Scala is the latest venue on the solo, acoustic tour of The Courteeners head honcho Liam Fray. A man who upholds the characteristics of the long line of front men from Manchester embodying everything the likes of Morrissey, Brown and Gallagher stood for. For such a young man Fray has achieved a lot and it feels like he’s been on this scene for a while and when you see him posed at the front with nothing but an acoustic guitar and his witty lyrics you can see how his band, and Liam himself, has become an institution for so many since his debut single Cavorting was released.

This solo tour could easily, and somewhat cynically, be seen as a way of Fray squeezing every penny out of the 2012 record, Anna. However for so many this has been a long time coming. It only takes a look around the venue to see the usual faces, bodies clad in parkas and desert boots chanting his name to see how ‘mad for it’ this London crowd are. As soon as he walks on stage, following a support set from Bipolar Sunshine, the atmosphere is knocked up a notch and for the next 1 hour and 45 mins every song is greeted with cheers and chanting worthy of the football terraces on a Saturday afternoon.

He kicks off with the old favourite ‘How Come’ from his debut record, ‘St Jude’. He quickly whisks his way through a back catalogue including hits from all 3 albums, rare b-sides and covers. There are moments of pure unity between singer and crowd, more often then separation. Not once does Fray let this crowd out of the palm of his hands and on evenings like this it’s easy to forget the music snobbery that has sometimes plagued him and his band. It’s the in-between story telling and banter that reminds us all he isn’t the angry, hot head he has so often been stereotyped to be This gig is everything you expect from Fray, the set is made up of lung-busting anthems and sultry long songs impressively showing not only his songwriting but also his vocal range and intricate guitar playing.

As quick as it started it is soon ending and with a venue wide chorus of ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ and ‘Bide Your Time’ every man and woman leaves Scala satisfied with the performance the paper boy from the North-West has put in. He thanks the crowd for the participation and walks off with a wave, a smile and even a handshake for those at the front. The inevitable sore throat and hazy head experienced the following morning is a small price to pay to share an evening with a man who insists it is his privilege to play these shows.

Gary Byfield