One of the perennial topics over the past couple of decades has been the difficulty that hugely talented acts now face in breaking out of the goth/post-punk ghetto, so kudos to Manchester post-punk act for taking on the mainstream at their own game and copying the marketing ploy of mounting an album launch tour with attractively-priced vinyl or cd + ticket deals to maximise sales and therefore chart position in that crucial first week of release. Attracting a crowd numbering into three figures for a post-punk gig in Edinburgh is never easy on a Monday night in February, and the band’s word of mouth success over a career already spanning a dozen years is testament to their ability, hard work and willingness to do things differently.
Like its immediate predecessor Light A Bigger Fire, fifth album Dagger is worthy of the accolade of an album playthrough show on the evidence of this confident and polished performance at The Caves, an atmospheric venue dating back to the eighteenth century in the bowels of the South Bridge. Opening salvo I Am The Fear sets the tone, a stunning amalgam of 80’s influenced post-punk and electronica, with Andy Keating’s pulsating bass and Adam Houghton’s intense baritone vocal the immediate focal points.
The melodic guitar and swirling synths of Mat Peters underpin the catchy choruses of the next two songs, Makes No Difference and Warning Signs, an early indication that like on the previous album, almost every track is a potential single with crossover potential.
The faithful rendition of the new album, released just three days previously, continues unabated, with Burning appealing to those attracted to the darker side of post-punk, and The Echo’s memorably melancholic refrain appropriately soaring high into the vaulted stone roof, reverberating timelessly around the venue.
The pace drops momentarily during the more experimental opening segment of Encouragement, and the equally subdued I Remember Everything’s sparser arrangement allows Houghton to demonstrate how his signature vocal has improved over recent years. Obligations’ huge chorus, with Houghton (as is often the case echoing the synth motif), is just as powerful as on record, making the contrast with the more muted and subtle Song For Someone even more effective.
Barely half an hour since they took to the stage, the band launch into album closer Ambition, arguably the weakest track on the release, but any sense of anti-climax is immediately dissipated by the two bonus tracked (which are different each night of the tour) selected for this gig, Lost My Shadow and The Kiss, the opening two tracks from the preceding album, which are particularly well-received by an appreciative crowd.
Before ending the show with a “meet and greet” signing session, the band proudly announce that, somewhat incredibly, the new album features at number three in the midweek UK albums chart update, no mean feat for a band who cherish their independence and continue to release their music on their own Kind Violence label. The band will return to Scotland in April as part of a more traditional UK and European tour.
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