Gojira
Special Guests: Alien Weaponry + Employed To Serve.
Venue: O2 Academy, Glasgow.
Date: 15th February 2023.
Review & Photos By: Dave Buchanan
It’s finally happening!! After a reschedule of a reschedule, French riff masters, Gojira, return to the UK in support of their 2020 release, Fortitude. But, before we get to that glorious moment, we are treated to two bands that really should be on your radar…and if not, then now’s the time, people.
Employed To Serve
Opening for a band like Gojira, who, let’s face it, most people tonight are here to see, must come with a little bit of pressure, no? Well, Employed To Serve don’t seem phased in the slightest. In fact, the ol’ neck muscles are getting a pre-workout tonight, as the Woking quintet explode onto the stage with not a single fuck to give. After being highly impressed with their 2021 album, Conquering, I was intrigued to see how an album of such weighty proportions would translate to the live setting.
Well, Employed To Serve hurl the perfect amount of fury necessary to roundhouse kick the heads clean off this Glasgow crowd. The energy in the pit goes from 0 to 100 as the band…serve up (see what I did there) a gigantic slab of metallic groove on opening track, Universal Chokehold. From there, it’s all systems go, and the band become laser focused in delivering an utterly punishing set.
As they tear through tracks from 2019’s Eternal Forward Motion and their latest release, Conquering, it becomes rapidly apparent that we are witnessing a band that are clearly about to take over. Their confidence oozes from the stage, with each track more ruthless than the last. Vocalist Justine Jones prowls the stage, calling upon the Glasgow crowd with an utterly vicious tone, while the band lock into some seriously hefty grooves on tracks like We Don’t Need You.
Tonight Employed To Serve delivered one of the most blistering opening sets I’ve ever seen from a support band, and as the screams of “You’re all dead to me!” come to a fade, and the pit trolls take a much-needed deep breath, we’re all left wondering when the next Employed To Serve headline tour will be, and where the hell can we buy tickets? 
(4.5 / 5)
Alien Weaponry
New Zealand groove-laden metal band, Alien Weaponry, take to the stage next, and with a Haka performance from drummer Henry De Jong, this Glasgow crowd are instantly on side. As the band then blaze into the opening riff of set-opener Raupatu, it takes less than 30 seconds for them to whip this crowd up into a frenzy.
For a band so young, it’s incredibly impressive how mature and forward-thinking this band comes across. The bands Māori ancestry shines through bright, and with many of their songs sung in their native tongue, it feels remarkably heartfelt. I must admit to not being completely sold on them when checking out their last release, Tangaroa, but hearing the material live made me appreciate it in a whole different way.
Tracks like Ahi Kā, Hatupatu and Kai Tangata sound even more primitive in the flesh, and the colossal sound they conjure up for just a trio is unbelievably hard-hitting. Pulling in elements of thrash, nu-metal and straight up groove, Alien Weaponry throw a grenade of cut-throat riffs and grooves into the pit of this sold out venue and watch them detonate.
They may be young in age, but they certainly don’t show it in their performance this evening. It’s thunderous, tight and executed with authenticity 
(4 / 5)
Gojira
Okay, so this isn’t my first time to the BBQ with Gojira. They stole my heart back in 2006, when I saw them decimate King Tut’s in Glasgow, with the mighty Hatesphere in support. That was, and still is, the greatest live show I’ve ever seen. At that point, they only had three albums, their most recent being From Mars To Sirius, but even back then, doing small club shows, they knew how to deliver a massive sonic punch live. Tonight, tracks like The Heaviest Matter of the Universe, Backbone and Flying Whales sounded even more monstrous than I could have ever imagined. Every time I see them (this will be my 4th) they manage to somehow sound even more breathtaking than the last.
Even without a single track from Terra Incognita or The Link in their set, Gojira take you on a journey that you’ll feel every second of.
The fans in the pit, definitely felt it.
As the band dive-bomb into opener Born For One Thing, the place erupts into a sea of flailing limbs and crowd-surfing bodies. And as The Heaviest Matter of the Universe, Backbone, Stranded and Flying Whales pound their way through the speakers, the energy never wavers one tiny bit. Even when the band shift into something more spacious and melodic like Another World or The Chant, they still have us completely hooked in.
Much like their back catalogue, since the first time I saw Gojira, their stage presence and production has levelled up. Bassist Jean-Michel Labadie throws himself (and his bass) around the stage like a madman, Mario sounds absolutely impeccable behind the kit, and Joe Duplantier just oozes such a commanding confidence in his voice and playing. Add to that some smoke and confetti cannons, and you’ve got yourself one hell of an explosive performance. Although, I feel for the poor bastard that has to sweep that shit up.
One of the biggest surprises of the night was the inclusion of The Gift of Guilt from 2012’s L’Enfant Sauvage. This track just hits in all the right places, with an outro that evokes so much emotion, it’s almost cathartic in a way. That track was the end of the main set, with the obligatory walk off-stage, and then returning to blast into The Way of All Flesh and Amazonia to finish. I honestly wasn’t sure if Amazonia would work as a climactic finisher, but after feeling those kick drums and seeing the crowd headbanging in unison from up in the balcony, my reservations were quickly diminished…that groove! It felt like the whole building was moving at one point. And then, just like that, it’s all over. 1 hour and 40 minutes of unadulterated power from one of the greatest live bands on the planet. Just perfection. How do I know? Well, there’s not one person in the room who isn’t smiling right now 
(5 / 5)
