More about: Maximo Park

When a band feel the impulse to revisit a classic album and embark on an anniversary tour, the decision is often berated as a tacky, money-making ploy or merely an excuse for running out of ideas.

So when Maximo Park announced their latest tour, performing 2005’s Mercury-nominated A Certain Trigger in full, it was hard not to approach this gig with just a smidgen of apprehension. Can the Tyneside five-piece still cut the mustard or would this be a sad display of has-beens pining for another taste of their salad days?

If numbers are anything to go by, people clearly still care about Paul Smith and co. The second of two sold-out shows at the Roundhouse, the venue is packed to the rafters with the archetypal, twenty-something who discovered their musical self on a diet of noughties indie.

Greeted on stage with a hearty roar, the band’s name is emblazoned on a backdrop with sleek, LED lighting – making for an arresting entrance. Their opening salvo of ‘Girls Who Play Guitar’, a sharp kick to the metaphorical balls, is even more impressive. A slice of perfectly crafted indie pop, the opening track is enough to quell the preconception that they’ve lost any sort of spark.

With the show cut into two parts, Maximo have ample opportunity to showcase their newer material in the opening segment. Cuts from their last record, Too Much Information, are as exciting and sonically exploratory as earlier numbers. Additionally, Smith’s witty lyricism is sharper than ever. He frames 2014 single ‘Leave This Island’ with quirky refrains about wanderlust and an over-bearing desire to get away from it all.

Somehow the band manage to crank it up another notch, closing the first part with a one-two of monster hits: ‘Our Velocity’ and ‘Books From Boxes’. And the crowd are at fever pitch – falling at the feet of a tight-knit outfit at the peak of their live powers.

After some brief respite, the band resurface for the main event. If their introduction didn’t make enough of a point, then A Certain Trigger is a brazen, middle-fingered gesture to the naysayers. Maximo Park still matter – now they want to celebrate their history.

Songs like ‘Graffiti’ and ‘Apply Some Pressure’ are a dose of unhinged fun, blanketed with the warm fuzz of nostalgia. Once the definitive indie hits of their time, it’s too easy to forget just how powerful they sound.

‘Going Missing’ is the night’s trump card – with its anthemic chorus filling every pocket of the Camden venue. Smith, a totemic frontman, paints a vivid picture of frustration within the confines of a Northern ghost town. The song touches on a recurring theme, as Smith explains that “many of the songs on A Certain Trigger are about escapism.”

The band shut up shop with an endearing farewell, punctuated by the victorious, mass singalong of ‘Kiss You Better’. “We’ve never really looked back. We just keep making music,” Smith explains. And he isn’t wrong. For a group who have spent their entire career looking ahead, the forward-thinking Maximo Park deserve this night – a chance to revel in their glistening past.

More about: Maximo Park