Yeah, so… umm, wait a second! Fresh from hitting number five in the album charts Manchester quartet Everything Everything roll into town intent on proving their new record is every bit as impressive live as its studio counterpart.
First though, Leamington indie-electro foursome Post War Years gives us a brief blast through material both new and (relatively) old.
When they ditch their guitars and bass for a trio of synths the results sound not unlike Passion Pit and when they don’t they try to hoot and howl like the Wild Beasts but neither formula is particularly convincing.
Their final track summons a beachy Balearic vibe but that aside the lack of memorable tunes means Friendly Fires are unlikely to be quaking in their Hawaiian shirts.
Their second record, Galapagos, is out on February 25, just don’t expect to see it follow EE up the charts any time soon.
As soon as they burst on stage Everything Everything prove to be everything that their support act were not – catchy, energetic and needle sharp.
A generous smattering of new songs scattered through their set offers further confirmation that Arc, the young four-piece’s second record, represents a great leap forward in their songwriting.
Tracks from their 2010 debut Man Alive are jittery and pneumatic but it’s Arc’s high points that shine the brightest.
In an opening salvo that delivers bouncy opener ‘Undrowned’, the smart gender politics of ‘Torso of the Week’ through to the frenetic ‘Kemosabe’ they don’t put a foot wrong.
On stage Jonathan Higgs is a brilliant frontman: warm, clear and engaging and possessed of a voice that perfectly recreates the complex vocal tracks of his songs’ album counterparts.
Having supported Snow Patrol and Coldplay he’s adept at working an audience, without ever feeling out of touch and the interplay between him and his bandmates is pin-sharp, particularly on a stellar ‘Duet’ that builds from Beatles-y strings to a climax of fantastic harmonies.
Of their older tracks the bonkers ‘Schoolin’ and ‘Suffragette Suffragette’ stand out as highlights though it’s a noisy take on ‘Photoshop Handsome’ which causes Oran Mor to, if not mosh then at least jig excitedly.
Thanking the crowd for their respect during an impressive stripped back moment, the band briefly depart to rapturous applause, only to return for a race through hits like ‘My Kz, Ur Bf’ and closer ‘Don’t Try’, a song which screams future hit.
To capture the quintessential EE essence in one quick burst though there can be only one song: it might require the triggering of a sample to give the track its distinctive opening but ‘Cough Cough’ is a perfect example of the quartet’s talent for skewed, fidgety but ultimately fascinating alterna-pop.
Jonathan’s passionate vocal meshes with his bandmate’s scratchy guitar and low-slung bass to craft one of the most distinctive pop songs of the last year.
Their record may be entitled Arc, but for Everything Everything the only way seems to be up.
Word: Max Sefton
