Nero’s Leeds Academy date marks the second city of their Second Reality academy tour of an already successful year. The album from which the tour takes its name has already reached the top of the UK album charts, whilst single, ‘Promises’, topped its own respective chart as part of the new dubstep-flooded mainstream. The duo aren’t simply a follower of the times, they’ve help establish the genre that we know today – blending together commercial success and musical innovation to creator and album and a live set that don’t disappoint.
Support was provided by a DJ set from KillSonik, who simply seems to have hashed together some of the most brutal dubstep beatdown sections. Mainly unexpected, often jarring and making the audience feel as though their hearts were being ripped out of their chests with bass, KillSonik played the most aggressive set you can without having to injure someone on stage. Nonetheless, it keeps the young academy crowd entertained with the front of the crowd already a huge crush occasionally being pushed apart seconds before the latest sub-drop.
The support showed the crowd dubstep at its most aggressive, but Nero showed us dubstep at it’s most choreographed. Opening with ‘Doomsday’, the crowd went wild like it was the end of existence. Post-apocalyptic bass blended with the visuals, Nero elevated far above the stage in a myriad of colour and precisely projected images. Moving on from the galvanising opening, Nero’s regular vocalist Alana Watson made an appearance for the summer sensation ‘Guilt’, proving that lyrical cleverness can coexist with the brutal movements and sways live dubstep. With “NERO” emblazoned above the stage and their lyricist to lead the way, Nero made their presence known and had the audience in the palm of their hands – every drop calculated and every remix receiving louder praise than the last.
Highlights of the mid-set included the arm-raising ‘Innocence’ and the particularly brutal Knife Party remix of ‘Crush on You’. Not content with simply playing the album, Nero let loose some new remixes whist giving the fans what they wanted in the form of the internet’s most popular reworkings. The explosive remix of ‘Promises’ by Nero and Skrillex harked back to KillSonik’s earlier set, but show us clearly what you can do with all that aggressive and raw sound – work it into a perfect few minutes of progressively violent (but in no way reckless or uncontrolled) drops. Their remix of ‘Blinded By The Lights’ ripped through the atmosphere with its bassline and ‘Promises’ remind us of the level of perfection these two aim for in a song, with Alana Watson again soothing the audience between drops.
With ‘Departure’ and ‘Me and You’ closing down the set, the ceiling dripped with sweat as the night closed, with Nero’s multimedia experienced proving that dubstep is best enjoyed live, heavy, and in a room full of drunken strangers (as if you didn’t know that already).