Taste of Chaos - December 11th.

Every year Taste of Chaos promises to bring a superior line-up to UK shows and 2010 was no different. The moment both Papa Roach and Disturbed were announced on the same bill, an incredible show was guaranteed. The four band strong line-up rocked up in Glasgow to kick it all off for Scotland’s only date of the tour.

As you enter the venue’s largest hall, you are met with a merch stall packed with fans and a booth giving away free Rockstar Energy Drink – a tour tradition. Fans are both pressed against the barrier and sitting around lazily waiting on the first band, whose banner is there for all to see, to take the stage.

It wasn’t long after arrival before Pennsylvanian quintet Halestorm turn up to get the crowd going. The highlight of the set, other than frontwoman Lzzy’s rousing crowd interactions, came as her brother Arejay launched into a drum solo that, in turn, saw the entire band join in on smaller percussion. They rattled through their set without a hitch, thanking Scotland for a great show before heading off and passing the Taste of Chaos baton onwards.

Next to take on the Scottish crowd are Californian rockers Buckcherry. Frontman Josh Todd took time to explain songs before tearing into them, including “this is about my first time taking cocaine when I was just a little kid” and “this about when you see a pretty girl walking down the street.” This band are plain and simple: they unashamedly indulge their songs fully in ‘sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll’.

Todd walks offstage briefly to take off his shirt, returning with his tattoo clad torso in full view of the crowd before continuing the set with a lot more gyrating than previously. Whether it be the single ‘All Night Long’ from their newest album of the same name or the only song they play from their pre-break era ‘Lit Up’ (from their self titled album (1999)) the band energetically tackle their entire setlist track by track.

As the band tear through their final song of the night – ‘Crazy Bitch’ – they are met with a relatively raucous reception, leaving the stage on a high as anticipation for Papa Roach begins to set in.

The white banner is enough to rile an array of cheers from the crowd. The lights black out before going back up, teasing the fans who avidly await the moment Papa Roach take to the stage. As the moment finally arrives, they storm the SECC with their latest single ‘Kick in the Teeth’. Jacoby is, without doubt, an incredible front man (a fact yet to be contested in my experience) and captivates the entire audience from the moment he steps onstage. The second he demands the crowd make some noise they are more than happy to oblige.

Throughout the set Jacoby seemed intent on proclaiming his love of Mohawks and the girls in the circle pit, as well as donning a pair of Kanye glasses through ‘Scars’ before tossing them out to the audience. The band held the SECC at full attention as the soared through ‘One Track Mind’, ‘Getting Away with Murder’ and ‘Hollywood Whore’ amongst others.

The set wrapped up with two classics from their 2000 album ‘Infest’. The crowd responded riotously as the band entered their penultimate track ‘Between Angels and Insects’ and practically exploded as they heard Jacoby scream, “Cut my life into pieces, this is my last resort.”

After the final wait of the night, the entire hall blacked out as the large screens flashed to life with Remnants, depicting some violence, hospitals and an injection to the chest. It’s with this that the film descends into chaos, much like the crowd, as Chicago’s finest Disturbed launch into ‘Asylum’ and David Draiman makes his entrance to the stage.

They grab the SECC by the throat and remind everyone exactly why they are so upstanding in the metal community. They absolutely tore through their set, including a cover of Genesis’s ‘Land of Confusion’. Your eyes were drawn to one of two things; you kept looking back to the screens that loomed behind the band, flashing videos as each song was tackled seamlessly, or you couldn’t take your eyes from the band who completely and utterly nailed their setlist, including ‘Stricken’ and ‘Stupefy’.

It comes as no surprise to hear that the absolute riot of the night came with Disturbed’s closing number. The Lion Rampant looks over the crowd from the screens and the drum beat started. The entire SECC took off as the band jumped headfirst into ‘Down with the Sickness’, ending not just their set, but the entire show, on a high point as they draw to a close and leave Scotland basking in what had been a fantastic show of rock and metal alike.

Taste of Chaos promised to bring a good show and delivered wholeheartedly in their promise. The show was stolen, unsurprisingly, by both Papa Roach and Disturbed.  Although many shows have fallen through of late due to the weather, Scotland was lucky that a show of this calibre was one of those that survived. So near to the end of 2010, it’s definitely a great show to end the year on.