The Enemy
Birmingham O2 Academy
Review and pictures by James Watkins

Hundreds of revellers descended on Birmingham’s O2 Academy on Monday evening to see one of the region’s finest bands play the first of two sold out dates.

The Enemy, Coventry’s self proclaimed indie/punk rockers, waltzed on stage like it was their own.

Their set was more punk than indie, kicking off with a high octane version of Elephant Song, followed by a host of album favorites including Away From Here and Had Enough, which whipped the crowd into a state of ebullience.

The arrogant swagger of frontman Tom Clarke was reminiscent of a young Liam Gallagher,  just before it all took off for Oasis in the 90s. It begs the question, will his band follow in their footsteps and achieve similar commercial acclaim?

The answer, probably, is no. Oasis were a once-in-a-generation phenomenon and it’s hard to see The Enemy  ever scaling those heights.

But judging by the welcoming of a new plethera of songs from their upcoming album, Music For the People, with new single No More Tears raising a thunderous applause, it would seem that the future looks rosy for now.

Such energy and passion only seems to come out of those few bands that really know their own identity and clearly The Enemy have great vision and confidence.

No doubt a string of live dates across the country ahead of an appearance at this years V Festival at Weston Park, Staffordshire, will further add more followers to their already-growing fanbase.