For anyone present at The Maccabees’ very yummy performance at this year’s Leeds Festival, it was all too nice to see the boys smiling again, but in a much more intimate atmosphere. The crowd were anxious for this performance; a sold out Rock City couldn’t have held anymore bouncing indie kids if it had tried. As ever, ‘First Love’ proved more than popular, churning out the biggest sing-song of the night. Live, The Maccabees are a totally different band to the band you hear on record. They’re formidable in full flow, mixing a heavy guitar wall of noise together to make something that sounds fabulous.
A sound first made to silence critics perhaps, critics of the ‘indie’ scene? Well whatever, it works and all at Rock City thought the same. With a seemingly never-ending schedule of live dates in their hands, The Maccabees have scored highly in the last year. Kicking off with ‘17 Hands’ from their newest album Wall of Arms, there was no doubt that the crowd had been clammering for something to remind them of their summer festival scene, as the set took off. The Maccabees couldn’t have failed to be much more excited about playing to such an enthusiastic crowd- the smiles of both Felix and Rupert White were more than infectious, and the whole room sang aloud in eager response.
The boys didn’t say much, there was a definite lack of band to crowd communication, but no one seemed bothered. If the crowd weren’t gazing avidly into Orlando’s eyes then they were dancing to the unconquerable, eccentric beat of the Brighton bunch who could do no wrong. Keeping the crowd in suspense for the final song; the ever famous Toothpaste Kisses, The Maccabees didn’t disappoint, framing the night with Weeks’ first class whistling to close the show.
