It’s been three years since indie poppers The Wombats gifted us with the synth-tinged Glitterbug and judging by their sold out Rock City show, their presence on the indie scene has been greatly missed.
The Liverpool trio have remained festival favourites over the past few years due to their infectious indie pop sound which is heightened in their own live shows. They returned to Nottingham’s Rock City last week following the release of their fourth studio album Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life.
Kicking things off with their latest release Cheetah Tongue’the crowd’s energy skyrocketed with mosh pits breaking out throughout the room. This energy continued throughout the show as they played fan favourite after fan favourite. They’re fun, joyful, contagious and dedicated to pulling out all the stops.
Around halfway through the set frontman Matthew Murphy requested a moment of calm as he broke in to Techno Fan prompting an encouraging roar from the crowd as arms went around shoulders and everyone sang in unison. The atmosphere the band generate is comparable to a teenager’s first time getting drunk, everything remains a little hazy and sweaty as the music pulses through the crowd.
The set achieved a good balance of songs from across their catalogue with the latest singles resembling a Strokes-esque swagger (Lemon to a Knife Fight sounds suspiciously a lot like Reptilia), whilst what we would consider their classics e.g. Let’s Dance to Joy Division and Kill the Director infect the crowd with their bouncing a poppy nature.
The trio held on to Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves) until the encore, teasing the crowd throughout the set as they waited in anticipation for it to be played. With this knowledge inflatables were released as the first chorus hit, emphasising the playfulness of the song itself.
The Wombats are clearly experts at their craft, they know how to direct their crowds in to a frenzy, and it is evident that they simply love what they do. Their live shows do exactly what it says on the tin; catchy tunes, teenage conviction, indie moshers and a laser show on the side.
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