Review: This Many Boyfriends, Manchester Roadhouse, 13/10/12

Saturday nights are all about donning your dancing shoes, letting your hair down and putting the woes of the working week behind you. And every Saturday night needs a soundtrack; a band to give you that oomph and fuel the shenanigans ahead. This Many Boyfriends come equipped with all the required credentials, and this Saturday saw them land at the Roadhouse with their scintillating blend of unadulterated pop, for what turned out to be a night of sheer merriment.

Fuelling the disco vibes to perfection, they kicked off with ‘I Don’t Like You (‘Cos You Don’t Like The Pastels)’, a refreshing resurrection of good old fashioned perennial indie pop, with a sound that is instantly genial, systematic and nimble. The teasing guitar riffs and toe-tapping melodies were instantly infectious and a good indication of what This Many Boyfriends are all about; fun.

Their debut album released last week and produced by Ryan Jarman has noticeably adopted a very welcome ‘back to basics’ format; no gimmicks, slick, pithy and adroit. And tonight’s gig was a true reflection of the record with all its warm, twinkling burly riffs and aberrant, fleeting solos.

Wistful and sentimental in places, they conjure images of innocent, simpler times and those more complex. ‘Tina Weymouth’ proved to be a fine example of their heart on sleeve tendencies. “You love pop songs about love more than being in love in the first place” they crooned, with a miraculous aptitude for being cutting without malice and scathing with added sweetness. Recent single ‘Number One’ was reflective with absonant echoes occurring in the key lines, and jangly, spiky instrumentation throughout.

With a dizzyingly vibrant and incredibly smart sonic landscape daubed with post-punk 80’s affections, This Many Boyfriends are nostalgic in a sense that there were undertones of The Smiths and Joy Division (comparisons they must be sick to the teeth of by now- sorry) - but with added zeal, far less bleakness and smiles. A natty, epigrammatic take on a sound that so many have failed to recreate.

This Many Boyfriends prove that less really is more.

Words: Michelle Lloyd

Read our recent This Many Boyfriends interview

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