Expectations are high at the sold-out Academy for this performance by The Horrors, whose last two albums, Primary Colours and Skying, unexpectedly lifted them from the status of Cramps knock-offs to one of Britain’s foremost bands. The group make a visual impact before they’ve even played a note – towering frontman Faris Badwan cuts quite the figure with his mop of dark hair, leather jacket and ridiculously skinny jeans, and he’s flanked by the equally-striking Joshua Hayward and Rhys Webb, who share both vintage, shoegaze-style lengthy fringes, and a fondness for bouncing around the stage when they get particularly excited.
The animated front trio are offset by austere keyboard player Tom Cowan (stationed stage left), who has the air of an academic, and sticksman Joe Spurgeon, who simply plays the drums. So, the image is good, but The Horrors also deliver in spades on the musical front too. The opening ‘Mirror’s Image’ is an intense, driving slice of psych-rock that manages to be dark and atmospheric without succumbing to goth clichés. It sets the scene for a stunning performance which, though clocking in at a concise 11 songs, feels measured to perfection rather than frustratingly brief.
‘Who Can Say’ and ‘I Can See Through You’ are both blizzards of MBV/Sonic Youth-style guitar pyrotechnics (the former boasting an inspired, Motown-style breakdown based around a one-two drum beat), which – thanks to their air of doomed romance – recall Interpol when they were one of the most exciting bands around, as opposed to exponents of drab, lifeless rawk.
Rather wonderfully, The Horrors have chosen this date to give a live debut to ‘You Said’, my favourite track off Skying. Although they screw up the intro, they promptly recover and ultimately more than do justice to the tune’s shimmering beauty. Thereafter, ‘Sea Within A Sea’ is an incredible, Krautrock-style freak-out, whilst the loping rhythms and naggingly catchy melody of ‘Still Life’ are irresistible.
Returning for the encore, the band treat us to the psych-pop bliss of ‘Changing The Rain’, before concluding with the epic ‘Moving Further Away’, the mesmerising finale of which finds Badwan coaxing wave after wave of feedback from one of the amps with his microphone.
Frankly, I doubt I’ll see a better gig all year.