Norma Jean – The Roadhouse, Manchester – 25/04/14 |Live Review

Credit: Graham Berry

A midst their European Tour we lucky enough to catch Norma Jean at Manchester’s intimate The Roadhouse during their ‘Zero Fun’ tour with Liferuiner, Night Verses and openers Branson Hollis kicking it all off by blowing our minds, it was just a pity that they played as the crowd was trickling in. The band inclines through multiple vocalists of juxtaposing style, sound and speed that layer into wild intricacies that fill The Roadhouse. Subtle keys enrapture the crowd as they pull in from the entrance, Branson Hollis working through their impeccable set in a labyrinth of riffs and heaving, stomping percussion. BH are held on a small stage but intensity pushes though in fervor and pure ferocity in every sound they were creating. Joined on stage by Norma Jean’s Cory Brandan for their incredible track ‘Maunder’s Tale’ which threw out the need to check them out as soon as we got home and we recommend you do the same as well.

Night Verses took no time in tearing up a room that was desperate for them, ruinous drums pave the way for a crowd who seem to be there for Night Verses as much as they are Norma Jean. ‘Time Erases Time’s plunging bass, cutting riffs and a lurching Douglas Robinson straight in among the faces of the front row. Their exquisite musicianship ripples through the crowd, each infectious sound seeing The Roadhouse frantic for mic grabs and flailing limbs. If you weren’t a fan before Night Verses will grab you by the ears and tear you a new one, each intricate string and elaborate drum inciting, reviving and wild rasps hooking in every person compacted into the small venue. Night Verses could have been a co-headliner from this insane performance.

Credit: Graham Berry

Canadians Liferuiner almost took to the stage next, front man Johnny O’Callaghan kicking things off from the middle of the crowd and never leaving, feedback reverbing through The Roadhouse as the band dropped into the heaviest chugs of the night. Rising up into melodic sections before bombarding us in throaty, guttural blows and hammering drums. Although there is a lack of aggressive wielding that you would expect in the crowd for Liferuiner there is a tight swarm around Johnny, vocals thrown back at him from the inner circles. From recording to live the band take on a a completely different level, each tone deeper and each word braced in empathy, despair and destruction. Before closing on their renowned ‘1990’ there are a few words of guitarist Mike Short’s late father before a barrage of sound engulfs The Roadhouse.

Bodies sandwich their way to the stage before the onslaught of Norma Jean began to ransack the venue, notching up an eclectic set that sees the throngs of people move to every beat they can. More recent tracks like ‘If You Got It At Five, You Got It At Fifty’, ‘Wrongdoers’, ‘The Potter Has No Hands’ and ‘Sword In Mouth, Fire Eyes’ swarm the crowd in mass singalongs, swept up in every epic riff Chris Day and Jeff Hickey can tear up. ‘Birth Of The Antimother‘ drives the crowd into a fit, the stage and floor merging into lunging masses. Momentum heaves within the compact venue, Norma Jean rampaging through abrupt spits and starts, jagged riffs and incisive drums. Frontman Cory Brandan conducting the chaos through the looming ‘Hive Minds’ into the incredible ‘Bayonetwork‘. The band tight on every string, stick and scream whilst throwing out every ounce of energy they had in sound and sweat.

‘Memphis Will Be Laid To Waste’ brought The Roadhouse to the cusp of ruin, NJ never relenting from the pace they kicked off with. The Roadhouse was the perfect venue for what turned out to be an incredible, intimate show with every band on the line up, leaving it damn near impossible to depict the camaraderie permeating the atmosphere, proving why Norma Jean are the iconic band they’ve become.