(Sorry for the bad pictures. Blurryness, odd lighting and shining bald guards with their heads in the way)
Xfm have once again, smashed it. Their Manchester leg of the beloved Christmas gigs, often the pinnacle of winter gigs, over-stepped the mark this time round. A mixture of new and old classics created the most perfect night of raucous elbow bashing and crowd surfing. (Excuse the bad photos this time round, taken by myself amongst a crowd you couldn't expect to stand still)
As you could probably tell by the endless articles I've written over the past month or so, I was just a little bit excited for Tuesday night, and so was everyone else that managed to get their hands on a ticket. Full to the brim, Xfm brought out Tim Cocker to flaunt his comedic ways and introduce the awaiting band.
First up was Findlay, a band that not many people had heard of and weren't expecting much from. The four piece marched on and gave us an acapella piece to kick off the night. Taking her Mic, she belted every word out with passion to the Manchester crowd. An opening song that was nothing short of hipnotising, setting us up perfectly for the rest of the set. The second song of their short set was 'Your Sister', which grabbed the attention of the crowd. It displayed to us perfectly the grungy, gritty, rock style of Findlay. A few more tracks were played and sadly they had to leave. Once again Xfm have picked up a great new band that could and should be around for years to come.
Second on the bill was the ever growing Spector. A treat for a band that was just second up. Once again, Spector displayed their edgey indieness, with floor fillers such as 'Friday Night...', 'Celestine', 'Chevy Thunder' the epic 'Never Fade Away'.
Third on the bill were Manchester lads, Delphic, making their second Winter Wonderland appearance. These fellas have been on a bit of a break for the past few years after their debut album release back in 2009. In all fairness, a lot of people were confused on why they were above Spector on the bill, but they showed us just why they deserved that spot. After belting out signature tracks such as 'This Momentary' and 'Doubt' they managed to win the crowd over and give us a smashing set. Hopefully this time round the lads will stay in the limelight for a lot longer.
Next up were the Everything Everything lot. Also playing their second round of Xfm gigs. Well armoured with new hits such as 'Kemosabe' and 'Cough Cough' it's was sure to be a high end set of indie-techno madness. Even though you pretty much can't understand what the lead singer is saying unless you know the words, it was a damn right top set. Past hits from their first album 'Man Alive' were a bit scarce throughout the set but he spots were filled in with new tracks that were surely going to go down as Everything Everything's top tracks. A highly rates band that will soon be at the top of everyone's lists.
The penultimate act of the night was my favourite surprise, Maximo Park. There's not really a place this band haven't been. From up and down the globe, Maximo Park have cemented themselves as one of the most exhilarating bands around to date. To them this was probably another gig but I'm sure the crowd thought differently.A trademark energetic entrance from the one and only Paul Smith, was probably the perfect way to open up their set, getting the crowd shifting and shaping. New tracks from 'The National Health' and a mixture of classic tracks from 'Quicken The Heart', 'Our Earthly Pleasures' and 'A Certain Trigger' were enough for a legendary set from the Geordie lads. Probably my favourite act of the night and definitely someone I would go and see again.
Oh yeah, last up, the highly rated, well deserving, boys from Cockney land, Bloc Party. Going off a set I saw in Blackpool about 7 years ago, I had high expectations for the London lads. This was where my love of gigs was born, and I have been aching to see them again since then. I was unbelievably excited when Xfm announced them as their headliners this year, and rightfully so. An amazing British band at the least. The two year hiatus the band went on to pursue 'other things' had its fairly painful times, and with only Kele's occasional solo tracks it was just too much to bare. But excitement grew in mid 2012, as the band announced their come back and the appearance of their fourth studio album 'Four'. After playing all over the world and the odd gigs in the UK, they were finally back where they belonged. On one of the most legendary stages in Manchester, the O2 Apollo. Footsteps on to the stage, they graced us with their presence to the high pitched screams and manly shouts. The lads gave us tracks from all four albums, with the infamous 'Hunting For Witches', new tracks 'Kettling' and 'He Begins To Lie and getting the crowd going with the ever loved 'Flux', 'Banquet' and 'Helicopter'. To be honest that's all I really need to say about this set. The band are at just such a high quality and at the peak of musical tightness, so every song was just as good as the last. Kele's charisma, Russel's magic fingers, Gordon's normality and Matt's I-can-see-your-ribs-mate sweaty body. What a perfect way to end the night.
Xfm never fail to put on a top end gig, and this year was going to be no different. Apart from the short cut sets, it was such an amazing night to be involved with. Lets hope next years gets better (if that is possible).
As you could probably tell by the endless articles I've written over the past month or so, I was just a little bit excited for Tuesday night, and so was everyone else that managed to get their hands on a ticket. Full to the brim, Xfm brought out Tim Cocker to flaunt his comedic ways and introduce the awaiting band.
First up was Findlay, a band that not many people had heard of and weren't expecting much from. The four piece marched on and gave us an acapella piece to kick off the night. Taking her Mic, she belted every word out with passion to the Manchester crowd. An opening song that was nothing short of hipnotising, setting us up perfectly for the rest of the set. The second song of their short set was 'Your Sister', which grabbed the attention of the crowd. It displayed to us perfectly the grungy, gritty, rock style of Findlay. A few more tracks were played and sadly they had to leave. Once again Xfm have picked up a great new band that could and should be around for years to come.
Xfm never fail to put on a top end gig, and this year was going to be no different. Apart from the short cut sets, it was such an amazing night to be involved with. Lets hope next years gets better (if that is possible).
