FORMING in their hometown of Stockport back in 2013, Blossoms are certainly one to watch for 2016. Our entertainment reporter, Abi White, was lucky enough to catch the band at their Manchester tour date at the Albert Hall…
The five-piece indie band with hints of undeniably psychedelic melodies claim their influences stem from the likes of Arctic Monkeys and Abba, which isn’t so hard to believe when listening to some of the band’s singles. ‘Charlamagne’ and ‘Cut Me and I’ll Bleed’ are amongst the singles with catchy synth melodies teamed alongside indie vibes.
Offering promise of a new and exciting band evolving out of Manchester, the hometown fans don’t half show their support – selling out the restored Wesleyan chapel.
Opening the evening for the show was a beautiful tribute dedicated to the young band, Viola Beach, who tragically died in a car accident a few weeks ago. The band were due to support Blossoms on this date, but sadly never got the opportunity.
This meant that a live pre-recorded set of Viola Beach was played over their previously allocated set time. A perfect tribute – the audience were dancing along to the upbeat indie tracks as though the band were there, with ‘Swings and Waterslides’ being particularly popular amongst the crowd, finishing with a big round of applause and a standing ovation from some audience members.
After the pre-recorded Viola Beach set, the Vryll Society was up next on the bill. The Liverpudlian band embarked upon the stage and delivered a great stage presence throughout with constant movement, captivating the audience’s attention in preparation for the main act, Blossoms.
The Blossoms opened their set with ‘Cut me and I’ll Bleed’ it was clear that the fans were in it for the long run. From the onset, the crowd were jumping in unison to the band’s track, before ‘At Most A Kiss’ played next, teamed with ambient blue and pink lighting.
Front man, Tom Ogden, then introduced the band for their hometown gig, and spoke a few words: “We’re Blossoms, and we’re from Stockport!” This was then closely followed by extended use of strobe lighting, building up the atmosphere before the band transitioned into their next few tracks on their set.
It was evident by this point in the set that this was an extremely Manchester-esque audience. Typical Manchester chants were beginning to erupt throughout the audience and this became even more evident when front man, Ogden, performed a solo piece with a keyboard – perched on a music transportation box with a can of beer by his side.
Blossoms were class, did Manchester proud!!!
— chloeleigh✨ (@ChlooeeWilson) February 28, 2016
The acoustic song slowly transitioned into ‘Because you’re Gorgeous’ and then ‘Half the World Away’ by Oasis, with the crowd carrying on singing even after Tom had finished.
Alongside the band executing their own songs so brilliantly, a particularly impressive part of the set was the band’s cover of ‘In2’ by WSTRN, putting their own individual twist on the well-known hit. The band covering this song seemed to pleasantly surprise the indie fans as they engaged with the track.
Nearing the end of the set, the band then chose their last three songs as ‘Blown Rose’, ‘Charlamagne’ and ‘Blow’. The set list was well designed and managed to keep the audiences attention throughout, leaving no time for lull moments in the performance.
The crowd erupted during ‘Charlamagne,’ with one audience member in particular igniting a blue flare. With ‘Blow’ playing as the last song, the set ended on a high, with the audience once again carrying on singing the lyrics as the band triumphantly walked off the stage following yet another successful hometown gig.
By Abi White
@AbigailWhiteUOS
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