Photo: Press
Five men in their late forties/ early fifties called Norman, Gerry, Raymond, Francis and Dave, take to the stage Islington’s Town Hall. On paper it sounds like a pretty inauspicious event, certainly not one to excite the capacity of crowd of 800.
But this is not just any group of middle-aged men. The aforementioned five-piece are Teenage Fanclub - one of the most consistently revered, cult British bands of the last 30 years. They emerged from the Glasgow C86 scene and remained loyal to Alan McGee's Creation Records label throughout the 90s when guitar bands were being bought up by majors.
Tonight the Teenage Fanclub crowd looks as if they remember them the first time round; however amongst the grey hairs, receding hairlines and rotund bellies, their tireless sense of devotion gives them a youthful exuberence that defies their years.
The band, who are on stage the eve of the release of their first album in ten years, rotate lead vocal duties between Blake, Love and McKinley - highlighting the rare gift that it is to have three equally adept songwriters and vocalists.
Stand outs early in the set include 'Ain’t That Enough' from the 1997 album Songs From Northern Britain and 1995's 'Don’t Look Back' and 'About You.' Of the sprinkling of new tracks from the upcoming album, Here, 'Thin Air' stands as an instant classic and is likely to be a staple in the live show for a number of years to come.
A particularly enthusiastic reception is received for Love’s glorious 'Sparky’s Dream', which still sounds like perhaps the greatest Big Star song Alex Chiltern never wrote. Before bowing out pre-encore, 'The Concept', brings the house down and is the cue of (almost) en masse (rather awkward) pogo-ing.
Things come to a close as the soaring chorus of 'Everything Flows' caps off a magnificent, melodic tour de force. It may have been 27 years since they formed but they're as relevant as ever. Thank the world for Teenage Fanclub.
