All Time Low have picked the perfect night to bring their polished pop-punk to Glasgow - it’s light, bright, and warm in the city centre. The early evening air shimmers with the anticipation of summer and the light bounces off a queue of brightly dressed teenagers.

Opening act Broadway Calls is sociable enough, and seems happy to have a slot on such a highly anticipated tour. The band’s songs are hook-filled and energetic, but fail to make a lasting impression. Their set is simply forgettable, which just doesn’t cut it. Perhaps Broadway does call, but this band doesn’t answer.

All Time Low may be tonight’s official headliner, but judging by the crowd reaction, Cobra Starship is the band everyone is here to see. No doubt about it, there’s something cool about Gabe Saporta. With his bright purple zipper, geeky glasses, and neon-green cap, the Cobra Starship frontman literally lights up the stage as he leads the band through some fan favorites including “Guilty Pleasure.”

Armed with two albums of synth-laden, pop-influenced songs, Cobra Starship may seem out of place in the current rock scene. They’re aware of this, and are decidedly unapologetic. Gabe‘s local knowledge is endearing - he discusses the fact that many of the high school kids in the crowd have an important national exam the next day - and his dance moves may look stupid, but he seems to be genuinely enjoying himself and the feeling is contagious. “Kiss My Sass” gets the whole floor dancing, while one chorus of their hilarious spoof “Hollaback Boy” is enough to earn them the most uproarious response of the night. A fan joins them on stage to perform Travis McCoy’s rap in “Snakes on A Plane,” and Cobra Starship leave to a burst of confetti and loud cheers. It’s clear that they had a lot of fans in the crowd before their set began, and they’ve probably earned quite a few more by the time they shimmy their way out.

Cobra Starship was a tough act to follow, and All Time Low take the stage in a room that has already begun to empty. Their backdrop is painted with rude words that only pre-pubescent boys find funny, and the voice-over that accompanies their entrance earns more eye-rolls than giggles.

Blink 182 stopped making crude jokes over half a decade ago, but it seems All Time Low didn’t get the memo. Throughout their set, front man Alex Gaskarth and his bandmates ramble on about inflatable sheep and other such nonsense, forcing many people to retreat to the bar in the hopes that their dire jokes might become funny after a few drinks.

Musically, All Time Low aren’t ahead of the pack either. They are part of the new spawn of pop-punk acts who grew up listening to Blink 182 and New Found Glory but who can’t tell the difference between being influenced by a band and ripping them off. There’s no doubt that All Time Low can write a bouncy, catchy song - “Dear Maria, Count Me In” oozes summer and fun, and by rights, should get everyone in The Garage bouncing. It would be easy to forgive All Time Low for constructing a set of songs that all sound exactly like the previous song if they showed any genuine enthusiasm during their performance. But their delivery is consistently lackluster. It seems blatantly obvious that if All Time Low put the time they waste on immature gags into their performance, they would definitely be front-runners in the pop-punk stakes. Unfortunately for All Time Low, their worship of Blink 182 doesn’t make them anywhere near as good as their heroes. They are easy to dismiss - they’re just a band who look, sound and behave like every other pop-punk group out there.

In a scene as overcrowded as theirs, it’s disappointing that All Time Low didn’t make more of an effort to stand out. Cobra Starship’s Gabe Saporta may have had to don huge green glasses and a matching cap to make his mark tonight, but at least he made it.

[ED - I got to see ATL headlining the AP tour here in Philadelphia back in April. While I will admit the boys are really hung up on their jokes, they seemed a lot more into things in general. Maybe time to take a little break from touring? I'll report in after Warped and update on how Alex and the boys are holding up.]

To see what's up with the bands, all of whom are playing this year's Van's Warped Tour, check them all out at their MySpace pages:
www.myspace.com/alltimelow
www.myspace.com/cobrastarship
www.myspace.com/broadwaycalls