Electric Callboy | O2 Academy, Glasgow | 24.10.2023 | Live Review

Electric Callboy’s Tekkno Train rolled into Glasgow for a highly anticipated sold out show in the O2 Academy in the city’s Southside. The hype surrounding the night was as big as I’ve seen for shows in a long time in Glasgow, having long sold out with fans begging for a venue upgrade. With a stacked lineup showcasing two incredible support acts, the night already had high potential to be something special even before the first strum of a guitar.

The opening act Monuments understood the assignment and got the place shaking, the relentless slaps of bass and pummelling drums makes it almost a miracle there’s any plaster left on the Academy ceiling. While they only had a small portion of the stage to work with, singer Andy Cizek was all over the place, with his band mates hopping up and down on the risers non stop, and despite only having a handful of the Monuments faithful in the room, they managed to get large parts of the room bouncing.

Their sound was on top form, and Cizek’s triple role (growls, screams and clean) was particularly impressive. They performed like headliners, and on another night they could definitely have filled this position. 4 albums in, they performed the perfect set for both fans and newcomers alike and properly got the night rolling in a heavy head banging style.

A quick stage changeover and it was time for the main support in As Everything Unfolds. Fresh from an exciting summer run and UK/EU tour, they return to the stage in Glasgow having not been here since their visit to the East End earlier in March this year.

Their sound gives strong Spiritbox vibes, a great mixture of melody and heaviness with an extra touch of an electronics that makes them stand out from the rest and a perfect warm-up for tonight’s headliners. Picking up where Monuments left off, singer Charlie Rolfe and co raised the energy even more in the room, crowd surfers started to appear with a few pits towards the end of the set.

With a Glasgow headline show on the horizon in February next year, this was a prime chance to get more fans on board. Charlie’s vocals at times could have been a touch louder, however this did not hinder the energetic attitude thrown from stage to crowd. Even before tonight AEU have gained lots of love in Glasgow and judging by tonight’s reaction, that love has increased and then some.

Another quick turnover and after a wholesome singalong to some cheesy pre gig tunes, it was time for Electric Callboy. The lights drop and a typically fun video intro gets the crowd going with a clapping test. The band enters the stage and they erupt into “Tekkno Train” as the first burst of confetti fires across the venue. “MC Thunder II (Dancing Like a Ninja)” and “Spaceman” follow with no signs of the energy slowing down as the scenes in the crowd are simply chaotic.

The atmosphere in the venue was special, it didn’t have the feel of your typical metal gig, it was more like a party – a definite contender for one of the best indoor gigs of 2023.

“Everytime We Touch” receives one of the biggest receptions of the night, although it’s not their song, this version slaps hard and wouldn’t be out of place on an Electric Callboy record. “Arrow of Love” quickly follows and this song is greeted with more confetti in the shape of love hearts, on stage a background of pride flags appears as a sign if inclusivity and really adds a special feel to the vibe of the room.

“Hypa Hypa” is a regular in Alt clubs across the country and especially in Glasgow – this shows in mass as the audience sang the main riff before the band even started playing the song. People always have the assumption that metal heads are scary, Electric Callboy blow that myth away when they have an entire room sing “Let It Go” from Frozen before the ultimate singalong to “I Want It That Way” by The Backstreet Boys – you give that to any crowd and they’ll sing loud, but a Glasgow metal crowd raised the roof. It was then a welcome back on stage for As Eveything Unfold’s Charlie Rolfe as she joins the boys for a collab on “Fuckboi” and a joyful reception from the Glasgow faithful. Charlie’s vocals and screams were at an unbelievable level and her introduction to this song was well suited.

The band left the stage for a quick change over to re-emerge in classic gym gear – it was time for “Pump It”. A heavy ending to a highly energetic set, the crowd still massively on side with a sea of crowd surfers and one big mosh pit across the floor, still going strong at this late stage. Another break means another costume stage, the band stroll back out with bowl cut hair and white gilets – if you know you know! The intro to “We Got the Moves” ripples round the room to a sensational cheer from the crowd ready for one last dance. As far as set closers go, this is up there with the best, the song has everything you could possibly want from catchy choruses and slapping breakdowns to huge crowd chanting sections.

Confetti and streamers hang from the ceiling as the band bow to a very sweaty room. It takes a special performance to have me leave a gig speechless and this was one of those occasions. The endless energy both on and off the stage made this night as special as it was. It had everything from raw emotion to pure passion. The band announcing they will be back in Glasgow next year tops things off nicely. Despite the weary legs, it was off to the after party for more dancing in The Cathouse – via the merch table for a dry t-shirt.