The release show for new record I'm Not Giving Up, I'm Just Starting Over was a success...
Before Friday night I’d never seen any pop punk live. It’s weird since I grew up on Paramore CDs for a good three years of my tween life and my Walkman memories wouldn’t be complete without them. I put my hands up. I’m a bad fan, but High Tides' Nottingham show brought me good levels of nostalgia for an eleven-year-old version of myself, listening to Misery Business over and over again.
The five-member band began their headline show in hometown Notts at Rock City alongside four support acts including Where There’s Life, Ocean Floor, Hello Tomorrow and Say The Word. When my friend and I first walked in we noticed the table of merch first and the dimmed down lights of the basement. People arrived slowly and for a minute I was worried that it might be a bust but by the time the second warm-up act took to the stage the place was getting full.
Speaking of the second act, Hello Tomorrow were a personal highlight of the evening. Admitting early in their set that they hadn’t played together in a month, it went way better than expected. They had a certain messiness but with pop punk, it could be the style, it could be the lack of practice. We’ll never know.
Aside from the music a couple of people seemed to be enjoying the undertone of drama around the girls who stood front row all night screaming and dancing like mad for the band.
High tides opened their set with flashing lights and had the crowd with their hands in the air punk style. The tunes were guitar heavy with an electric edge creating a discordant feel behind the vocals that (while still on the nostalgia streak) had sort of a similar feel to some 2000s pop punk.
High Tides were at Rock City on Friday 17 March 2017. Their brand new mini album, I’m Not Giving Up, I’m Just Starting Over, is out now.
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