Live Review: Fontaines D.C. – Night People, Manchester 07/11/2018

Fontaines D.C. played a sold-out gig at Night People, one of Manchester’s newest live music venues, last Friday.

Announcing a new tour before they had even started their current UK dates, Fontaines D.C. have pretty much been constantly touring for the last couple of months, winning over new fans by the day. Although having been on my radar for a while, this was the first time I’d been able to catch the Dublin based band and I could not wait.

Support came from Hotel Lux, who everyone had got down early enough to see. A band who have most recently toured alongside Slaves, who lately sparked a debate from tweeting about not announcing stage times prior to a gig in order for fans to catch the supports, which caused some controversy and divided opinions online. Tonight, it looked like everyone might have been following pursuit, or maybe it was just the plain and simple fact that Hotel Lux are really worth getting down early for! Playing a hasty 6-song set, it proved to be just enough to get everyone set up ready for the headline act.

Night People is a dark and somewhat dingy venue in the centre of Manchester, but it’s hosted some great gigs in the short time it’s been open. Initially playing an even smaller venue, the gig was upgraded due to popular demand. Everyone pushed forward once Hotel Lux had finished, in attempt to catch a glimpse of Fontaines D.C. whilst they still could in such a small venue.

As someone who’s new to seeing their performance, Fontaines D.C. took to the stage and played a couple of songs that were unfamiliar to me, but seemingly not to the majority of adoring fans in the crowd, including a family member. Talking about her, singer Grian Chatten joked “watch out for my Granny, she’ll get you”. The comical remarks, and talking between songs were short, as the band powered through their set list.

The mixed crowd, who were so compact by this point you could hardly keep your feet on the sticky ground, got an epic three song finale. ‘Hurricane Laughter’, ‘Boys in the Better Land’ and latest single ‘Too Real’, was the ultimate culmination of a very enjoyable performance by an immensely promising band. The short yet exciting set only created more hype about the band, with their energy, stage presence and infectious poetic lyrics making their upcoming tour a must see.

Ireland’s answer to modern day punk, Fontaines D.C. are the type of band you want to shout about. We can’t wait to catch them on their headline UK tour next year, or if you’re from the US you can catch them on tour with Idles in 2019.

Words and Photography by Abbie Jennings