It appears word might be out about this band. There’s a healthy crowd in Club Academy tonight for Princess Goes (presumably still to the butterfly museum, even if their name’s been cropped). I’m not surprised. Last time I saw them, Night & Day struggled to contain them. They are after all, a band to obsess over and boy have I. Their debut record has been on hard rotation since release and the new EP picks up beautifully where it left off. Live though, that’s where you wanna hear this trio and tonight Manchester is treated to the first date of the UK tour. The warm hug of ‘Bombed Out Sites’ ushers them on stage and instantly permeates the room. The ante though is upped as the disco wallop of ‘Let It Go’ kicks off. Hall, eyes closed, mic stand gripped looks totally in his element and sounds it too. He oozes angelic sexiness. What I love though is the way they slide from synth euphoria to pulverising industrial bangers. It’s like NIN playing an 80s night in Ibiza. I don’t know about you, but that sounds fucking fabulous. We should all be losing our minds to ‘Eat An Eraser’ and I am, but notice there’s a lot of folks stood stock still, cameras out, come on people, in the moment! The title track from the latest EP ‘Jetpack’ slows me down a little, but it’s no less sublime. ‘Vicious’ is introduced as an old one “Do we old have old ones yet?” It’s a good summary track, it twists though glam stomp, balletic breakdown downs and sets the scene perfectly for ‘Airhead’ which still feels like a centrepiece. It’s those massive bassy keys unpinning Hall’s falsetto cries, spine tingling. This is the mid set where they’ve clearly decided to reduce venues to rubble. ‘Angela Peacock’s drums detonating and catching the attention of the lad in the Maiden shirt. The lad in the Barbie shirt nods approval too. Varied audience. Club Academy is an odd venue. It’s not massive, but it doesn’t really feel intimate. It’s wide and chatter carries near the back. If you come here for a gig, get down the front away from the pissheads. There’s some stuff I don’t recognise, which is always a treat, especially when it sounds great and it’s an eclectic set. Filled with pin drop beauty and transcendent highs. ‘Thanks for Coming’ teases us towards the end, before the title track of the forthcoming album ‘Come of Age’ points to them only broadening their horizons even further. I can’t wait to hear it in full. They encore with ‘Offering’, Hall singing “it’s blasphemy” as the lighting guy finds the strobe switch. Guitars shred with abandon, they don’t seem to want to stop. The Beatlesy intro of their cover of ‘Cruel World’ is disarming, before its apocalyptic chorus sears a ridiculous smile across my face. It’s a generous encore, they clearly want to stretch their legs and show what they’ve been up to. ‘Glasswing’ and ‘Come Talk to Me’ both sounding utterly glorious and I’m left, like others, rather stunned by what I’ve just witnessed. What a way to spend a Tuesday evening. Get yourself a ticket for this tour fast!
