LIVE FROM THE PIT: Dinosaur Pile Up, Snake Eyes and The Xcerts

In February of 2021, DINOSAUR PILE-UP’s lead singer MATT BIGLAND made an Instagram post. Over ten slides, he detailed his decline in health since the recording and release of the band’s 2019 album Celebrity Mansion, discussing his battle with Crohns disease and the stress that lead up to it. It was clear to just about everyone – BIGLAND included – that DINOSAUR PILE-UP would be taking a backseat for a little while. Many fans wondered if they would ever be back at all.

Fast forward four and a half years, and we finally have our answer.

Hot on the heels of their triumphant fifth album I’ve Felt Better, DINOSAUR PILE-UP embark on their first full UK tour since that Instagram post, joined by SNAKE EYES and THE XCERTS. The first stop on the tour is XOYO in Birmingham, a lively venue with a rooftop bar in the centre of the city, in the heart of lively (and heavily grafitti’d) Digbeth.

Opening the show are Brighton natives SNAKE EYES, emerging to a room with only a smattering of early-comers – but you wouldn’t know that from the performance they put on. The two-piece are full of energy from the very start, blasting their scuzzy grunge tunes with giant grins on their faces the whole time. Charisma bleeds out of them, and they have the crowd of eager Brummies eating out of their palms in no time. They squeeze a lot into their short set; an instrument swap, a journey into the crowd for the drummer, a plug for their debut album Cash Rich due at the end of January, and a smattering of political statements and reminders to love yourself. They’re a whirlwind of fun, and there’s no doubt that they picked up a few fans in the crowd who’ll be eager to catch them on tour again sometime soon.

In a stark contrast, scene veterans THE XCERTS bring the mood down. Lit up in dark blue lights, lead vocalist and guitarist MURRAY MACLEOD hides behind a floppy curtain of hair, not speaking a word to the crowd until they’ve eaten through almost half of their set. The trio sound excellent together, which is to be expected after almost a quarter of a century spent sharing a stage, but only once they start to engage the crowd do they really begin to come alive. “Birmingham is cursed for us”, MACLEOD grins out into the crowd, letting us hear his thick Scottish accent for the first time. “For about five years straight, every time we played here a guy would shout ‘BIFFY CLYRO’ at us.” Naturally, the crowd took this as a challenge, and the band laughed into their next track. Later, MACLEOD thanks the headliners for inviting them to play on their tour after knowing each other since 2012. “We were talking before the show. None of us can decide if it’s incredible that our bands have survived this long, or if it’s a little bit pathetic.” By the reception of the crowd, it’s fairly safe to say that it’s the former.

By the time DINOSAUR PILE-UP are ready to come on stage, the crowd is biting at the bit to see them. It’s been four years since they were in the city, and every elder emo within a thirty mile radius has shown up to welcome them back. ‘Bought To Lose It, the opener on the band’s brand new album I’ve Felt Better is the first song on the setlist, and it’s immediately apparent how well-suited their particular brand of grunge-tinged pop punk is to a live setting. Despite the album only having been out for a few weeks, the crowd sing every word back to them.

Fan favourite Peninsula sees the first crowd-surfers of the night, but the moshpits in the middle of the venue never seem to stop. The band mirror that energy on the stage, looking every bit as pleased to be there as the fans are. The setlist bounces between new tracks and old, but the energy never falters – even DINOSAUR PILE-UP’s more melancholy songs (Love’s The Worst, I Don’t Love Nothing And Nothing Loves Me) have enough gas in the tank to keep the buzz of the crowd high. When BIGLAND addresses the crowd, it’s to express his gratitude to be able to continue performing like this, and the cheering from the audience makes it clear that this sentiment is shared.

Right through to the three-song encore, it’s clear that everyone in the venue is exactly where they want to be. Crowdsurfers sail towards the barrier, fans scream-sing every word, and the band plays like they’re hyper-aware that this was almost all taken away from them. When the houselights come up, one thing is clear; there isn’t a person in the house who isn’t grateful that they’re back.

Words: Ellen Lovell

Photos: Izzy Sheldon