ItÔÇÖs a few weeks before Def Leppard play the venue, and Cardiff Motorpoint Arena is hosting a very different generation of Sheffield metal band.

Bring Me the Horizon, with more of an appetite for breakdowns, but a similar love of pop hooks to Def Leppard, have managed to start selling out arenas in rockÔÇÖs least likely success story this side of Biffy Clyro. A metal band that sit more comfortably on Radio 1ÔÇÖs A-list than a Bloodstock Festival line up, Bring Me the Horizon have managed to sell out this show within a couple of weeks, and looking around the crowd, tonight the largely male-dominated stereotype of metal audiences is officially dead.

Pvris get things off to a great start. Singer Lynn Gunn, whilst addressing some safety issues in the crowd, says she ÔÇ£doesnÔÇÖt want to sound like your mom.ÔÇØ But you imagine the crowd membersÔÇÖ mothers would be thrilled if they had voices that sounded as powerful as hers.

Maybe Tom Delonge leaving Blink-182 has just increased peopleÔÇÖs appetites for this kind of thing, but thereÔÇÖs no question about Neck DeepÔÇÖs reception tonight being a warm one. The American pop punk sound of the Wrexham-based group doesnÔÇÖt scream ÔÇÿWelsh musicÔÇÖ, but the things the band do scream come over very successfully.

Bring Me the HorizonÔÇÖs show starts with the surprisingly subtle ÔÇÿDoomedÔÇÖ, showing us that in 2015, they have learnt that suspense can be just as powerful as the biggest of riffs. But itÔÇÖs all smoke cannons and confetti go once ÔÇÿHappy SongÔÇÖ kicks in, giving way to an incredibly polished show by a band that not many would have called polished just a few years ago. Crying out for audience participation in a thick Sheffield accent like Alex Turner with quiff refashioned into a fringe, singer Oli Sykes manages to lead a short but incredibly effective part-metal gig, part-rave. ItÔÇÖs been a big year already for Bring Me the Horizon, playing second from the top of the Reading & Leeds line up to Metallica and getting second from the top of the album charts to Stereophonics. But tonight, Bring Me the Horizon donÔÇÖt feel second best to anyone.

ALEC EVANS