The DMA’s are still, 4 albums in, determined on beginning a riot all over they go.
But a night invested at one of their gigs is the very best sort of mayhem, with music that instantly strips inhibitions and releases child-like, gleeful energy.
For a complete 90 minutes at the O2 Apollo, there’s a swirling mass of 3500 individuals – from my perch up on the terrace, all I see is limbs and flashes of smiling faces.
The Australian trio are back out on trip, displaying music from their latest album How Many Dreams?
That brand-new music, just a number of weeks old at this moment, is peppered throughout and received nicely – however nobody concerns a DMA’s gig desiring politeness.
What we desire is to belt out ‘The End’ with our elbows in each other’s faces, or sing ‘Tape Deck Sick’ with a lot gusto you can feel it from your diaphragm.
The energy never ever gets more mad than it provides for ‘Hello Girlfriend’, which genuinely is a container list experience for live music fans. Just when you believe it’s over, simply when the only noise left is feedback, Matt Mason is back at the mic chanting “Such a funny thing for me, try to explain” – and the band’s back, crashing drums and pounding guitars. Then peaceful once again, then Matt returns, and the pattern repeats, over and over, getting louder and louder, the crowd getting livelier and livelier. It looks like it will never ever stop – like we’ll all be drawn into a swirling vortex of flung pints of Carling and sticky floorings for the rest of eternity.
But it does stop and decrease a little – for ‘Delete’, it’s less about pushing and more about hugging. I even identify a two-storey cuddle taking place in between a group of mates who are still on each other’s shoulders.
It’s quite clear that frontman Tommy O’Dell has all of us in the palm of his hand when he strolls a stage-width far from his mic for the complete ‘Silver’ chorus and all of us fill in the spaces for him.
Their gigs in Manchester constantly have an air of a homecoming reveal about them. It doesn’t actually make good sense – they’re half-a-globe far from their real home – however this lot of Aussies have actually embraced that really unique Manc swagger, down to the water resistant parkas they all endure phase.
Johnny Took best regards informs us: “You guys have changed our lives. You’ve taken us under your wing and it blows us away, so thank you.”
It makes good sense then that the next time the DMA’s are back in Manchester, they’ll be supporting the Courteeners at their big Heaton Park gig. Chaos is ensured.
Tickets for Courteeners supported by DMA’s are on sale now with See Tickets.
Featured image: The Manc Group
