I’ve always found Giuda to be a really consistent live band. I’ve seen them a fair few times across several cities (and two countries) and I’ve never really felt disappointed by any of their performances. They’re the kind of band that really makes you want to dance and sing.

The first time I saw Giuda was back in 2012, when I was still living in Baltimore. They played in a restaurant with the Night Birds and White Wires and some other opening bands I’d never heard of and haven’t bothered to remember. At that point I’d hadn’t heard of Giuda either, but I definitely walked away remembering them.

Three years down the line, they’re still one of my favourite bands to see live. A big reason as to why I think they’re such a captivating live band is their singer’s excellent showmanship. When they hit they stage last Saturday at the Lexington I was tired, grumpy and a little sick, but when their singer took the stage and started dancing, I immediately felt re-energised.

I placed myself next to the stage, with the intention of staying up front long enough to get some photos for Heatwave, and then going to the back for the rest of the show, but that never happened. Listening to Giuda play and watching their singer dance kept me up front all night.

Now, Heatwave’s already done a review of the newest Giuda release, but I have to confess that I didn’t bother to really check out the review or the new songs before I went to see them last weekend. I’m one of those people that tends to assume a band’s new song’s will be shit until I’m proven wrong (it’s a horrible way to be, I know).

When I took a peek at the band’s set list for the night, I was immediately disappointed over how many new songs were being played, but after I actually heard them crank out their new jams, I really wasn’t disappointed anymore. Actually, their set list had a near perfect balance of songs from all of their releases.

I’m actually really glad that the first time I heard Giuda’s new songs was at a gig. I think I’d still have liked them if I’d bothered to listen to Speaks Evil on my own, but like I said before, one of my favourite things about Giuda is the showmanship. Giuda is such an infectious, sing-a-long type of band, seeing them live usually serves to burn their songs (or at least the chorus) into my head for a good week.

At the start of the night, I wasn’t very keen about going out, but after watching Giuda play, we were both really happy we did.

If you haven’t checked out Speaks Evil yet, you definitely should do, and catch a Giuda show as soon as you can.

By Linsey Macfadden