In the 11 years since they began rehearsing in the bass player’s grandfather’s scaffold yard, Blossoms have completed a metamorphosis from bowl-cutted indie psychedelic types to dewy-eyed keyboard-driven bouncing pop. The Stockport quintet’s four No 1 albums position them somewhere between early Arctic Monkeys and a poppier New Order. They’ve built up a loyal and loud fanbase, who hold two-pint glasses of lager aloft tonight and have clearly come for a cheery, beery sing-song.
The audience bellow every line of opener Your Girlfriend and even yell along with the instrumental bits of I Can’t Stand It. Vocalist Tom Ogden doesn’t bother with the first verse of The Keeper, knowing the crowd will sing it for him. The atmosphere is something like an indie-pop Last Night of the Proms, although sonically, with the musicians almost inaudible at times, it’s more like hearing a pub full of people singing to a jukebox.
In a white flowing scarf reminiscent of Night Fever-era Bee Gees, Ogden has no qualms about encouraging Blossomsmania, urging the crowd to “scream!” or dividing them into sections to encourage them to yell. You can tell which are the slighter numbers – Perfect Me, or Care For – because the audience quieten and it’s suddenly possible to fully hear the band.
Blossoms have been touring medium-sized venues for a while now, and will need to find an extra gear to get to the next level. They could become funkier, making full use of Charlie Salt’s nimble bass lines, which, when audible, are reminiscent of Chic’s Bernard Edwards. I Like Your Look is basically that band’s I Want Your Love reincarnated for the indie disco.
The songs aren’t big on emotional heft or profound insights but are often insanely catchy. The new Gary improbably concerns the real life theft of a fibreglass gorilla – a replica of which duly appears on stage, “Scaled down to six feet, so we could get it in the building,” Ogden explains. The crowd grow louder, and singles bangers There’s a Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls) and Charlemagne produce the biggest sing-songs of the night.
• At O2 Academy, Leeds, tonight. Then touring.
