After playing over 130 shows in 2015 alone, having recently released an album and coming off the back of a US tour, you would forgive the boys of Glass Animals to be a bit fatigued as they arrived in Brighton on a blustery Saturday night.
However as they graced the near sell out crowd of the Brighton Dome, fatigued was not the word that came to mind; energetic, however, was the key word of the evening.
The four-piece, who had played their hometown gig in Oxford just a few nights before, flew through a 75 minute set featuring hits from both their debut album ZABA and their 2016 follow up How To Be A Human Being. An amalgamation of indie, electronic and hip-hop music, Glass Animals moved through their versatility seamlessly.
Beginning with the first single from their sophomore album, Life Itself, the crowd got an immediate idea of what their Saturday night was looking like. With lead singer Dave Bayley channelling the torrents of energy that were being omitted in the mosh pits.
The band, celebrating drummer Joe Seaward’s birthday, were clearly up for a party as they rattled through the opening songs of their set with barely time to acknowledge the partisan crowd in front of them. A six-minute rendition of their hit song ‘Gooey’ followed the opening quartet of tracks, ending on a melancholy note that introduced a more sedate part of the set, allowing the band and fans alike to take a momentary break.
The energy was quickly ignited again after the band was called back on for an encore. The visibly excited lead singer Dave Bayely made his way into the crowd for the penultimate song of the evening, slowly parading his way from the back to the front of the standing area as passionate fans flung themselves towards the microphone.
After safely making his way back to stage, Bayely and the rest of his band rounded off the night with ‘Pork Soda’, a lively and enthusiastic indie track that had everyone either dancing or jumping to the electronic beats.
A night of extreme energy from both the crowd and the band, it seems no quantity of shows will tire out the evergreen Glass Animals.
Check out our pictures of Glass Animals’ homecoming show here.