Hundred Reasons - Leadmill, Sheffield, 17/1/2007

  by Russell Ferguson

published: 7 / 1 / 2007

intro

New Pennyblackmusic writer Russell Ferguson is impressed by punk/metal act Hundred Reasons' passion and energy at a gig on their latest tour at the Sheffield Leadmill

When I arrive at the Leadmill for Hundred Reasons, the support band Kids In Glass Houses are already halfway through their set. These guys seem to be simply going through the motions. They remember why they are in short spells but their concentration slips away all too soon. There is no fooling the crowd either. The lacklustre ripple of applause at the end of each song speaks volumes. I am not sure what Kids In Glass Houses are trying to do. They sound somewhere between My Chemical Romance and a garage band and, as with all bands who fall in between two sets of styles, they lack any strength or quality. This band don't grab me and shake me like a rag doll, more like brush past me on the way to the toilet. Hundred Reasons take to the stage catching everyone out, even the light engineer. The crowd aren’t too sure for the first five seconds if it is the band or just a few roadies making frantic last minute adjustments. When front man Colin Doran follows last on to the stage they erupt into a spontaneous cheer and applause. Not giving the crowd time to catch their breath Hundred Reasons launch into the first song 'If You Could', which punches from the stage like an iron fist into a soft belly. Songs like 'Dissolve', 'Feed the Fire', 'I’ll Find You', 'Kill Your Own','Live Fast Die Ugly', 'Silver' and 'No Pretending' make it on to the set list for tonight’s gig. Hundred Reasons are shining bright like the consummate pros that we know them to be. They have more energy than a crate of lucozade and the crowd find this too infectious to ignore. They know when to slow the set down, when to pick thngs up and how to keep a varied pace. Many other so called bigger bands should be here tonight to see how it is done. I keep ask myself why aren’t Hundred Reasons bigger than they are. For a band that produced one of the best albums of 2006, 'Kill Your Own', they should be selling out bigger venues than the medium-sized Leadmill, They should be there with the likes of …………. But then again we all know there is no justice in rock ‘n’ roll. The crowd could be bigger and the attendance should be better than this ,but size is no measure of strength or quality and Hundred Reasons have both in abundance. The photographs that accompanyb this article were taken by Russell Ferguson

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