Live Review: Biffy Clyro at James Hay Theatre, Christchurch

Biffy Clyro
w/ Coast Arcade
James Hay Theatre, Christchurch
Monday 13 April 2026

There’s something surreal about seeing a band perform when you’ve listened to them thousands of times. Biffy Clyro have been my favourite band since I was a teenager. The first music magazines I ever bought – which happened to send me down the path of wanting to become a music writer – included a Rock Sound magazine featuring Biffy Clyro on the cover. I’d never heard of them but I did really enjoy the track that was included on the CD sampler that came with a mag. I heard another track on a Kerrang sampler that I acquired later in the year, and that was enough to sell me on wanting to get my hands on the album Puzzle.

I’ve been a Biffy diehard ever since. I’ve got most of their albums on vinyl, and a bunch of pretty rare stuff too. This is the third time they’ve come to NZ, and it’ll be my third time seeing them play.

Image: Bevan Triebels

This is my first time coming to James Hay Theatre. What a fantastic venue! It was nestled in as part of the Christchurch Town Hall complex. Nice and intimate, with a standing section at the bottom and two seated sections above, it appeared that the view of the stage was fantastic no matter where you were situated. The sound was great too.

Image: Bevan Triebels

Young Auckland band Coast Arcade kicked things off. After achieving success with Rockquest during their time at highschool, members of Coast Arcade formed the band in recent years, and are already seeing successes. They released their eponymous debut album on CD and wax last October, and have support slots with Play Lunch and Silversun Pickups coming up. Tonight was a dream come true for their drummer Thom Boynton, having been a huge fan since childhood.

I saw Ben Johnston and Mike Vennart watching and nodding along from side of stage during Coast Arcade’s set, and Ben had great things to say about them later in the night. And rightly so – they had big energy and plenty of head banging moments, following in the footsteps of their anthemic heroes. A cover of Velvet Revolver’s “Slither” also showed how tight they were – they’re asking for tough comparisons when playing the songs of rock royalty.

And then we had Biffy Clyro. It’s eight years since they last played in New Zealand, and they’ve released four studio albums in that time. This tour has been a long time coming. I was positively fizzing.

The precursor to their set was a stop/start electronic percussive ostinato played loudly over the speakers. Dilating tempo signaled something was about to happen, before the lights dimmed and the band came onstage.

Biffy Clyro’s sound has changed over the years, but as soon as I heard the drumming into to their most recent album opener, “A Little Love”, it unleashed some long engrained Pavlovian response. There’s no doubt whatsever that those drums sound like Biffy Clyro. I was moving and grinning from ear to ear.

My inner teenager was positively giddy. Hell, old man me was giddy. It doesn’t get much better than this. The irresistible bounce of “Who’s Got A Match?” took me right back to being 16 again, listening to Puzzle on my cheap CD walkman and marveling at these weirdly complex songs that the Scottish trio had written. I felt the same sheer awe and joy watching them play those songs in the present moment, right in front of me.

Image: Bevan Triebels

It was a two tiered stage. Ben Johnston was at the back with his enormous drum kit. Singer and lead guitarist Simon Neil stood to his side, belting out the vocals. Simon was topless, both Scots were heavily tattooed, and soon to be covered in a glistening sheen of sweat. The stage lighting was fantastic, with red and white blinders pulsing and flashing.

I mentioned Mike Vennart earlier. He and Richard “Gambler” Ingram have been part of Biffy Clyro’s live act for many years, both having also been in legendary prog band Oceansize back in the day. (Vennart also has a metal side project along with Simon Neil entitled Empire State Bastard.) Vennart was on left-handed guitar, Ingram on keys.

I was hoping that they’d play a range of material spanning their back catalog, and maybe even a few special additions for NZ audiences, seeing how they’d never played here when releasing most of their albums. However, they have a fill-in bassist, Naomi MacLeod, stepping in while usual bass player James Johnston addresses some mental health and addiction issues. I imagined that Naomi had only learnt and rehearsed the songs that they’d selected for the standard set list of the tour so would have understood if they didn’t deviate from that.

Image: Bevan Triebels

Looking at Setlist.fm, I see that they did play the same songs they’ve been playing this far on tour. But it was still a great selection and I wasn’t left wanting. Nothing from their early albums when they were signed to Beggar’s Banquet, but I have no complaints.

Biffy Clyro have been around for a long time now, so have become veterans of the stage. We still got tastes of the human element though. It seemed like they got excited and sped up during “That Golden Rule” and “Bubbles”. And the Simon’s tortured scream during “Goodbye” had his voice breaking slightly in a way that I just love.

Image: Bevan Triebels

One criticism is that the backing tracks were too loud and borderline ostentatious at times. Yes, lovely string sections make ballads feel more emotional, but they stood out too much in the mix and took me out of the moment at times. I thought this made “Space” feel a bit like bad karaoke. But that didn’t stop half the crowd singing along with their arms in the air.

And Biffy Clyro know how to do ballads. “Machines” was the perfect antithesis to the garish rendition of “Space” – just Simon and an acoustic guitar, later joined by Ben on backing vocals. No need for backing tracks there, just pure magic. And who could deny the power of “Mountains”? Or “Many of Horror”? The unifying power of the ‘woahs’ in “Biblical”? Truly transcendent.

But my heart lies with the riffs, with the songs that compel us to move and thrash about. There is few things in life that make my heart sing quite like the riff in the later half of “Different People”. The frenzied, acerbic riffing of “That Golden Rule” leaves me breathless. “Bubbles” had the crowd bouncing with effervescence. The bombastic intros of “The Captain” and “Wolves of Winter” take no prisoners.

One moment that stood out was the outro of “Two People in Love”. I hadn’t paid that song much attention until now, but I really loved how the band sat on the motifs, building beautifully, first with twinkling piano, then adding fresh layers of guitar and crashing cymbals as the song grows and grows with captivating wonder. It sounded huge, ready to engulf us all.

Image: Bevan Triebels

This is a band that isn’t afraid to mess with us, to show off a little. Just listen to “Living is a Problem…” A few minutes of seemingly random stabbing that launches into choral harmonising and erupts into big choruses. As if it wasn’t technical enough, Simon derailed it during the bridge, the mad conductor holding the band hostage as they entered a passage that was somehow even more chaotic than the recorded song that we all know. He paused, slowed it down, sped it up, added weird distortion and just enough tension, before finally letting it resolve, the band following along flawlessly.

If I had to describe Biffy Clyro in one word it would be: anthemic. They know how to write a song that rouses you and makes you feel. Big riffs, big choruses, big energy, big singalongs. Plenty of dynamics and loads of fun. This gig was everything I’d hoped for and more.

Mon the Biff!

Image: Bevan Triebels

Review by Joseph James.

Photos by Bevan Triebels.

@triebels_photography
bevan@triebelsphotography.co.nz

Thanks to 818 and Live Nation.

Image: Bevan Triebels

Coast Arcade

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Coast Arcade. Image: Bevan Triebels

Biffy Clyro

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

: Biffy Clyro. Image: Bevan Triebels

Will Not Fade’s 2020 In Review

I think I can safely speak for all of us when I say it has been a rough year. Personally, I had a lot of amazing plans that got cancelled. I was planning on traveling throughout Europe, seeing the world, touring with my dear friends Ranges and attending festivals such as dunk!festival and ArcTanGent. Then a pesky virus spread around the globe and put an end to all of that. Admittedly we’ve got it pretty good here in New Zealand. We had five weeks of national lockdown around Easter time, and certainly a lot of gigs were cancelled or at reduced capacity, but we’ve still had live music for a lot of this year, which is an absolute blessing.

Even so, I’ve found it hard for a multitude of reasons. I decided to retire from running the blog earlier in the year. But I have some spare time now that I’m on holiday and I enjoy writing these end-of-year summaries, so I’m back in action for this one last article for the year.

My top albums of 2020

The Beths – Jump Rope Gazers

As I mentioned, New Zealand has still been able to have concerts and gatherings for a lot of the year, so this has allowed a lot of NZ artists to stand out a bit more on the world stage. Benee is an example of one artist who has garnered international attention and success. The Beths are another group who have gone from strength to strength. Many of us fell in love with their self-deprecating powerpop with debut album Future Me Hates Me, and follow up record Jump Rope Gazers is just as brilliant. It’s more of a slow burner than FMHM, but still proves just as irresistible and catchy after a few listens, and an easy pick for my top album of 2020. The Beths are also great live and I was delighted to catch them live again this year after a number of postponements. They’re in such demand that they played 5 packed out shows over three days in Wellington, and I imagine they could have even pulled enough of a crowd to play a few more shows too.

Caspian – On Circles

Caspian’s last album Dust and Disquiet is phenomenal. They blew my mind playing that material at dunk!fest in 2018 and I was so upset that I couldn’t see them play again this year after my travels were cancelled. On Circles may not quiet measure up to Dust and Disquiet, but it’s still a solid album, just in it’s own way. It’s a more reserved offering, but this seems somehow appropriate for the times. There’s two songs with singing – Kyle Dufrey of Pianos Become The Teeth lends his voice to one track, and Phil Jamieson’s singing on the titular track is sublime and soul restoring. Something else I love about this album is the interesting tones and timbres they’ve gone for. Maybe they’re in alternate tunings, maybe it’s effect pedals, I really have no idea. But these tones, coupled with some cello and violin on a few tracks, make for unusual yet enticing listening.

Into It. Over It. – Figure

Regular readers won’t be at all surprised by this inclusion. It’s no secret that I’m a big IIOI fan. They were the first act that I flew overseas to see live. And the last album, Standards, was a great. Figure is a logical continuation of Standards. Brilliant songwriting, great playing. The drumming is complementary and they’ve continued their exploration into interesting tones.

Biffy Clyro – A Celebration of Endings

Again, this should come as no surprise; Biffy Clyro have been my favourite band since I was a teenager. I almost slept on this one though – I pre-ordered the vinyl record and due to covid related complications it still hasn’t shown up. Warner said they’d send a digital download but never did (same case with their last record Ellipsis too, up your game Warner!) After a few months of waiting I figured that maybe I should do some hunting. I eventually got a copy of the album downloaded and I’m glad I did because it’s been on steady repeat ever since. Biffy have always trodden a fine line, making a point of being weird and alternative (at times inaccessible even, especially during the earlier albums), yet at the same time playing stadium rock and writing songs that earn mainstream radio play (more so overseas). And somehow they’ve managed to continue down this path with success. There’s less of the bland radio fodder that featured heavily on Ellipsis, and they’ve managed to evolve and push their style whilst style true to their distinctive Biffy sound.

Other music worth mentioning

distance

Sam Butler released two great solo EPs this year. I reviewed the first EP, over time.

Saint Speak

A side-project from Spencer of Tides of Man, lullabies for his newborn.

Spencer Gill with Tides of Man at dunk!festival 2018. Image: Will Not Fade

Jakob – “HAARP”

A great lost b-side from the post-rock titans.

Lakes

Lakes released my favourite album of 2019, and dropped a few remixes, covers and other tracks this year. This 7″ is my pick of their 2020 offerings.

And two albums not released in 2020 that I listened to a lot

Dave Hause – Kick

You may know Hause as the singer of punk band The Loved Ones. It’s almost a cliche how punk singers start solo projects along these lines (Think The Revival Tour). Kick is a great album, hopeful and defiant in the face of oppression. It’s in the vein of singer-songwriter, even country styles, something a bit more chilled out, but still with rock roots.

Metavari – Be One Of Us And Hear No Noise

I have no idea how I came across this album but it just hit the spot. A perfect blend of ambient and electronica. I’ve needed more calming music like this a lot this year.

The state of things in 2020

I’m terrified of the ongoing implications of what will happen to the music scene as a result of this pandemic. Musicians who rely on touring and selling merch for a living suddenly don’t have an income. Venues can’t get by because people aren’t allowed to attend gatherings. No venues means no places for bands to play. And it doesn’t just affect musicians, there’s the roadies and drivers and lighting techs and sound engineers and a whole industry suddenly without work.

Many musicians are resorting to livestreaming performances. [Here’s one that my friends in Ranges did for WherePostRockDwells]. Some people have been able to monetise livestreaming these performances. We will see if this becomes comomonplace in the future.

We all know that streaming is not really the answer forward. Sure, it is a revenue stream, but they pay such a pittance per stream that it’s a joke. Bandcamp have stepped up with Bandcamp Fridays, monthly events that they choose not to take their cut on any music and merch sold in order to help the musicians and labels who need the income so badly now. And it appears to have worked, with millions of dollars worth of transactions happening every Bandcamp Friday.

Thankfully we still have live music here in NZ for the time being. I’ve been paying to a Patreon for our local venue Valhalla because I know that without venues, we won’t have a live music scene.

Live music in 2020

I didn’t see many international acts this year, for obvious reasons. I did see Queen at the stadium (it was a bit of a spectacle but I’m glad I didn’t pay much), I saw Yawning Man at Valhalla, and a few metal bands at Obey The Riff festival at Panhead Brewery in Upper Hutt. My own band also opened for Sebadoh at a sold out show at San Fran in Feb, which was pretty awesome.

Yawning Man at Valhalla. Image: Will Not Fade

My best gig of the year was The Wellington Sea Shanty Society at Breaker Bay Hall. It’s exactly what it sounds like. I drank a lot of rum and sang pirate songs. My friends and I all agree that it was our collective best night out since The Beards.

Newtown Festival was one highlight. I spent most of the day there taking photos at the Ferguson St Stage for The Mousai.

Happy Valley at Newtown Festival. Image: Will Not Fade

Some of my favourite Wellington bands at the moment are Happy Valley, Planet Hunter and Adoneye, and I managed to see them all play a few times.

It’s a real shame that Spook The Horses had their European tour cancelled, but I was stoked that they asked my band to open at their album release and they killed it. They livestreamed the night if you want to go back and watch it.

Spook The Horses album release at Meow. Image: Will Not Fade

A real indication of how much things have changed is when I went to see local speed metallers Stälker recently. It was packed. Certainly a big change from reduced capacity shows that I’d been going to a few months earlier. The mosh pit was pumping and you couldn’t move because everyone was squeezed together so tightly. I used to live for nights like that, but it felt so uncomfortable after avoiding being too close to others for most of the year.

Stälker at Newtown Sports Bar. Image: Will Not Fade

2021

It’s hard to say what next year holds for us. Guns n Roses have announced a stadium tour in NZ. Is that too ambitious? Only time will tell. Hopefully the covid vaccine is effective.

Beastwars have held an Obey The Riff festival at Panhead Brewery in Upper Hutt over the past few years and it’s been successful. I’ve heard rumours about the potential lineup for 2021 and I’m excited about that. I’m not holding my breath about seeing any acts from overseas anytime soon though.

In terms of releases, I’m looking forward to a new Amy Shark album, and hopefully Adoneye release their debut (bass player Jesse is recovering from wrist surgery). There may also be a live DVD from Opium Eater (Jesse’s other band) and Glassblower are dropping their debut grindcore album. My own band Secrets of the Sun will have an album out at some stage early next year too. Sora Shima are coming back so I’m hoping to see them again, and fingers crossed for some new music.

What are your favourite albums of 2020? What are your predictions for 2021? Feel free to comment and share your thoughts!

Live Review: Biffy Clyro at Spark Arena, Auckland

Biffy Clyro

w/ Skinny Hobos

Spark Arena, Auckland

Tuesday 24 April 2018

Last time I saw Skinny Hobos play was a mixed bag for me. Don’t get me wrong – it was a great show that they put on. It’s more that I had consumed a few too many beers that night and things ended far worse than I could have anticipated.

It was my last night out with friends before heading overseas for most of the remainder of the year. As you can imagine, I got slightly carried away – it being a farewell and all. One “friend” decided to take advantage of me in a drunken state, kidnapped me, and drove me halfway up the North Island, stranding me in Marton delirious and hungover the following morning. There are few times in my life that I’ve felt worse than that, sick, betrayed, and having to spend the day hitching back to Wellington in the state that I was.

Not that this should have any bearing on my thoughts on Skinny Hobos. I’ve enjoyed their show every time I’ve seen them and this time was no exception. I would have expected something punchier than the slow, meandering song they started with, but once they got into it they played great. You could tell that they were nervous – blurting out bizarre phrases between songs in attempts at banter – but the music spoke for itself. Jared Wrennall from Dead Favours came out to guest on a song, which worked well. I wish I had chosen to photograph this show because they looked fantastic under these lights. They have an album coming out shortly, along with a nationwide tour with His Master’s Voice, so expect to hear the name Skinny Hobos coming up a lot more.

The energy in the crowd was humming as we waited for Biffy. It was a mixed audience, with many parents bringing their children to the spectacle. A handful of punters had Scottish flags draped around their shoulders, and the bar was offering Tennents beer to keep with the Scottish theme.

This was my first time at this venue since they switch branding from Vector Arena to Spark Arena. And to be honest, I don’t notice any changes. I’ve certainly never been to a bad gig here. What is different, however, is that the arena is substantially bigger than Powerstation, where I saw Biffy Clyro play last time they came to NZ.

At first it was slightly disappointing to see that they hadn’t sold enough tickets to fill the arena. The stage had been brought forward, cutting the venue in half. A large black curtain blocking off the space behind the stage to make the arena feel more intimate. It’s a shame that such a high-caliber band is still yet to gain a decent footing in New Zealand. That said, the venue felt ideal once the show was underway.

Most bands I’ve seen play this arena have had big screens and impressive stage sets. Well Biffy had great lighting, but that was it. No gimmicks. This was all about the musicians.

An interesting choral tune played as the band walked onstage, all five standing motionless and bathed in blue light as the tension built.

They launched their set with “Wolves of Winter”, the aggressive lead single from latest album Ellipsis. Oh man, oh man. That is how you start a show. The three Scotsmen played tight, heavy, and full of vigor.

They then followed up with “Living Is A Problem…”, from Puzzle, and “57”, from their first album, Blackened Sky. Talk about starting strong.

“Living Is A Problem” has the band showing off their musical abilities, with jagged staccato stabs that come at random intervals. The kind of playing that sticks out like a sore thumb if someone is off their game. I still marvel at how they can pull it off. Not only that, but Simon also paused, began singing Andrew Gold’s “Thank You For Being A Friend”, before they all dove back into the song without missing a beat.

I’m glad that they did pull songs from their back catalogue. This is only the second time Biffy Clyro have reached our shores, so it’s nice that we got to hear older songs that we’ve missed out on in the past. We got the euphoric ballads like “Mountains”, the dancey numbers like “Who’s Got A Match?”, and the batshit insane early era stuff like “There’s No Such Thing As A Jaggy Snake”. They draw from a variety of influences, resulting in anthemic, technical music that I find irresistible. Virtually all of their songs are nonsensical lyric-wise, but that didn’t stop me from lending my voice to all of them as they played.

That said, most of the set list derived from the recent album Ellipsis. It’s understandable that they’re playing songs from the album that they are promoting, but I’m thankful that we got to hear a wider selection.

It was a class show that you’d expect from a band who have attained the status that Biffy have. They didn’t have the fancy screens and lasers, but they still had all the kit. I counted at least 6 bass guitars. That seems slightly excessive to me, but it is telling about how professional the band are – that they have that many extras on standby.

Simon Neil [guitar] showed us exactly why he’s such a stellar frontman, delivering his vocals with intense passion, whether cooing on acoustic guitar, or screaming bloody murder on the heavier tracks. I was surprised to note how much the twins Ben [drums] and James Johnston [bass] sung as well, adding brilliant subtle harmonies to many songs. It seems obvious that twins would be awesome at harmonies, but I’ve never noticed how much they sing before now. Their playing is already busy enough as is.

The trio are known for playing topless – and I can see why: it looks bloody hot up on stage. There was a steady dribble of sweat pouring off Simon’s microphone stand all through the night.

Joining the Ayrshire trio were two touring musicians, Mike Vennart [guitar] and Richard Ingram [keys] – formerly of the prog band Oceansize – adding elements that flesh out the sound in a way that a three-piece couldn’t.

They finished the night with two songs that demonstrate their diverse talents: the tender acoustic track “Machines” – one of the biggest singalongs of the night; and the triumphant anthem “Stingin’ Belle” – resplendent with synth-bagpipes during an ever-climaxing outro.

I have nothing to complain about. I got to see my favourite band play last night. They more than delivered, and it was a treat to hear some older numbers. It’s a shame that they overestimated the size of the venue they needed, but all in all the show with nothing short of perfect. I’m surprised that I still have a voice.

Mon the Biff!

Joseph James

A young fan proudly showing his new shirt and set list

Ten Years On: Discovering Biffy Clyro’s breakthrough album Puzzle

Ten Years On: Biffy Clyro – Puzzle

Isolated on the other end of the planet

The internet existed ten years ago, but it was a completely different animal. My family still had a dial-up connection, so good luck trying to load a video. Not that there were many music videos on YouTube anyway. A few of my slightly older mates tell me about how they left the computer running all night just trying to load a new four-minute Blink 182 video when it was released.

Can you remember the ghastly screeching sound that the computer made when making a connection on dial-up? I can certainly remember my dad shouting at me to disconnect when he wanted to make a phone call. And to think that today we use our phones to connect to the internet!

Biffy Clyro. Image: Luke Gilford

Youtube was a fledgling, Spotify and other such streaming sites were the speculative talk of some sci-fi future. Facebook existed, but didn’t become popular within my peer group until around 2009. We were all on Bebo [remember that???], with some of the more alty scene kids also having a Myspace account. Nobody really bothered with Facebook messenger anyway, because everyone used MSN.

Which gives you some rough context to why I was my best friend’s house trying to listen to a song called “Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies” using a program called Limewire. I’d read about this Scottish band called Biffy Clyro who had just released an album called Puzzle. They were on the front cover of Rock Sound magazine and they sounded interesting, so I was trying to find some of their music to listen to.

Like I said, my family had a dial-up connection, so no point trying to find anything online at home. Streaming sites didn’t exist and sites like Youtube offered little music content. The record stores in my small hometown of Nelson weren’t going to import music by an unheard of [ha!] band like Biffy Clyro unless I was willing to shell out at least $40 – almost as much as I earned in a week working part-time at a supermarket. So I decided to use Tom’s computer to try to listen to this band.

Limewire was notoriously bad for containing poor quality content. Viruses were abundant and most tracks were mislabeled and poorly spelled. So when I started listening to this song that I’d tried to download – “Living Is A Problem…” – it was of little surprise that the track sounded corrupted. I listened to the jarring, stabbing sounds at random intervals for about a minute before I stopped listening and gave up. There’s no way that this file was the single I had read about!

[This video clip cuts roughly 90 seconds off the album version of the song]

Hearing more material

It was a few months later that I bought a Kerrang! Magazine which featured a best of 2007 sampler. That CD featured a Biffy song called “A Whole Child Ago”. It had a crazy riff that sounded like a polyphonic ringtone [yes, this was 2007 remember!], weird drumming that had a looping pattern [or did it?] and nonsensical lyrics. And I loved it!

This track – along with “Get Fucked Stud”, from the Rock Sound sampler that I’d got when I first read about Biffy – made me want to track down this elusive Puzzle album again.

Tom pulled through for me. A true best friend, he had heard me go on and on about wanting to listen to that album so somehow managed to buy a copy of Puzzle on CD for my birthday.

I remember being so excited. I finally had it! I put it into my crappy discman that was hooked up to criminally bad speakers [so tinny they should have come with a gram of bud!] and sat down to listen to the album. It had a bright orange sticker on the cover with a quote from NME: “This album will change your life!” Yeah… right… I doubted the claim, but still had high expectations.

The first track was “Living Is A Problem…”. Wait… What the hell? The same stabbing sounds for almost two minutes! So that file from Limewire wasn’t corrupted? And this was a single???

Upon closer listen, I figured that the song showcased some incredible musicianship. Certainly not easy to listen to, but bloody impressive that the three musicians could play something with such odd timing and play as a tight unit. The song got really aggressive, but oddly enough had choral sections and string arrangements juxtaposed again the heavy rocking.

Listening through the rest of the album was an interesting ride. It was weird, that’s for sure. Clearly they were on drugs when they came up with most of the lyrics. And there are so many quirky elements and odd time signatures, which were actually tame compared to their previous three albums – not that I knew it at the time.

I think it is impossible to listen to the infuriatingly catchy “Who’s Got A Match?” and stay still. The triplet groove compels the listener to nod their head, tap their foot… something!

In fact, Biffy may well lay claim to my first exposure to math elements in rock. It’s either them or Tool. They took my listening experiences beyond the standard 4/4 or 6/8 time signatures that most songs we listen to are written in. “Now I’m Everyone” contains a 5/4 passage that used to annoy me so much, but I now love it.

I wasn’t sure what to make of the lyrics for most of this album. Plenty are simply nonsense. However, there is a coherent theme of mourning throughout. Simon’s mother had passed away shortly before the album was written, and glimpses into his grieving can be found throughout. I couldn’t tell you why a man is on the corner selling dozens of bones, but when Simon cries “Eleanor, I would do anything for another minute with you” the message to his late mother is clear.

And, just like that, I became a Biffy Clyro fanatic. I started trying to push it on all my mates, spreading the good word of the Biff. It became a bit of a running joke among my mates – “yeah, yeah, Joseph. We know – another weird rock band. Stop going on about it would ya?” Took a photo of the Puzzle album cover with my phone to use as the phone wallpaper, but after a while switched it for something else after a few too many people had asked me why I had the photo of a naked man on my phone.

I did manage to convert a few mates. I was in a band with my best friend Tom [who had gifted me the CD] and another friend Harry, and we chose to add “A Whole Child Ago” to our repertoire, alongside other obligatory teenage covers band numbers: Nirvana, Muse, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, System Of A Down, Incubus, Rage Against The Machine etc… I actually sat down to try to drum along to the track a few days ago and realised that I never did figure out how to play it properly, and just managed to come up with something similar that seemed to work. It’s a tricky linear beat that swaps between the hi-hat, snare and kick, and changes ever so slightly every few bars. I think I was more suited to playing something more simple and aggressive like Nirvana’s “Breed”.

It’s crazy that no-one had heard of Biffy in New Zealand. At the time, the band was busy headlining major festivals and touring with the biggest rock bands over in the UK. I guess that shows how important radio play was for entering the public consciousness, back in the days before music was so easy to find online.

I’ve since dug through the band’s catalogue, and own all of their albums and on CD or vinyl (I have most in both formats, because I’m a loser fanboy) as well as a few b-sides collections. I saw Biffy the one time they played in New Zealand and it was everything that I’d hoped for and more. I used that review to launch this music blog (and probably got a meagre 10 views – whoo!).

I guess what I’m trying to say is that NME was right. On that little orange sticker, stuck to the front on the album near the parent advisory box, they told me that the album would change my life.

It did.

Mon the Biff!

Joseph James

Buried Treasure: Biffy Clyro – ’57’ (live at Wembley)

Buried Treasure is a semi-regular feature that explores some hidden musical gems – the rare and forgotten B-sides, covers, hidden tracks, live versions and alternative takes that deserve some recognition.

Biffy Clyro – ’57’ Live at Wembley

Biffy Clyro are my favourite band. Most of my friends are probably sick of how much I rave about them.

If I had to pick my favourite release of theirs it would have to be the Revolutions // Live at Wembley CD/DVD set. They have a lot of strong albums to pick from, but Revolutions collects most of their best material, and some of the live versions are better than the studio versions. I’ve used that DVD to convert many of my mates into Biffy believers.

The limited edition tin box set that I own is excessive. It came half full with confetti from the concert, along with a piece of wood from a smashed guitar, stickers, a poster, a copy of a diary from the tour manager, and the all important CD/DVD. It cost me an arm and a leg – paying the currency conversion fees and international postage – but I don’t regret it in the slightest.

The DVD includes 25 of Biffy Clyro’s best songs that they’d released at that point. Hard hitting rock anthems, emotional acoustic songs, sing-along ballads, and weird indescribable early eclectic stuff. Material from their most recent studio album, Only Revolutions, hadn’t changed much while transitioning from studio to live setting, but it was clear that some songs from their early days had evolved over time.

The best of these was the ’57’, from Biffy Clyro’s début album Blackened Sky.

’57’ is a companion piece to ’27’, another single from the album. It’s written in a typically Biffy unusual style, showcasing their penchant for mathy riffs with odd time signatures. For a three-piece band to work well, every member needs to be pretty capable on their instruments. This more than applies to Biffy Clyro, whose three members are all phenomenally gifted. They even split vocal duties in this song. ’57’ features aggressive grungy loud/soft dynamics, such as the quiet “do, do ,do” prechorus that leads into the explosive chorus.

The debut album Blackened Sky, in lilac purple. This pressing also features nine B-sides on a second LP.

’57’ is a highlight of Blackened Sky, but the live version was so much more exciting and energetic, somehow rejuvenated. Maybe it’s because it was one of the first songs that the band recorded, giving them about 10 years to hone and improve it before they filmed it at Wembley. The infectious “HEY”s in the chorus work so much better with everyone in the crowd shouting it.

Needless to say, I was over the moon when they played it at their first ever New Zealand show. It was certainly a highlight from an already outstanding set.

Usually studio recordings are better quality than live versions, because songs can be edited and touched up during production. Revolutions is a rare exception to that rule, with ’57’ being the most standout example. You can find live versions of songs that Biffy have written since Revolutions on Opposites: Live at Glasgow, but sadly the audio quality for the latter isn’t nearly as good.

Joseph James

Biffy Clyrow/ Coast ArcadeJames Hay Theatre, Christchurch Monday 13 April 2026

Coast Arcade

Biffy Clyro

My top albums of 2020

The Beths – Jump Rope Gazers

Caspian – On Circles

Into It. Over It. – Figure

Biffy Clyro – A Celebration of Endings

Other music worth mentioning

distance

Jakob – “HAARP”

And two albums not released in 2020 that I listened to a lot

Dave Hause – Kick

Metavari – Be One Of Us And Hear No Noise

The state of things in 2020

Live music in 2020

2021

Biffy Clyro

w/ Skinny Hobos

Spark Arena, Auckland

Tuesday 24 April 2018

Ten Years On: Biffy Clyro – Puzzle

Isolated on the other end of the planet

Hearing more material

Buried Treasure is a semi-regular feature that explores some hidden musical gems – the rare and forgotten B-sides, covers, hidden tracks, live versions and alternative takes that deserve some recognition.

Biffy Clyro – ’57’ Live at Wembley

Biffy Clyro
w/ Coast Arcade
James Hay Theatre, Christchurch
Monday 13 April 2026