Tonight part of me really hoped Swim Deep and Splashh were taking notes on how to put on a show. The the other part of me saw them glide over our heads during a pretty incredible rendition of Spector anthem 'Chevy Thunder'. It was definitely that kind of night.
Whilst there was enthusiastic crowd support for both Splashh and Swim Deep (two bands that have made me pretty excited about new music, I advise everyone to get there early to catch their sets), it was pretty clear that this dismal Friday night in Leeds belonged to Fred Macpherson and indie band of merry men. Opening to rapturous applause with 'Twenty-Nothing', my personal favourite track on recent album 'Enjoy It While It Lasts', the night was set.
There was plenty of the expected (and should be patented) Spector banter to keep the crowd going, including starting a boorish chant of "UNIIIIIII" for all the students in attendance, and offering a beanie used to wipe up the sweat of at least 60% of the band to the most enthusiastic member of the crowd. Rather worryingly this did lead to full on squealing from the gaggle of teenage girls that made up a rather large section of tonight's crowd, further perpetrating my claims that the band are indeed an indie girl's wet dream.
Taking advantage of the day in question to introduce their most recent single 'Friday Night (Don't Let It End)' with the interesting idea that Fridays are a seventh of our lives so we should definitely enjoy this one (note to Fred, I'm being pedantic but this does only work if you die on the same day of the week that you are born, otherwise the fractions would be slightly disproportionate) it was certainly lived up to. With the sheer force of the crowd screaming every word, both band and crowd were buoyed by one of tonight's many highlights.
With the band hitting the recent headlines for tattoos and proposals, it was good to see them doing what they do best, especially having seen them numerous times over the last year, and whilst I thought I could no longer be surprised by them tonight definitely was something else. Utilising the crowd to join in on 'No Adventure' and inciting many a chant of "Yorkshire" when declaring how spectacular the audience were (this perhaps happens far too often at gigs in the area, and did lead to a joke about writing a song with the aforementioned chant as the chorus), it was a night that you never wanted to end.
It was an emotional night (it always is when you love a band this much, I'm not even going to attempt to be impartial anymore), with the looks of glee on the bands faces as more than a few audience members launched themselves on stage during 'Chevy Thunder', the choked back tears during 'Never Fade Away' (they were there, honest) and just the obvious delight at the audience knowing and singing almost every word throughout the night.
As much as it pains me to admit it too, every time they said that Leeds was their best crowd ever, even cynical me believed them. A show that will never be forgotten and one I hope is relived by many more on this "Spectour". Sheer fun and definitely the best night to be had for anyone, I may well catch you at the front again one or two more times before its over.
★★★★★
(10/10)
(10/10)
Find more on Spector at spector.co.uk. Their debut album 'Enjoy It While It Lasts' is out now.
We're a collaborative British music, film and TV blog. "Trying to find the perfect match between pretentious and pop."
