Enjoying some of University of Nottingham's finest acts, Maz Kenny reviews RockSoc's very own concert, with Gender Envy headlining for their first time.
In the six months between its announcement and the actual day, I was looking forward to this UoN
Rocksoc gig more than anything. My anticipation set a high bar, but the actual gig was even better. I
had not seen any of the support acts before, but this was my thirteenth Gender Envy gig.
Usually, walking in when the first support act of three is playing means few people have turned up
and fewer are paying attention. But at this gig, the room was already crowded and headbanging to
Systems Fail’s covers of iconic metal songs. They had extended captivating instrumentals, powerful
vocals, and a significant range of sound in their metal covers. Beast and the Harlot by Avenged
Sevenfold demonstrated this range with dark heavy verses containing fast double kicks on the
drums and a chorus with a much lighter high major melody on guitar.
Next up was Late December with their promising live debut. A truly delightful set, opening with a
fun metal cover of Bad Blood by Taylor Swift. I was unreasonably excited to hear Taylor Swift as a
non-Swifty. They had an amazing presence, jumping around the stage and bringing their energy into
the audience. The crowd were having the time of their lives, enthusiastically moshing to their
energetic screamo covers and originals. The originals had wonderfully intense sound and lyrics. A
highlight was finding out that one of the verses hadn’t been written yet, so the vocalist simply
screamed unintelligibly. Beautiful. For their final song, the vocalist sat in front of the audience to
recite the spoken word opening of Late December by SeeYouSpaceCowboy… (a fitting ending, as
the song the band was named after) with calm slow atmospheric building instrumentation. This then
became loud and beautifully abrasive screaming, powerful drum beating and swift twinkling strings.
"Their cover of Silvera by Gojira was one of those live music experiences where you can feel the music within you, as if it was beating your heart for you (at a speed that would certainly be fatal)."
Our last support act was another exciting live debut. Wasted Awakening’s performance shook me to
my core. Their cover of Silvera by Gojira was one of those live music experiences where you can feel
the music within you, as if it was beating your heart for you (at a speed that would certainly be fatal).
They were greatly interactive, drawing the audience in. At one point, the vocalist dived into the pit
to join in on the moshing. It was a fun set and a superb sound!
Lastly, it was Gender Envy time. Gender Envy are always a delight to see with great energy and a
range in atmosphere. Their song Threads is wonderfully groovy and impossible not to dance to. The
joyful atmosphere the sound creates contrasts the impactful lyrics exploring challenges with mental
health. Recently their sound has been getting heavier, introducing screaming into some of their set.
After Threads, they played their shortest and heaviest song, Doormat. The circle pit that
accompanied the song mirrored the incomprehensible tornado of a song it is. The swift sound and
relentless vocals feel like they could knock you to the floor and make you go into a frenzy. Next was
Fishnets > Cishets, a more recent addition with some heavier influences. A spectacular part of their
set, this song includes audience participation, which has had many crowds screaming their lungs out.
But what made this my favourite song of the night, was a new verse written and screamed by a
guitarist/vocalist from Late December. It was greatly exciting to see his surprise return to the stage
and his screams left an impression in the room as if you could hear them reverberate into the night.
Afterwards, I was left speechless as he told me the lyrics were inspired by a conversation I had with
him, making me a part of my favourite band. I was utterly blown away!
"This band emotionally connects to their audience through pain and trauma as well as happiness and pride in a way that makes you feel seen."
Paper Planes, dedicated to the rhythm guitarist’s late grandmother, is always an emotional highlight of the set. It was a touching moment with a calmer atmosphere and people raised their phone torches for it. The set ended, as it often does, with In Your Eyes, describing the hardship of being trans with unsupportive parents. Although the song is hard-hitting, it’s full of joyous pride as a form of punky rebellion, shouting “I won’t sit down quietly, ‘cause I’m not who you want me to be!” This band emotionally connects to their audience through pain and trauma as well as happiness and pride in a way that makes you feel seen.
Something deeply wonderful about this UON Rocksoc gig is its queerness. Gender Envy describe
themselves as “queer-tinted” and the lineup of the whole night had a large portion of beautiful
queer people. That night, the drummer of Gender Envy came out on stage as a trans woman and
was met with warm welcoming cheers. The whole gig was one massive act of queer solidarity. It is
truly wonderful to be in such a kind and accepting space.
I cannot put into words how amazing this concert was. I highly recommend seeing these bands.
Maz Kenny
Edited by Tabitha Smith
Feature Image courtesy of The Chapel Nottingham via Instagram
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