LIVE: Editors - Manchester Academy 22.10.15

Editors have been a staple and long standing fixture amongst the indie music scene for many years now. Having seemingly slipped into obscurity somewhat over the past couple of years, with this recent tour the band are able to show their doubters that they are still aprevalent band.

Their drawl, dark and anguished lyrics and performance style are reminiscent of the likes of Joy Division and Echo And The Bunnymen, with the inclusion of electro elements in songs such as ‘Papillon’. The venue itself was an ideal location for a band such as these; Intimate in aesthetics but actually able to sustain a rather large crowd without feeling too swamped. The tour is aimed at promoting and sharing their new album, In Dream, but was accompanied by a string of their classic and beloved songs. In saying this, the support act for the night, The Twilight Sad, seemingly had a large following with them. It could be seen as one of the main reasons why the crowd was so large on the night. It’s easy to see why – they were a very good band and warmed up the crowd spectacularly. They will soon be returning to Glasgow to play a much larger show before accompanying The Cure on their short tour across the United States.

Editors took to the stage and immediately set the pace for the night with ‘All the Kings’ and ‘Ocean At Night’. The crowd were into it and jumped around in time to Tom Smith’s lyrics. It was clearer more than ever now why the comparisons between themselves and Joy Division were in place. I had previously attempted to see Editors live at Latitude festival last year, but had found myself experiencing a horrible crossover of sound between them and Bondax who were performing on the stage adjacent. Smith knew that the crowd were pumped for tonight’s performance and so launched into a back to back performance of their two most recognisable and beloved songs, ‘Munich’ and ‘Papillon’. The crowd responded as expected, with a high level of energy and singing along in time to Smith, who revelled in this admiration.

Halfway through their set, the band left the stage, leaving the front-man Tom Smith on his own. He delivered a fantastic solo performance of ‘Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors’. Smith had the crowd in the palm of his hand and was able to dictate them masterfully. They watched on adoringly and respectfully as Smith performed their beloved classic beautifully. This was followed later on by the likes of ‘An End Has A Start’ and ‘A Ton Of Love’. If people doubted Editors based on the most recent album, they certainly has their minds changed from this performance. They showed that they can still pack a punch and please the crowd. The band are far from stale and will continue to grow with performances like this one. An excellent night seemingly enjoyed by all who attended.