Biffy Clyro @ Enmore Theatre

Even if it wasn’t for the gigantic poster of Simon Neil hoisted high outside the Enmore, any visitor to Newtown on this Friday might have guessed Biffy Clyro were back in Sydney. There were so many Scottish accents, it’s surprising that anyone’s left back in Edinburgh and Aberdeen and Ayrshire to give a shit about the upcoming independence referendum. Aye, it was a very Biffy kind of night.

There was chanting. There was beer (but not a can of Tennent’s to be seen). There were tattoos, of course, and no shirts, at least not on the backs of Neil and the Johnston twins onstage. There were many excellent songs, mainly taken from the band’s three most recent albums. But as good as Biffy Clyro were, it didn’t quite fully rock. Bassist James Johnston nailed it when he noted how ironic it was that a bloke with crutches was jumping around the most.

‘Different People’ from 2013’s Opposites was a good choice of opener, showing off Neil’s voice and ear for a killer riff, while also giving the crowd a chance to let off some steam before they got in a chance for a wee sing-song with ‘That Golden Rule’ and ‘The Captain’.

Beneath the heavy riffs and hard graft it’s easy to miss that Neil has penned some mega songs. He has the confidence of a man who knows it and but also carries an obvious appreciative grace, most apparent with the reaction to (probably his biggest royalty-maker) ‘Many Of Horror’.

We were reminded best when he was alone onstage for a touching acoustic version of ‘God And Satan’, which was only bettered when he returned solo again for ‘Machines’ during the encore. After a tame mosh pit had dissolved, the crowd confirmed it was mainly comprised of big softies when it collectively urged Neil, “Take the pieces and build them skywards,” in response to his devastating admission: “I’ve started falling apart / I’m not savouring life.” After gearing up to rock, it was a surprise that this tender moment proved most powerful.