Guide
Is there anything better than a homecoming show? Well Temple Newsam in Leeds is going to have had 2 big ones in the space of a week. Before Kaiser Chiefs’ all-dayer featuring fellow locals The Cribs, The Pigeon Detectives appeared Live at Leeds for a ‘Best of’ show.
And what better way to kick off a ‘Best of’ show than with 2 of their biggest songs. ‘This is an Emergency’ slowly warmed the crowd up through its verse before they erupted into the first of many sing along choruses.
I Found Out
Next was perhaps the band’s biggest hit to date, ‘I Found Out’. On a lineup that also included the mind-bending soundscapes of Public Service Broadcasting and the intense lyricism of Manic Street Preachers, The Pigeon Detectives reminded everyone that a great indie song can also just be 3 chords and a 3 word shout along hook. And for a crowd who were 5 hours into the day and perhaps more than 5 pints in, there aren’t many better festival songs than ‘I Found Out’.
As far as ‘Best of’ shows go, The Pigeon Detectives got off to a very strong start. But they didn’t stick purely to their 2 biggest albums, visiting tracks such as ‘Falling to Pieces’ from their latest album ‘TV Show’, and ‘What Can I Say’.
Matt Bowman’s Performance
Considering frontman Matt Bowman is into his 40s (as are most of the 2000s indie survivors to be fair), he certainly hasn’t lost his mid-20s stage presence. As well as some impressively high microphone cable swings, at one point after having launched into the crowd, he returned to jumping around the stage unperturbed by his heavily beer soaked trousers.
During the middle of their show he announced to the crowd that there would be a ‘lull’ in the set while they performed some lesser known tracks that are their own favourites.
Crowd Reaction To The Pigeon Detectives
But with it being a ‘Best of’ show, the end of the set saw them dive straight back into their 2007 prime. After ‘Romantic Type’, the tempo rose for their classic ode to awkward relationship age gaps ‘Take Her Back’, with the crowd joyously shouting the words back to them.
And finally, of course it was ‘I’m Not Sorry’ to end the set for one final sing along moment to its irresistibly catchy chorus.
It was a triumphant homecoming that brought those of a certain age back to memories of sweaty gigs and indie discos at the Cockpit and the Stylus.
And after spotting Matt Bowman downing a shot in the VIP area after their set, those heady days didn’t seem that long ago after all.
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