Rise Against with Trash Boat, Manchester O2 Ritz.

American punk rock band make their long awaited return to Manchester with a short headline UK tour. With only two dates on the tour it was bound to sell out almost instantly, the band from Chicago known for their against the system themed music teamed up with British punk rock band Trash Boat for this sold out UK tour.

Trash Boat is the only support on this tour, but isn’t unknown throughout the UK. Over the past few years the band have formed a wide fan base throughout the UK, after touring with IPrevail on their UK tour last year they have gained a wider fanbase than ever before. And this was the perfect show to bring more in.

Trash Boat takes to the stage with an almost full venue, with a massive queue going around the corner onto Oxford Road just waiting outside.

The entirety of this set is fast paced, emotional in some levels and insanely fun. These guys know how to start a crowd up and start a party on a Tuesday night. On stage, the guys in Trash Boat are such fun to watch, the way they move around the stage and interact with the crowd is just incredible. The full performance from their track “Alpha Omega” was brilliant to say the very least, and everyone around me shared the same opinion too.

Their vocalist, Tobi Duncan knows how to get the crowd heavily involved, encouraging them to sing the lyrics back despite being the support shows the confidence the guys have and also shows they know exactly what they’re doing when it comes to crowd work.

These guys have officially found their footing with the new sound, and from this show they have generated a wider fanbase without a shadow of a doubt. This is my second time seeing trash boat live except this time I couldn’t get involved in the insane pits that they produce, and it won’t be my last.

10/10 performance! They’re a must see on the concert / festival scene if you love a fun and energetic set.

Setlist:

Break You
Delusions of Grandeur
Bad Entertainment
Be Someone
Alpha Omega
He’s So Good

Rise Against are an insanely popular band from the US who have made their name in the punk rock scene for having influential lyrics that inspire many. This time around there at the Ritz for a more intimate gig which I’m going to say I massively prefer. The last time I saw them was at the end of 2022 and it was amazing, but this one felt way more special.

The band formed back in 1999 and it feels like they haven’t stopped ever since. They waste no time with bringing the energy back up, they kick the set off with Satellite and the room is bouncing and singing along within a matter of seconds. Bouncers start bringing the crowd surfers over because this crowd is wasting no time with getting hyped up for this set.

The Manchester crowd gets a taste of some of the bands early work with them going nuts the second they hear the intro to “Give It All”, the fast paced riffs and a big sing along chorus brings a new level of energy to the room.

Vocalist Tim is full of energy when he stands on one of the platforms, guitar in one hand and megaphone in the other which amplifies the room to another level, but he isn’t done with the amazing work with the crowd, as he jumps from the stage and stands on the barrier holding onto fans as they reach out to him with the biggest smile on his face, this was an experience for the fans who got that barrier spot.

Core memory unlocked for sure.

The whole band was on fire, and the set list was beyond perfect from start to finish, half way through the set everything slows down for some more acoustic work leaving Tim to carry out the performance for a while with just himself and the crowd. Lights are in the air, and one thing that was refreshing about this show was the lack of phones in the air and seeing more lighters being held up, brings you back to the old vibes of gigs.

Rise Against know their roots they know what they created in the past and they know what the fans want to hear they shock the fans with “Like an Angel” before hitting the crowd with “Prayer of the Refugee”, the pits have been insane, the crowd has been insanely happy from start to finish of this show. But you could not have a Rise Against show without them finishing this incredible night with “Audience of One” and “Savior”, those two being the ultimate power move and ending this night with a massive amount of energy. Time has not slowed this band down in the slightest they were brilliant at the start and they have just gotten even better now.