A steady stream of stripe-shirt clad teenagers, complete with neon paint and glowsticks, makes its way down Madeira Drive and along the seafront towards the rapidly growing queue outside Concorde2. The gig is sold out and everyone is very, very excited. Headlining are electro lovelies Late Of The Pier, four 80s inspired synthesising popsters from Castle Donington. There isn’t really a gig vibe tonight: these kids are here to party.

Apart from the interestingly androgynous and captivatingly talented Micachu, who is definitely worth checking out, the support doesn’t offer a great deal. As soon as her act finishes there is a rush for the front and the excitement escalates to boiling point. Fashionably half an hour late, LOTP crash onto stage at 10.30, looking unexpectedly shabby, not as suave as their music might suggest. Front man Samuel Dust beams out at the crowd pressed again the barriers, still crushed together right at the back of the venue, and they launch into their first released single “Space And The Woods”.

It’s refreshing to see that there isn’t a “wordwang” song tonight; everyone has a different favourite, and there’s no doubting this band’s ability to write themselves a number of thoroughly catchy tunes. Each song sends the crowd roaring, jumping and waving their arms in delight. Track “The Bears Are Coming” sees the band tucking into a delectable array of strange looking instruments; are those floorboards that have been chained together and hung from the ceiling? Well, why the hell not. Some of us, with less of a spring in our step than the youngsters at the front, are beginning to wane slightly as the bouncing crowd shows no sign of relenting an hour in. Is it possible for a band to inspire too much energy? Or maybe it just seems like this music is better suited to a “late night / early morning, too drunk to feel your face, thrash around a grimy pitch-black dance floor” type of situation.

They finish by belting out the popular “Bathroom Gurgle” with sounds and beats so 80s-esque it’s easy to forget we’re almost a decade into the 21st century, before scrambling off stage. No encore. The set was snappy and upbeat and it’s obvious that everyone’s had a whale of a time.

Words by Rose Hales
Photography by Ruby Allcock