After releasing the much-awaited new album ‘Calling The Dogs’ in October of last year, we were thrilled to catch Citizen headlining SWX on the fourth leg of their European tour with Drug Church & Viji. After spending much of last year touring Australia and Asia and embarking on a huge American run later this year with Taking Back Sunday, it was a pleasure to catch them for their brief stop in the UK. The crunchy-emo vocals paired with the post-hardcore/fourth wave grit of the band have made Citizen the long-standing figurehead of miserable misfits.
Opening the night was Viji, Austrian-Brazilian dark bubble-grunge artist who now resides in London. Viji’s (real name Vanilla Jenner) brings everything to a live performance that you would expect from an artist out to singlehandedly revive the 90s riotgrrrl/grunge movement. She sings with an attitude, her band sport baggy t-shirts and mullets, and the drums are consistently noisy and fast. Her songwriting is a mix of dirty distortion basslines blended with indie vocal hooks. She has the incredible ability to drift from an attitude-soaked shout-speaking verse to a higher register angelic chorus, boasting vocal abilities that can only be described as masterful. Despite having never heard her music previously I catch myself humming along instinctively.
Next up are the incredible Drug Church, the act I was actually most excited about on this bill (no hate Citizen- I have waited years to see DC!). The setlist has an unbelievable span of their catalogue- opening with ‘Grubby’ was a strong start. Finally getting to be immersed in frontman Patrick Kindlon’s trademark firey performances was an absolute blast- from the first song he whips up a moshpit at the front and it stays moving for the entire set. Four songs in and the energy won’t let up- they start the raw and aggressive ‘But Does It Work?’ to screams and cheers. By the end of the stellar fan-favourite ‘Myopic’ the room is shouting in anticipation for the closer ‘Weed Pin’. Hearing the iconic guitar line marking the beginning of the chaos, the whole room jumps – ‘first time in dress shoes!’.
Citizen begin with ‘Hyper Trophy’, the third track from the new record. The sound has veered to a more indie-centric approach than previous releases, but the songwriting remains compelling, and the distinctive vocals of Mat Kerekes continue as some of the best in the game. All the new electronic elements, softer lead guitar lines, and synths from the new album are carried over to the live performance.
We are then treated to ‘Jet’, opening track from the 2017 album ‘As You Please’- this one gets the room singing, with screams of ‘I’m the result of everything you never were!’ all around.It’s a reminder what a staple of ‘sadboy music’ this band has served as for so many years. I am frequently transported back to my teenage bedroom as I am screaming the lyrics throughout many of the older songs.
Five songs in, and the opening chords from ‘How Does It Feel?’ tear through the sold-out venue. After a slower but emotion-packed rendition of this track from the award-winning album ‘Youth’, we get to hear the crisp, raw and crunchy-emo ‘Yellow Love’. With the beer flowing thick and fast, there are definitely some grown men crying by this point in the night- and you cannot blame them, this band really bring out a different side in a lot of us.
Luckily the tears can soon be wiped away, because ‘Pedestal’ is up next. The masterpiece from my favourite Citizen record ‘Life In Your Glass World’ packs a punch live, the piercing snare hit on every word of the final line ‘and then you get shoved in my face’ was met with waving arms and beer flying in all directions. Next up is ‘Big Mouth’ – I am guilty of filming the entirety of this bass-driven anthemic number, but the video is a hilarious amalgamation of blurry chaos and shout-singing along far too loud. The set is starting to enter the home stretch now, with fans shouting out what they want to hear and the band looking chuffed with the fourth night of a sell-out tour.
‘The Night I Drove Alone’ is among the most requested, and the band do not disappoint. The pained scream of ‘I should have crashed the car’ around the room gave me goosebumps, something this song never fails to do. Me and my friend have to hold hands and scream every single lyric together, the room feels very connected in this moment, and I am too overcome with emotion to take any notes on the performance. Having a look at Spotify when writing my review up, I spot that ‘The Night I Drove Alone’ is Citizen’s most played song on the platform. After experiencing it live, I really have no doubts as to why that is.
The atmosphere shifts yet again as the band continue the set with ‘Dogs’ from the latest album. I don’t know this song very well, but it is my top earworm of the night, the line ‘we’re all dying, we can’t be treated!’ whizzing around in my head long after I have left the venue. Upon listening to the new album back again, I would recommend this song the most- it has the flavour of their older songwriting whilst fully embracing a more modern vibe. It makes me recall the line Pitchfork wrote on Citizen, ‘a band you can grow up with, rather than out of’.
With the evening drawing to a close, there are only two songs left for Citizen. ‘Death Dance Approximately’ is a song as diverse as its writers. The quick stabs at the beginning, straight into a catchy indie(but make it crunchy)-style riff, vocals leaning somewhere near pop territory, and a heavier ending make it a great choice to bring the show to a close. The song allows the band to demonstrate their eclectic and impressive skillset. Their encore is the animated ‘I Want To Kill You’ which ends the night on an upbeat and singalong crowd pleaser. I file out the venue utterly exhausted from three hours of jumping and singing but buzzed off the thrill of an extraordinary line-up. If you get the chance, Citizen are a must-see band for 2024.
Review by Jace Hawker. Photos by Ben Hunt – no use without permission
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