Live Review - The Devil Wears Prada, Dead Harts, Napoleon - Corporation Sheffield, 2013

Saturday 30 November 2013

I recently got the chance to interview and review The Devil Wears Prada Sheffield, you can check it out here or below.

[Rhian Westbury]

In a week of insane clashing line ups we caught The Devil Wears Prada on their last date of their UK tour at Corporation , Sheffield. Being in the midst of so many tours saw the show moved to the small room at Corporation, sell out to then be followed by an in flux in ticket demand. We doubt any Prada fans will leave it to the last minute again.

Openers Napoleon lurch across the stage as they attempt to warm up the room and although they fling every limb and thrash through every track the crowd just doesn’t seem to shift more than the gratuitous head bob. Despite this awkwardness musically and vocally Napoleon give everything they’ve got till we are desperate to hear what they’ve recorded. So despite fumbling presence with the audience Napoleon’s sweet blend melodic hardcore is something to listen out for.

And lest we forget ladies and gents that we were on Dead Harts territory here as the room heaves before they even begin.As vocalist Matthew Baxendale sweeps up the mic the crowd is swaying unleashing to ‘Leech’ and never relenting through walls of death, circle pits and flailing limbs. Dead Harts hit the spot unlike anything to tongue your ears at the moment, grooving through deviating riffs as Bax relays the mic because everybody already knows the words. And the vivaciousness doesn’t stop there, drummer Anthony Allen has an alluring way of keeping time that leaves the tinkering of the drum rim to accidentally fill spaces that you’d almost miss if it wasn’t for the impeccable breaks in ‘Pit Talk’. As they close on the renowned ‘Smoke Wagons’ the room is in uproar – primed for TDWP.  Regardless if the track is new or old the crowd and DH are giving all they have got and with a new album due for next year there are big things to come for Dead Harts.

The audience at Corp feels a little older, with the odd youth floating about showing that maybe The Devil Wears Prada have developed as we have matured reviving a secure fan base that weren’t just there for the older tracks. As ‘Gloom’ sends Corp wild it proves ’8:18′ is a Prada album not to be reckoned with as ‘Martyrs’ and ‘First Sight’ see the room heaving. And it seems to be a pattern ‘War’ and ‘Sailor’s Prayer’ hold the room in reverence as ‘War’ beautifully lurches in melodicmusicianship and ‘Sailor’s Prayer’ intertwines pop elements that has Jeremy DePoyster vocally conducting the crowd over the intricate agile riff that could easily sway over any fans sitting on the fence. Although the new tracks tear the place apart songs like ‘Escape’, ‘Danger’ and ‘Assistant’ get more chaotic and crushing as they come with frontman Mike Hranica clawing the air with every beat.


With it being the last show of the tour we requested ‘Spongebob Grindpants’ and ‘Still Fly’ but Sheffield was treated no different from the rest of the tour and ‘Dead Throne’ and ‘Mammoth’ split the carnage that was TDWP’s encore. An insane ending to an amazing show that saw The Devil Wears Prada prove that you can evolve and still tear it apart.

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