Friendly Fires bring the vibe to the O2 Institute, Birmingham - review

Birmingham’s O2 Institute was packed, literally, with a gyrating, pulsing audience as the indie-dance trio arrived for the latest date of their tour.

At the end of the working week it’s nice to cut loose a little.

So picture the scene as you drink from your two-pint plastic glass in the crowd.

As the lights rise, out bounds lead singer Ed Mac.

And bounding doesn’t do him justice.

He throbs with energy like an excitable child at their first school disco.

Arms flail, hips thrust and shoulders shimmy throughout the energetic show.

And the crowd responds in pure elation.

We live in such serious times nowadays.

Sometimes it’s just nice to live in the moment and have fun.

Their set rattles along at a rate through the opening salvo of Can’t Wait Forever, Heaven Let Me In and Running Away.

And it never relents.

Hawaiian Air, Lack of Love and Jump in the Pool bring such a vibe, to coin a popular phrase from Mr Mac.

“The vibe is brilliant tonight, that’s what we love,” he calls out.

Lads swirl and bounce off each other in the crowd, while other friends reach out towards their hero on stage.

Silhouette is sung with purpose with the lyric “Nothing’s worth losing this moment” setting the tone.

Ed is pitch perfect, with a velvet voice, reminiscent of George Michael in his early Wham days.

And squeeze your eyes hard enough and Ed’s pale chinos and unbuttoned short sleeve shirt could have come straight from Club Tropicana.

The set rises to a crescendo with the crowd-pleasing Paris.

And the night ends with a brilliant encore topped off by a seemingly never-ending version of Kiss of Life.

Friendly Fires brought Love like Waves to Birmingham and that was just the tonic.