The Courteeners, Birmingham O2 Academy
Thursday, November 20
TO CELEBRATE the release of their fourth album Concrete Love, The Courteeners descended on Birmingham for the penultimate gig of their UK tour.
The Northern spirit was truly alive and kicking – despite being in the Midlands – as newbies Blossoms took to the stage to warm up the sold-out crowd with all things psych.
The five-piece, who all wore matching black turtle necks, had an aura of confidence and owned the stage with their retro inspired hits.
It was the perfect pre-performance to ready the fans for the main attraction.
Starting the night as they meant to go on, the Courteeners belted out new hits such as How Good It Was, followed by cult-classic Cavorting – which is about when I lost my pint and the crowd went wild.
Small Bones, with its delicate start and explosive ending, was an instant hit which is rare for new songs, while a stand-out moment had to be when front man Liam Fray jammed on is acoustic with No You Didn’t.
Unexpected numbers such as Cross My Heart And Hope to Fly surprised even the most dedicated fans, while Bide Your Time was another anthem which Fray could stand back to and let the crowd sing.
The night came to its climax and did not disappoint when everyone went insane for belters Not Nineteen Forever and What Took You So Long.
As revellers poured out of the venue, beer-soaked, bedraggled and bruised, everyone was still buzzing from what could only be described as another electrifying performance for the band.
