Rowan Bruce
Returning to the Welsh capital for a homecoming celebration, indie-rockers The Tubs seem like a strange choice of support for Militarie Gun who exploded out of the Californian hardcore scene. With jangle-pop guitars backing brutally honest lyrics from frontman Owen Williams, The Tubs are music to cry to along the same lines as The Smiths or The Cure in contrast to the headliner’s breezy skater vibes.
Despite their sound being pretty lightweight for Militarie Gun’s usual crowd, The Tubs aren’t totally edgeless, taking cues from the indie revival of the mid-noughties by clashing clean guitar lines with driving rhythms although they rarely find much sonic ground that hasn’t already been well trodden. Never quite reaching raucous punk energy, The Tubs at least try to meet the crowd half way with plenty of audience interaction and sing-along moments leading up to their anthemic closing track ‘Wretched Lie’. While plenty of fans are bound to love their Oasis style pop choruses and charming stage banter many of the punks and moshers warming up for the headliners may leave confused.
Last playing Clwb Ifor Bach at a sold out show in 2024, Militarie Gun are no strangers to Cardiff’s legendary independent music scene. While their sound has shifted from rough and ready hardcore tinged pop-punk on their debut album to more diverse alt-rock and indie on last year’s follow up God Save The Gun, the Los Angeles quintet have kept their DIY spirit intact.
Opening their set with ‘B A D I D E A’, arguably the biggest single from their sophomore album, Militarie Gun grip the audience from the first shouted notes. Refusing to loosen their grip the LA punks fly through tracks like ‘Pressure Cooker’, whipping the packed crowd into a crowd surfing frenzy and keeping them transfixed on frontman Ian Shelton’s every “Ooh Ooh”.
While still filled with frantic punk energy, Militarie Gun’s latest iteration has more nuance than their original concept with tracks like ‘God Owes Me Money’ slowing things down for a more intimate yet no less intense feel. Keeping things emotional with older tracks ‘Will Logic’ and ‘My Friends Are Having A Hard Time’, Militarie Gun prove that they excel at both big catchy punk bangers and softer material without losing a beat.
Not completely abandoning their hardcore roots Militarie Gun have managed to evolve into something uniquely accessible, mixing exciting punk stage presence with indie, alt-rock and pop for a sound fit for both the underground and the masses, even adding keys and acoustic guitars on songs like ‘Daydream’. Closing with a double whammy of ‘Do It Faster’ and a repeat of their set’s opening track ‘B A D I D E A’, Militarie Gun cement themselves as an essential live act
