The Futureheads are brimming with confidence. Perhaps it’s the sort of confidence that only a surprise top-ten hit single can bring, but taking to the stage at a sold-out Carling Academy, Sunderland’s most famous exports since Kenickie look more than well-equipped to deal with their sudden explosion in fame. | "So frenetic is the performance that guitarist Ross actually breaks a string during Carnival Kids" | |
Launching into reissued single Decent Days and Nights, the band show an assured tightness, a sure result of the relentless sort of touring they’ve undertaken over the past couple of years. To suggest that a gig like this is just a stroll in the park for them, however, would be to ignore the sheer exuberance and enjoyment that they radiate. An engaging stage presence, with three singers lined up in formation behind mikes, they rattle through a set that’s almost entirely comprised of their debut album in a shuffled order, but the unsurprising nature of the gig doesn’t bother an enraptured crowd at all. Hounds Of Love is a predictable highlight, with Barry splitting the audience into halves to sing the opening harmonies before the guitars kick in. It’s not the only cover they do well, though – a storming version of the Television Personalities’ “Picture Of Dorian Gray” enlivens the middle part of the set.
 | | The Futureheads |
The pace is relentless, and they just don’t flag at all – the audience, meanwhile, can barely keep up, especially when songs like “Alms” are actually speeded up. So frenetic is the performance that guitarist Ross actually breaks a string during Carnival Kids, but amidst a wall of noise his change to a new guitar is barely noticed. After a taut main set, it’s in the encore that the band seem to cut loose, with the welcome presence of older songs Ticket (sadly omitted from the album) and Piece Of Crap heralding something of a throwback to their earlier days in a looser, more ramshackle performance. It’s only the briefest of glances to the past, however – tonight, we see a band with their sights set firmly on the future. And on this evidence, it looks set to be a bright one. |
