Young Guns at Madame JoJo’s

The music industry is a notoriously fickle business – one minute a band can be more popular than a leaked image of Jennifer Lawrence and the next they attract less interest than Tom Cleverly on transfer deadline day. Young Guns are a prime example of this inconsistency. On paper the Buckinghamshire band have an impressive CV having supported pop-punk heavyweights like Yellowcard, All Time Low and Youmeatsix, and they’ve just completed a festival stint at Reading and Leeds, however the lack of individual success has meant they have yet to break into the rock mainstream. Whilst most successful bands of the same genre have scaled such territories as the O2 arena, Wembley stadium and headline slots at Reading festival, the Young Guns instead played a hustling underground Soho club on a lively Monday night.

The club is deceptively big for a central London venue, split in two halves with a more dedicated fan base on the lower floor eagerly awaiting the arrival of their alternative heroes while the more casual observers stand higher up, gaining a better viewpoint closer to the all-important bar. By the time the lads arrive (rather late, it has to be said) the youthful audience are in full energetic voice, bopping along to every drum crash and melodic, catchy chorus. Tunes like I Want Out and Weight of the World are best suited to the live arena as lead singer Gustav heavily relies on the crowd to boost the songs. The band are pumped up to 11 throughout the set, encouraging a bounce and sing-a-long whenever possible with every member pushing out more energy than a crystal meth-fueled Duracell bunny on the cheap but cheerful, bright stage.

Though the boys are very much in the vein of youthful pop-punk/emo, their live show unfortunately doesn’t add anything particularly new or exciting to the genre. They have the bare essentials to supply a lively, basic rock show with a small but dedicated fan base, but their lifeless songs struggle to make a lasting impact and Gustav’s vocal range is hugely limited. The venue also seems an extremely odd choice as the band’s sound seems far more applicable to an energetic Camden venue as opposed to the bland JoJo’s club. With an announcement of the band supporting both Youmeatsix and Bring Me the Horizon in future tours, it seems certain that Young Guns are more than happy to sit in the shadows of more established bands without making their own mark on the scene.

Keir Smith
Photos: Erol Birsen

For further information about Young Guns and future events visit here.

Watch the video for I Want Out here: