Little Man Tate are back! These lads always felt slightly out of time in the mid noughties. If they’d come out 10 years earlier, they’dve been huge. Nevertheless there’s a good crowd in The Ritz to welcome them and you can feel the love. Coming on to Carter USM there’s a roar from the dads in the room. Windle beams as the room scream “Man I hate your band” back at him and the springs in the dance-floor do their thing. It sets the tone with a set packed with sharp indie pop hooks that still sound fucking deadly. ‘European Lover’, ‘What? What YouGot’, ‘The Agent’ (I think I’ve got those right), are songs to sing along to. Arms aloft, kids up on shoulders. Euphorious. Granted it calms down for the new ones that we’re treated to, but they sound decent too and don’t stray far from the format. They do sound a little more grown up in a slightly Libertines way, which is probably to be expected. It sounds like they might’ve been through the wringer, well Windle anyway judging by some of the lyrics. So it’s lovely to see them play to such an adoring crowd. There are a few duff notes but no one cares, a quick glance back around the room and there’s barely anyone not singing every word back with a beaming smile on their face. It’s a surprisingly emotional gig, with songs dedicated to lost friends and shouts out to anyone struggling. I’m not going to claim that LMT are a finely nuanced band with hidden levels of thought provoking depth. There’s still a lot of indie male bravado, but they don’t feel dated… well maybe a touch here and there. We’re encouraged to sing along to ‘This Must Be Love’ as if we need encouragement. Windle giving up, realising that although he’s got the mic, Manchester’s got him covered. It’s no nostalgia fest though. They’re on a charm offensive. Relentlessly plugging the forthcoming album, but it’s the songs from that debut record that get us bouncing. The duel assault of ‘Sexy in Latin’ and ‘House Party at Boothy’s’ brings utter chaos. Big lads crowd surfing and what looks like a can exploding on stage as some budget pyro, much to Ben’s surprise and seeming delight. Definitely wet my whistle for the album release next month.
