Alt-rock heroes Dinosaur Pile-Up rip back into touring with a five-date whizz around the UK that ends in a sold-out, rowdy triumph at the Electric Ballroom, London.
With support from The XCERTS and snake eyes, this tour was a raging celebration of Dinosaur Pile-Up’s latest album, I’ve Felt Better, and their marked return following frontman Matt Bigland’s six years of health struggles. Before they head off to the USA as support to A Day To Remember, they made this London show extra special by throwing a free pop-up party with Kerrang! magazine: complete with Dinosaur Pile-Up themed food, drink, and a chance to chat with the band.
Dinosaur Pile-Up – The XCERTS – snake eyes
The Electric Ballroom, London – 13 September 2025
Words: Lucy Dunnet
Photography: Matt Pratt
In the Q&A led by Kerrang! editor Luke Morton, the band reveal that even after 18 years since Dinosaur Pile-Up’s formation, they still can’t name their favourite dinosaurs. Matt likes “the one with the long neck” and drummer Mike Sheils favours “the one that took a big shit in Jurassic Park”. Fortunately, Luke is clued up on his dinosaur trivia, so pipes in to sort the musicians out.
The band also treat the crowd to the knowledge that they finalised the setlist barely two weeks before going on tour, thanks to some kicking up the butt from bassist Jim Cratchley. Matt ponders whether it is acceptable to call your own songs bangers, and then decides he doesn’t care and declares that their whole setlist is bangers – a declaration doubted by no one.
Dinosaur Pile-Up
Those in the know (pop-up party attendees and pre-show setlist devourers) are aware that Fight For Your Right by Beastie Boys is Dinosaur Pile-Up’s walk-out song. So when it finally erupts from the Electric Ballroom speakers, the band are received by a bellowing of whoops and shouts, with everyone ready “to party”.
Fuelled with pints of Dinosaur Pills-Up, The Big Dog cocktails, and shots of Punk Kiss, fans storm straight into a pit for Dinosaur Pile-Up’s first single in five years, ‘Bout To Lose It, relishing the chance to finally welcome back the trio in the way we know best: as a sweaty, non-stop motion of bouncing bodies.
Matt’s loveable, dorkish humour and love of the f-word infuse the set with cheeky charm and ridiculousness. “What a motherfucking Saturday” turns into “oh shoot oh fuck” as the band appear to have a slight instrument malfunction, but the comedic timing and quick drum solo tease are either a sign of their quick-thinking, or that some coordinated mishaps are all part of the Dinosaur charisma.
Even the backdrop has dropped “Pile-Up”, so it is just “DINOSAUR” in white capital letters across the back of the stage. Considering the immense effort they put into contacting the eventual artist of I’ve Felt Better’s album artwork – a bordering on stalker story they regaled the pop-up attendees with earlier – it makes this design choice that much more hilarious. But it has been a tricky couple of years, Matt reminds the Electric Ballroom, so only appreciation is allowed. 
They nailed the setlist, which truly is a banger-packed set of old and new anthems that traverse pop-punk chaos with grungier, emotional hits; an encouragement to all procrastinators that sometimes waiting until deadlines are fast approaching can result in magnificently pleasing outcomes.
2019’s Celebrity Mansions’ title track gets arms and heads swaying, while Pouring Gasoline sees an enormous pit engulf the room. The pit becomes a sassy stomping field for their wickedly addictive cover of Run D.M.C.’s It’s Tricky, which Matt says they will only play if everyone promises to sing every word along with him. 
But one of the most belted out lyrics of the night ends up being from Dinosaur Pile-Up’s newest album, with faces turning red and veins threatening to pop for Love’s The Worst. It is also another song off I’ve Felt Better that rallies the most hype throughout the night: every second of silence is injected with “woof”s for Big Dogs that get exponentially louder, until it is at last played as the penultimate song of the night. Sandwiching this barking fan-favourite are Dinosaur Pile-Up essentials Thrash Metal Cassette and Back Foot, which unsurprisingly finish the night off with outbursts of energy from god knows what reserves. 
Consistently dazzling strobe lights fuse one moment into the next, as the Electric Ballroom straddles the Dinosaur Pile-Up hook-heavy rollercoaster and grins from ear to ear with the realisation that this night could not have been any better. Dinosaur Pile-Up have roared back to life with a stampede of punk spirit and raucous rock tunes that fans will never stop being hungry for.
The XCERTS
Aberdeen-born, Brighton-based group The XCERTS hail from the pop-punk corner of alternative rock inhabited by the likes of Mayday Parade and The Starting Line. Guitarist-vocalist Murray Macleod and bassist Jordan Smith have been rocking together since they were 13 years old, and 24 years later, along with drummer Tom Heron, they continue to intoxicate crowds with their upbeat pop-punk bliss. 
Murray’s 2000s scene hair, which he gazes through with emotional intensity right before he jumps into rockstar air kicks, adds a nostalgic air of teenage desire to their set. His rich, sirenic voice, mixed with the band’s finely-tuned hooks that hit every emo nerve, lights up the stage even brighter than the galactic blues and purples. Add in Jordan’s snake-like movements with his bass and equally intense gaze, and The XCERTS have everyone falling a little bit in love with them – even Dinosaur Pile-Up, who can be spotted grinning and grooving from the side of the stage. 
After breaking into a scream to ask London how we’re doing, The XCERTS bring a punkier edge to their performance with Slackerpop from their 2011 album Scatterbrain, driven by heavier drumming and angsty screams. But The XCERTS’ power lies in their captivating, pop-punk ballads: from Live Like This to Feels Like Falling In Love, you could be forgiven for subconsciously looking around the room for someone to flirt with, so overwhelmingly convincing is their sonic seduction.
snake eyes
Also Brighton-based, snake eyes are a gritpop rock band who recently became a two-piece comprising Jim Heffy on guitar and vocals, and Thomas Coe-Brooker on drums. Their gritpop sound is underpinned by an angry indie energy that takes form every time Jim erratically launches himself across the stage or Thomas passionately attacks his drum kit, resulting in an impressive bout of enthusiasm from the early evening crowd.
When it comes to political and world-saving musical messages, snake eyes have an abundance of them. Their second song, hottest day on record, is a call to action on the climate crisis, and they donated all of its proceeds to Greenpeace, because “there’s no music on a dead planet.” Thomas also sports a Palestine shirt and takes a heartfelt moment to implore everyone in the Electric Ballroom to look after themselves, their friends, and family, and to show love and kindness to those who need it. 
For their performance of no cars, off their upcoming debut album, Jim announces he is coming for a dance. He ditches his guitar and saunters through the crowd for a pounding verse, but “spontaneity is key”, he says, right before swapping places with Thomas for round two. The crowd love it and get straight into jumping, moshing, and eventually laughing when Thomas says that Jim has never played drums before. What snake eyes may lack in vocal range or prowess, they more than make up for with a hell of a lot of punch.
