The Wombats

The last time I encountered The Wombats, they were playing a sell-out gig at The Royal Albert Hall and completely owned the colossal venue. This time round the Liverpudlian lads had taken things down a notch by performing a lively set at the small club venue of Matter in the O2 arena.

The boys kick-started the gig with the first 2 tracks of their debut album 'The Wombats Proudly Present: A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation' and it was clear from the offset that this three-piece band have more energy than ten crates of Red Bull.

Matthew Murphy (nicknamed Murph), lead singer as well as guitarist and keyboard player, belted out each tune with all of his will and bounced about to the beats, as if it was the first time he was hearing them. He was not over talkative throughout the gig, preferring to speak through his music instead, and it was apparent that they were there for one reason and one reason alone - to have a bloody good time and create beautiful sounds to get the crowd buzzing.

In fact, they succeeded while playing the vast majority of their album, as well as slipping in a couple of new tracks, including the beautifully catchy and tuneful 'My Circuit Board City'. By the time that they belted out 'Let's Dance to Joy Division', the atmosphere in the building was electric and very few heads in the crowd weren't bopping up and down in a cheerful moshpit of bodies.

The crowd itself was full of late teens to the most part, however a few surprising older faces made an appearance now and again from the balcony and propped up by the bar. A 39 year-old fan I spoke to simply said, "I just love the way this band make me feel - bloody happy!"

Murph, himself, was gracious throughout, praising the fans for their support and energy and acting as a real leader. Let's not forget the other 2 band members though as Murph was backed up superbly by Daniel Haggis, drummer, and Tord Overland, bassist, with their exquisite musical talents and lust for life energy.

Considering the tickets for this gig were relatively cheap, it was great value for money because the boys played as many songs as they could fit into their slot and barely paused to catch their breath. Murph praised the audience at one point by exclaiming "Thanks for coming to see a group of absolute bell ends!", which clearly could not have been further from the truth.

There was definitely a feeling of crowd disappointment when it was obvious the show was drawing to an end and they announced "This isn't our last song. We're not going to mess about and pretend it is, like others do. We will definitely be coming back on."

The finale was a crowd-jumping, arm-raising performance of 'Backfire at the Disco', in which I found myself in a muddle of linked arms with people I had never met before.

Overall, The Wombats have to be commended for this really personal, energetic and professional performance to a much smaller crowd than they are used to. It would have been impossible to leave that venue without a big smile on your face. The Wombats are definitely here to make the world a happier place.

FUTURE GIGS