– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER –
I must admit, I am slightly sceptical ahead of tonight’s show as Canadian indie pop outfit Tokyo Police Club play their first UK show in years in support of their new album and first in four years. Because Tokyo Police Club seem to be a band that had their day in the mid to late 00s, I’m worried that everyone has forgotten about them, particularly as their brilliant new record seems to be getting lukewarm reviews from the press. Thankfully, The Ruby Lounge is buzzing with people on this mild Sunday evening as everyone excitedly talks about new album Forcefield and what a perfect pop record it is!
Before we get to TCP though, we have sterling support from hotly tipped Leeds based fuzz-pop outfit Menace Beach. These kids make lo-fi indie pop with fuzzy guitars, retro organ lines and strong boy/girl vocals. Having seen them last year in Manchester shortly after the release of their first single, it is nice to hear the band have turned up the fuzz a bit as guitars blare and bass lines fizz around the room creating a pleasantly loud and more punkish racket, but still full of hooks and danceable beats. I strongly suggest to check out the wonky pop excellence of recent EP Low Talker, in particular the track ‘Where I Come From’, which is a highlight in tonight’s set and a perfect example of what these guys do.
So now on to Tokyo Police Club who walk into a now full room here at Ruby Lounge and from the off, the crowd are in a fine form for a Sunday night as they jump around the room, singing every word of every song from the snappy funk punk of first EP classic ‘Nature Of The Experiment’ to the uber catchy sunshine pop of new album hit ‘Hot Tonight’. The set tonight is a perfect mix of all their records with a huge helping of tracks from Forcefield which sounds gigantic, in particular ‘Miserable’ which has one hell of chorus. And of course there’s the epic openings of ‘Argentina’ (Parts i, ii, iii) which starts with an urgent guitar/ drum pounding going to pleasant jangly guitar verses to Vampire Weekend inspired keyboard lines before closing with a sweet little guitar/ bass riff dual which gets heads nodding and hands clapping.
Not only is tonight a really nice little nostalgia trip for me, as TPC are very much a band I associate with a more floppy haired, care-free time of my life but also a lovely reminder of how great Tokyo Police Club are. They’re still making great songs, still delivering energetic live shows as they grin their way through tonights, watching the crowd jumping about in sheer giddiness and what’s even better is, people still give a shit! All scepticism is out of the window after what I’ve just witnessed; the force is (still) strong!
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I joined the Silent Radio family near the very start of my move to Manchester in 2012 and I'm still having the best time! During my stay here I've been in two noisy bands, had a not so noisy solo project, made a zine, started a blog and started a radio show. It's been productive to say the least and it's all been intersperse with a shit load of gig going and beer drinking. I would love it if you followed me on twitter @dr_brainless for excitable tweets about playing, watching and living new music.
