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Yorkshire Times
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Graham Clark
Music Features Writer
@Maxximum23Clark
2:22 PM 1st May 2015
arts

Union J/The Vamps - Manchester Arena

 
Union J
Union J
Union J could have been the next One Direction: they have the voices and the songs that appeal to the same fan base. It was a good move to get this four piece on the Vamps tour. These former X Factor finalists have a lot going for them.

Their short set included all their hits such as Carry You and You've Got It All. Being in Manchester the boys paid tribute to Take That with a note perfect rendition of Rule the World.

The Vamps
The Vamps
The Vamps are so young they make McFly look old! In just over 18 months the group have gone from doing support slots, to their own headline tour last autumn around medium sized venues to the current UK arena tour.

It is a bombastic entrance for the gig as fireworks explode as the band run on to the stage to sing their big hit, Wild Heart. They are an energetic act to watch and it is good to see a pop act that looks like they could be around for a few years.

With only one album released so far (don't worry the second is out on 27 November as they announced during the gig) it was always going to be a question of how they would make the gig last over 90 minutes. To counteract this we get a cover of the Mark Ronson hit, Uptown Funk that leads into Seven Nation Army that then leads into Taylor Swift's Shake It Off.

You would not expect a drum solo at a gig by The Vamps but that is just what we get as Tristan Evans plays like there is no tomorrow as he and his drum kit rise up on a drum riser!

There are video clips with each member of the band but you soon get the idea that what each one of them says is just the same: they all miss their families when they are on tour and they all have a pet that they miss. It has probably all been scripted for them but if you are one of their young fans it doesn't really matter.

The covers continue with the Sum 41 track, In Too deep before we are back on home turf with Lovestruck whilst Can We Dance ends this entertaining gig.