London is spoilt for choice on that wintery Tuesday evening : Cambridge natives Lonely The Brave are bringing their emotional pop rock to the Islington Assembly Hall and Beartooth have probably destroyed the Electric Ballroom with their riffs.
Where did I go, you ask ?
To the Underworld to see a band I've grown to love a lot over the past year, Stray From The Path.

The Americans and I started in a sold out Maroquinerie, in Paris, where they supported one of my all time favourite bands, Architects. I had ended up in awe for about forty five minutes, taking their hardcore goodness all in. I found out what they stood for and who they spoke for a while later, and after seeing them supporting the mighty Every Time I Die in a disgustingly boiling Warmaudio, in Lyon, with a crippling migraine, I had decided one thing – next time they would be in Europe, I would be there.

First band to start the night is Sheffield's very own Dead Harts. I had seen them supporting the likes of Beartooth (September 2014 & May 2015) and Bury Tomorrow (April 2015) and had grown to like and understand their energetic hardcore sound. Their performance at the Underworld is nothing short of a success, despite the still very small amount of people partaking in moshpits and other circle pits, and it wouldn't be surprising to see their name progressively appearing higher on festival line ups. Their set was as impressive at the end as it was at the beginning and they didn't let the few technical issues they encountered stop them from being consistently solid and worth the watch.

Next up are Polar, and, from the get go, the crowd goes absolutely mental. The fans, crammed and packed against the low stage, do not hesitate to grab Adam Woodford's microphone and shout the lyrics, and moshpits do not stop for a single second, becoming bigger and bigger by the second. The London based guys' energy and their obvious desire to interact with their audience is nothing short of inspiring, something you would want every single band to do. They keep thanking every person in the venue, but the biggest round of applause comes when they tell us how touring Europe the week before was "fucking hard work" in regard of current events, and how we shouldn't be afraid and should keep enjoying the music we love. They close the set with the promise of a new album being ready – here's to hoping it will take them to new heights, where they, without the shadow of a doubt, belong.

The venue is now packed and Stray From The Path take the stage to the sound of The New Gods, extracted from the band's latest release, Subliminal Criminals, and its distinctive opening riff. If the crowd was crazy during both Dead Harts and Polar, they are creating what can only be described as pure chaos during the Americans' performance – people crowdsurf and stagedive on top of one another, and it often looks as though one of the amps is going to fall off the stage.

Stray From The Path are known for taking a stand and never being afraid of voicing their opinions, and tonight is a great demonstration of their engagement. Frontman Drew York mentions the Paris attacks and the terrorist threats whilst urging us not to be afraid, telling us how terrorism won't ever stop him from saying what he thinks, and before introducing D.I.E.P.I.G, another song extracted from Subliminal Criminals, he says the words that everyone in this scene should say and reminds us how there is no room for men who get involved with teenage girls, topped off by a much applauded "Fuck Front Porch Step, and fuck Ian Watkins". In a scene where everyone seems to be afraid to say these words, words we all think, it's refreshing and encouraging to hear them on a stage, for everyone to hear.

Performance wise, the Americans are purely and simply flawless. Drew's vocals set him apart from most frontmen in the hardcore scene, as does the band's saturated sound, easy to hear in songs such as Badge and a Bullet II or Black Friday. They close the first part of a hectic set with First World Problem Child (which originally features Architects' vocalist Sam Carter) and come back for the long awaited Badge and a Bullet, which gives an extra opportunity to the crowd to wreak havoc in a sweaty Underworld.

Stray From The Path are one of the most important bands in our scene and Tuesday was a much needed reminder why. In this day and age when being in a band seems to mean that you can get away with pretty much anything and when the biggest publications keep celebrating all the wrongdoers and refuse to stand against known predators, we need voices to speak up. Stray From The Path are one of these voices, one that always goes for what's right instead of what's easy. More of that in 2016, please. The safety and survival of our safe haven depends on it.