Venue: O2 Academy Leeds

Review by: Nick Lavigueur

I CAN’T claim to have my finger on the pulse of the rapidly evolving indie music scene.

But after enjoying performances from four of the latest hot young bands at the Shockwaves NME Awards Tour I feel much more up to speed.

The 19-date Glasvegas headlined tour also included flame haired Florence and the Machine, album chart toppers White Lies, and St Alban’s three piece, Friendly Fires.

Poncho wearing songstress Florence made an early impression, seemingly entranced in the moment as she pounded a tom-tom drum beat to her own opening song.

Strong bass and powerful vocals resonated through the newly refurbished Leeds Academy with Florence treading that fine line between scary bunny-boiler and arty bohemian, that tends to intimidate us non-musicians.

If going into the charts at number one was ever a sign of quality I’d be worried about my opinion about White Lies. Sounding like a poor-man’s Interpol I had a vision of their music being used as backing for a Match-of-the-Day goals montage. “This year’s Editors,” as one friend described them.

After the static poses from White Lies, Friendly Fires blazed onto the stage with loose-hipped frontman Ed Macfarlane strutting round like Mick Jagger.

A new energy gripped the crowd as students and those brave enough to go drinking on a work night let loose and went wild like it was the first day of Glastonbury.

Earlier in the gig a friend said to me, “Why can’t bands just rock out anymore?” He was left well and truly eating his words. Sounding like Morrissey singing over a funky-house back beat with Jimmy Hendrix on guitar, Friendly Fires certainly proved they have talent to burn.

Closing band Glasvegas have sculpted an image as moody geniuses, after a litany of monosyllabic TV interviews, only ever wearing black, and frontman James Allan’s refusal to ever take off his sunglasses.

But the melancholy and ethereal have always been popular with the disaffected youth and Glasvegas are the latest band to take gloom mainstream.

The atmospheric indie rock compares to compatriots Mogwai and Allan’s Glaswegian accent and emotive lyrics offer the perfect dour contrast to the shimmering euphoric guitars. Fifteen years after discovering Oasis, it looks like Alan McGee has done it again.