Much like Miley Cyrus’ never-ending attempts for attention or a zombie Mike Tyson vying for that last braaaaaiiinnn (hey, it’s nearly Hallowe’en, after all), the rise and rise of The 1975 really has been nothing short of unstoppable. Thanks to a canny concoction of youthful lyrics and genre-splicing music, the Wilmslow, Cheshire-based bunch have won countless hearts and dented dozens of charts with their self-titled debut and tonight, in front of a sell-out crowd in the Mandela Hall, they play the final European show on their current tour.
It’s no secret that the last time The 1975 played in Ireland both the Belfast and Dublin venues were virtually empty, but what a difference a year makes as the venue is full of 900 people who are literally screaming themselves hoarse as soon as frontman Matt Healy shambles onstage. The buzzy, fuzzy ‘The City’ warms us up nicely and from there, the clearly chuffed four-piece treat us to cuts from their aforementioned debut.
‘Girls’ is a highlight and that funky riff and catchy chorus has everyone singing, while ‘Robbers’ is a little more moody and definitely lives up to their ambition of wanting to write songs that would feature on a John Hughes movie soundtrack. To be honest, it seems as if The 1975 can’t put a foot wrong tonight as the age 14+ crowd are willing them on to succeed and when they eventually play ‘Chocolate’ it seems like the band have officially transcended from hopeful indie kids to proper, hardened headliners.
Once the band leave the stage, the crowd don’t bother with the tried and tested “One more tune/Olé olé olé olé” singalongs and instead opt for the cheeky, “We want sex!” chant instead, and The 1975 respond by giving it to us good and proper (that would be their song ‘Sex’ by the way. Get your minds out of the gutter). As everyone croons along to the “She’s got a boyfriend anyway” hook, it really does feel like the group are on the cusp on something really exciting and 2014 could be theirs for the taking.