Last Sunday night, Aberdeen natives, the Xcerts returned to Birmingham for a show at the Rainbow in Digbeth. Sadly, the show was a bit on the empty side, which is perhaps to be expected on a Sunday night. Still, it was a stark contrast to the last time the Xcerts played Birmingham, back in November at the Sunflower Lounge; the room was so full that audience members were lined up the stairs trying to see the band.
Brighton-based band Glass City Vice [7/10] kicked the night off. I arrived towards the end of their set, but from what I saw the audience received them well.
Next up were self-proclaimed ‘Disney grungers’ Heyrocco [8/10], hailing all the way from Charleston, South Carolina. They were noisy, fun, and clearly enjoying themselves. Their set featured songs of the band’s forthcoming debut album Teenage Movie Soundtrack, which will be out on June 8th. The audience appeared to respond well to them. Heyrocco were a well-chosen opener as they did a good job of amping the energy up before the headliners took the stage.
Then it was time for The Xcerts [10/10] to play. They opened up with the ever-catchy ‘Live Like This.’ Their set was a good mix of tracks from their new album, which was released back in November, and older songs. What the crowd lacked in size, it made up for in enthusiasm. When the Xcerts played fan favorite ‘Crisis In The Slow Lane,’ everyone sang along. Frontman Murray Macleod played ‘Aberdeen 1987’ solo on an unplugged acoustic guitar and told the audience that he would personally answer their phones interrupted the song by ringing. Though Macleod expressed some disappointment at not having to deal with anyone’s bitter ex-boyfriend, thankfully the audience was respectfully quiet throughout. The band closed with a moving rendition of the title track off their new album, ‘There Is Only You.’
Even though the audience was small, all three of the bands still gave a great performance. The Xcerts in particular are always a fantastic live band, partially because MacLeod is such a fantastic frontman, and Sunday night was no exception. Those who decided against coming to the show certainly missed out on a fantastic night. The Xcerts showed their appreciation to those in attendance by sticking around to chat with the fans for quite a while after their set ended.
The Xcerts have a new EP coming out on Monday, called I Don’t Care. They will also be playing at Hit The Deck Festival this weekend in Bristol and Nottingham.
