It's a wet and miserable Thursday night in Manchester, but inside the venue, Rebellion, South Of Salem are turning up the heat in front of 520 sweat-slicked fans. Like all the shows on this run, it’s sold out – an impressive feat for any emerging
act in these straitened times, but even more so considering this is South Of Salem’s first-ever headlining tour.
There’s a palpable sense of excitement before they even come on, as the iconic theme from seminal slasher flick Halloween sets the tone. They explode into The Purge-themed Let Us Prey in a welter of volume and energy, the frontline a blur of motion and frontman Joey Draper cajoling and directing the audience like they’re already filling arenas. Just a few songs in, they pause before playing Made To Be Mine – a singalong, riff-fuelled beast of a number cleverly conflating shades of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein with the classic rock themes of broken and mended hearts. Joey directs the security to help one particular fan onto the stage. She looks simultaneously mortified and delighted as her boyfriend follows, drops to one knee and asks her to marry him. Luckily she says yes, to thunderous applause.
