Fifteen years and seven albums in, You Me At Six have well and truly cemented themselves in the UK pop-punk/rock scene.
For those of us who grew up listening to the likes of Paramore, Bring Me The Horizon, All Time Low or Fall Out Boy, the Surrey quintet are a household name - particularly given the amount of tour dates they’ve clocked up on the road with these bands over the years.
They have undoubtedly proven their staying power, outlasting peers like Kids in Glass Houses, The Blackout and We Are The Ocean - all of whom stagnated and then disbanded despite playing a similar concert circuit as You Me At Six for over a decade.
Led by frontman Josh Franceschi and featuring bassist Matt Barnes, rhythm guitarist Max Heyler, lead guitarist Chris Miller and drummer Dan Flint, the band has stacked up four UK Gold records and five Top 10 albums, including their fifth effort, the No.1 smash ’Cavalier Youth’.
But fans on the island have had to bide their time waiting to see the group grace our shores.
They visited for the first time on Monday - after quite the journey, spread over 12 hours and three different flights, when bad weather initially forced the plane they were on to turn back without landing.
Stellar support was provided on the Villa Marina stage by local rising stars Voodoo Bandits and part-Manx group Call Me Amour.
Voodoo Bandits, featuring singer and guitarist Ben Donaldson, bassist Charlotte Wilby and twins Corey and Nathan Vaughn on guitar and drums respectively, warmed up the crowd by blasting through an up-tempo stream of indie surf rock.
They couldn’t be more different to Call Me Amour, who turned the lights down low and had the front row headbanging along to their mix of dark electronica with sonic guitars.
Led by ex-Yashin vocalist Harry Radford, the band also features Geoff Murphy - formerly of Uber Room and Jacoba - on guitar, Danny Hall on drums and Brian Hill on bass.
You Me At Six then took to the stage and ripped through an 18-song set largely consisting of songs from their latest effort, ’SUCKAPUNCH’.
They leaned towards their heavier side throughout, featuring singles like ’MAKEMEFEELALIVE’ and ’Bite My Tongue’ - complete with Franceschi’s own version of the guest vocals originally screamed by Bring Me The Horizon frontman Oli Sykes.
For long-time Sixers in attendance, their set was devoid of tracks from their first two albums ’Take Off Your Colours’ and ’Hold Me Down’.
Only fan favourite ’Underdog’ made an appearance during the encore, and it received one of the biggest reactions of the night.
Featuring predominantly new material is understandable when promoting your new album, but the set sadly felt slightly devoid of hits.
A particular highlight of the evening came during the show’s closer ’Beautiful Way’, when Franceschi left the stage and got right in the middle of the hyped up crowd for the final chorus.
Without fail, You Me At Six always provide a fantastic live show, and Monday night was no different. Here’s hoping they visit our shores again some time soon.