My first gig of the year sees Scottish powerhouse Biffy Clyro take over Cardiff’s Utilita Arena as part of the Futurique tour.
First up was The Armed. Now I’m not too familiar with their sound but I wasn’t too impressed with the set. Throughout, it was difficult to hear anything other than the lead vocals and drums from where I was stood, which was a shame as it looked like the entire band were having a great time.
Next up was SOFT PLAY and the punks were on form, powering through a range of tracks and getting into the crowd. The crowd, which Laurie Vincent called ‘touchy feely.’
Isaac Holman had the crowd chanting Fuck the Hi-Hat, and a girls-only pit going for Girl Fight.
The crowd cheered as the lights dimmed and silhouettes appeared on the drapes on stage and Biffy Clyro began their set, playing the majority of A Little Love with the drapes hanging.
There was a bit of a difference with the Scots, as James Johnston was missing, with Naomi filling in for him on her birthday, which of course led to Simon Neil leading a rendition of Happy Birthday, and a dedication of Friendshipping to Johnston.
The addition of the violinists on stage was really nice touch and really helped to accentuate the set.
There were a mix of songs played including hits such as Wolves of Winter, Mountains, Machines, Living is a Problem Because Everything Dies, Bubbles and Many of Horror, as well as tracks from the Futurique album like Goodbye and Hunting Season.
Unsurprisingly, Biffy’s set was top notch and a great way to start 2026’s run of shows.