Arctic Monkeys clean up at NME show

See the photo gallery from the night here.
This issue's Hot Press cover stars, who were second on the bill, played to a sold-out house at the Ambassador in Dublin. But once they finished their half-hour set with 'A Certain Romance', the masses exited, leaving headliners Maximo Park to perform in front of crowd that was significantly less than capacity.
The evening had started even emptier, as tickets for the show displayed 7.30pm as the time the doors opened although that was when openers Mystery Jets came on stage.
Playing tasters from their forthcoming album Making Dens due out in March, the Twickenham-based band seemed happy enough to play in front of those who were there, probably ignoring the sparse audience in the knowledge that the prestigious opening slot in past years has gone to Franz Ferdinand and Kaiser Chiefs.
Next up were We Are Scientists, who presented the highlights of With Love And Squalor, to near-perfect effect, as if their debut album was a precursor to the live show. Tight, focused and able to bang out a good tune, they held their own when everyone's attention idly wandered to the highlight of the night, the Arctic Monkeys.
The Sheffield troupe kicked off with 'When The Sun Goes Down' before playing the that tune that everyone was waiting for. And so early on in the show? Now that's the confidence for you.
While most in the throng weren't familiar enough with their newly-released material to cause a great deal of moshpit action, one has a feeling that next time they play it won't be so serene, even if their long-term prospects should rightly be questioned at this embryonic stage.
So on to Maximo Park and their receding audience. While opinions from the audience's Hot Press contingent were varied, what couldn't be disputed was the energy eminating from the stage, with Paul Smith unable to stay still for the duration. Wrapping the Irish leg of the NME tour with 'Going Missing', they may not have drawn the biggest crowd, but the reason why they were headlining was clear.
Check back later for more pics from the show....