Papa Roach - 02 Academy, Newcastle - 13.09.09

Kicking off a tour filled with sold-out venues must be the dream way to start a glut of live dates, so it must have given American rockers, Papa Roach, a huge boost to know there wouldn’t be a spare space in the house tonight as they continue their latest visit to the UK.

It also highlights the continued popularity of the band that could have easily fallen away when nu-metal died; they reinvented themselves as a straight up rock and roll band, and it seems to have paid off.

“How are you guys doing tonight?” Yells Papa Roach front man, Jacoby Shaddix, to a massive cheer from tonight’s faithful audience, a crowd of youthful and beyond excited fans, simply curious about just what exactly this American phenomenon is all about, here on the other side of the pond.

First up, British classic rock five-piece Heaven’s Basement, who take the stage with the swagger and presence of an experienced headliner. The crowd loves it, and with songs as good as ‘Reign On My Parade’ and ‘Executioner’s Day’ it is surely only a matter of time before this band moves onto the next level, which is absolutely where they deserve to be.

They are known for talking their way into playing with some of the biggest bands out there, i.e. Bon Jovi, Black Stone Cherry and Shinedown.

Second on the bill is Chicago four-piece Madina Lake, whose brand of catchy pop-rock helped them take over all kinds of music channels earlier this year.

Put simply, they are great rock band and a terrific force on stage. To say they were energetic would be an understatement; barefoot vocalist Nathan Leone wins the crowd over with a combination of a great voice, a determination to cover every inch of the stage and high-five the entire front row, and a real passion and gratitude for the applause his band receives. While his brother and bassist Matthew is all over the place like a chipmunk on pixie sticks.

Songs like ‘Let’s Get Outta Here’ and ‘Here I Stand’ are built for big venues and sound great, while next single ‘Welcome to Oblivion’ points to only one type of future for Madina Lake - a very bright one.

Palpable tension fills the air as the crowd wait anxiously for their idols to come on stage. When they do, bursting into ‘Days of War’, it is the collective love in the room for the Papa Roach boys becomes apparent - their fans completely adore them, singing every word at high volume and screaming at the sight of Jacoby Shaddix as he bounces from stage left to stage right.

Watching Papa Roach play a gig is like watching a definitive guide on how to play a great show; there’s clapping and there’s singing along, but most of all, there’s a ton of great songs that just sound better and better the more you hear them.

The majority of the setlist was taken from this year’s ‘Metamorphosis’ album, with singles ‘I Almost Told You That I Loved You’ and ‘Hollywood Whore’ going down a storm.

Of course, the band don’t forget the songs that won them their fame in the first place, with hit singles like ‘Between Angles and Insects’, ‘She Loves Me Not’, ‘Scars’ and ‘Getting Away With Murder’ still sounding as fresh as they did when they first came out.

Before the climax and finale of the show and the song that really got Papa Roach where they are today, the fantastic ‘Last Resort’. If ever a song was to truly bring the house down then this was it, and the whole room from front to back joined in. They’ve come a long way since the angst-ridden anthem first hit our airwaves, but it still packs a punch and is still an essential rock track, just like its creator is still an essential rock band.