side lines) and proving that this night was amazing. During 'Do What We Do' Rob told everyone who was in the mosh pit to get into pairs and climb on each others shoulders in order to fight each other in a more fun way. I was stood halfway between the side of the stage and the pit so I was thinking 'okay I'm going to move just in case something happens' and good job I did too because if I hadn't moved half a meter or so back I would have been bundled to the floor by a pair that collapsed right in front of me.

Once Don Broco finished their set I wanted to meet them and ask if they could all sign my 'Big Fat Smile' album (a bit lame I know) but that never happened because I had to go straight away and the band would have been flocked with some many fans (mostly female fans) for photos and merch, however I did get something that I wasn't expecting at all. When I started walking from the stage, Rob and this random guy shook hands right in front of me and trying to be smart (and using my shortness) I walked underneath the handshake but it didn't go completely to plan as it resulted in me getting hit on the head by Rob-good times. When outside the venue I actually missed watching Don Broco a lot and listening to their music live so when I got home I played all their songs back-to-back, uploaded all the photos and videos I took when they were on stage on to facebook and had a scan through them to see which ones were the best.

A final note Don Broco are just 4 lively lads from Bedford who are talented, brilliant at what they do and just want to make it in the music industry which they are already cracking due to the week in May 2011 where they dominated Radio 1 and Kerrang! Radio by getting 'Beautiful Morning' played everyday by various dj's. This song alone got a hugely positive response via texts and tweets from the fans of Donny B and even people of the British nation who have never heard of them before but have now developed a love for them. Good on you lads and I hope you make it to the big time! I have enormous faith in this band I really do so check them out at any show near you :)

http://www.facebook.com/donbroco