The Cribs onstage at Rock City - Photo by Jamie Barlow
Spontaneous, unpolished and somewhat off-the-cuff, Wakefield three-piece The Cribs treated a half full Rock City crowd to a 90 minute indie cacophony full of their most popular yelp-along choruses and the band’s freshly discovered melodicism, apparent on their latest album.
It was not unreasonable to anticipate a few mosh pits surfacing during the band’s most renowned tracks and even the odd plastic beer cup sent flying into the air - but what transpired was even more vigorous; an epicentre of loyal fans ready to surf on top of each other at every opportunity.
Chants of: “Yorkshire, Yorkshire, Yorkshire” beckoned the trio’s arrival, and like frenzied football supporters, the band’s core onlookers did not let up for the rest of the gig.
The Cribs – made up of vocalist/guitarist Ryan, vocalist/bassist Gary and drummer Ross – quickly got off the mark with Ancient History before navigating their way through I’m a Realist and Different Angle and instantly earned the rapport from the crowd, who moshed from the first number.
“Wow that’s a terrific response from Rock City. Are you ready to rock tonight Nottingham?” Ryan said, after the band’s third track, before launching into Come On, Be A No-one - and rock they did.
Ryan, at times, appeared slightly worse for wear and was a bit of a loose-cannon; throwing two beer cups into the audience and hoisting his microphone stand into the crowd, which security quickly recovered. But it was the very nature of his unpredictability which added character to the set and his evident passion was felt - particularly during his acoustic rendition of Shoot the Poets.
I strictly recall a band from Manchester who possessed a no-holds-barred brother who would largely do what the hell he wanted to on stage, whilst the other, slightly more reserved and canny, basked in his brother’s wild antics by showcasing his impressive cadences and instrumental skills – The Cribs’ Oasis-like mock-up worked well.
The bouncers, at times, were like helpless lifeguards frequently battling the high tide of audience members - who threatened to overspill onstage during highlight songs Burning for No One and Hey Scenesters!
Predictably, fans bounced in unison to Men’s Needs, the penultimate track of the evening, before the Jarman trio finished with Pink Snow, the most melodic of numbers from their newest material.
The band sounded Weezer-esque as they ended, proving they are not just a one-trick indie pony and that their latest songs are some of their best.
The Cribs performed at Rock City on Monday 26 October 2015.
We have a favour to ask
LeftLion is Nottingham’s meeting point for information about what’s going on in our city, from the established organisations to the grassroots. We want to keep what we do free to all to access, but increasingly we are relying on revenue from our readers to continue. Can you spare a few quid each month to support us?
