Live Review: Crawlers - Manchester Academy, Manchester 04/11/2022
With a sold out show and the anticipated release of their mixtape, northern punk quartet CRAWLERS have taken to the Club Academy stage to celebrate the only way they know how. Loudly, proudly, and with the least care in the world.
The band had teased throughout the week about the importance of their Manchester appearance; with the show coinciding with the release date for their latest mixtape Loud Without Noise. With their history within the city - especially as a collective who pride themselves on being unapologetically queer with unwavering feminist beliefs - it seemed like the best city to celebrate this event within. And celebrate they did.
Along for the ride is Daisy Brain, a musical persona run by London songwriter Will Tse. With previous touring stints supporting the likes of Yungblud, Daisy Brain has managed to bring in quite the following. He brought this following into Club Academy and after announcing his job was to get the crowd warmed up for the main act, it looked like he was about to bring a lot more to his next appearance.
Hitting relatable themes of depression, anxiety, heartbreak and low self-esteem, it was the music that this audience will know and definitely do love. The new alternative, especially found within Manchester and most of northern England, is a blending of harder and softer sounds. Indie and Britpop making a stronger-than-ever comeback, with the assistance of those emo and pop-punk elements that have always kept the punk scene moving. These sounds are what make his tracks feel more targeted to the modern world and modern ways of coping with the downfalls of life; and from the raucous reaction of the crowd before him, he achieved that goal. Whether it was intended or not.
After a round of tunes and eternal praise for his main act, he took his leave and it was almost time. The air was electric, and the buzzing was exciting. It’s time for the main humans of the night: Crawlers.
Greeting the crowd with ‘Too Soon’, taken from the mixtape, there was no working everyone up or having to raise the roof themselves. Everyone was there to sing, scream, dance; their happiest place was within those venue walls that night.
Introducing themselves as Crawlers - “creepy if you’re nasty”, added by frontperson Holly Minto - they dive straight into the music without missing a beat. The set is an emotional rollercoaster: not one to cry and beg to get off, but one to get to stay on for one more go. Everyone had a story to tell in that audience and it could be seen and heard wherever one turned. Smiles from ear to ear; tears trickling or streaming down; hugs and kisses shared among friends and lovers. A Crawlers gig is one of the most emotionally invested events one could ever take part in, and it’s entirely worth it to watch it and be involved in it.
One of the most beautiful displays was during the band’s performance of one of their latest singles, ‘Hang Me Like Jesus’. The slow-tempo nature caused their fans to sway slowly, smoothly, while singing along to Minto’s words within the acoustic moment. It’s so simple and it’s not even unique to Crawlers and their shows, but it was a sight to behold. Everyone was united in that fleeting period of melody.
The four-piece stressed the love and care they had for their fans, bringing together their affectionately dubbed ‘Creepy Crawlers’ as a makeshift family for that night and beyond. No one left that night feeling unloved or unwanted. Everyone was adored, everyone was appreciated, and that is what one would desire in their live entertainment sometimes: validation.
As the show was winding down, they had to express their awareness of being “that band from TikTok” with their encore. It is true that the band had a helping hand in their career via TikTok and similar social media, and it’s great to see them truly embrace it. Even if it gets stuck with labels such as ‘cringe’ or ‘unfunny’, it has helped many faces in the music industry get out there and with good reason.
For one last emotional connection between the hundreds in attendance in that room, is their performance of ‘Come Over (Again)’. The track that has become the most important one to Crawlers themselves as well as their adoring fans. Hyping the fans up for that vital viral lyric, the sound could have been heard miles away. “Take her name out of your mouth, you don’t deserve to mourn”; a line heard and spoken many times since the song’s release, but has never lost its power. It has yet to grow old or stale. It still means as much to people now, especially at that gig, as it did within its original 2021 release.
Closing the night off with a party-time close, courtesy of ‘I Don’t Want It’, it was clear that Crawlers had such a wondrous effect on young people. Their gigs gave people a safe space to be themselves. Their music gave them a voice when they were silent, and the words they had longed to find. They helped people find a chosen family they can love and cherish for the rest of their days.
With as bad as the world is, as bigoted and hateful as people can be, there will always be someone fighting alongside to make it right. In a time of being silenced, be Loud Without Noise.
Words by Jo Cosgrove
