Photo: Phoebe Fox
From Wood Green station to the steps of Alexandra Palace, the dreaded hill is littered with Maccabees fans dressed in denim jackets, ripped jeans with cans of gin and tonic glued to their hands. It’s a special occasion and as cliché as it sounds, you really can feel it in the air. The Maccabees have been a pillar in the indie music scene since their debut album ‘Colour It In’ was release ten years ago. And it’s a fitting way to end having brothers in arms Mystery Jets, a band they’ve always looked up to, play their final shows with them.
It was a star studded affair with Alan Carr, Mathew Horne and Dermot O’Leary in attendance to see the indie heroes bow out in style. There’s something about Alexandra Palace as a music venue that doesn’t seem quite right, with sun light pouring through the glass ceiling, it almost takes the edge off the atmosphere as the London five-piece take to the stage for the first date of their three night residency. Not that that was an issue, once ‘Wall Of Arms’ got the band off to a flying start. They then rattled through a set list of tracks from all four of their albums with pure energy.
"North London has got a lot going for it," Orlando declares to the 10,000 strong crowd. "But South London… South London has a leisure centre." From those few words, every Maccabees fan knows what’s about to go down. A rare performance of ‘Latchmere’ broke out, as the entire audience bellowed "Latchmere’s got a wave machine," filling the room - a highlight of the show.
After ending their set with ‘Something Like Happiness’, the band briefly left the stage and returned for an encore of ‘Marks To Prove It’, ‘First Love’ and a true sing-a-long version of ‘Toothpaste Kisses’, which got emotions running high, especially during Orlando’s whistle solo. To end the show, there was no better choice than ‘Pelican’ from their third album Given To The Wild. As Orlando urged fans to climb on shoulders, the band played out the show in true style, giving their loyal fans exactly what thy wanted.
It was an emotional night, as you’d expect. But in terms of leaving on a high, the band couldn’t have called it a day at a better time, after their fourth and final album hit number one in the UK album charts. As with any farewell tour though, it throws up its fair share of questions. Like, what’s next? And, is it actually their last ever tour? But if it really is the last time we get to see The Maccabees on stage, they sure made it worth it.
