Belle & Sebastian

I always look forward to a bit of Belle & Sebastian, because how could such happy tweeness fail to make anyone smile or cheer you up from a horrible Monday?

Last time they came through Manchester, B&S were at the Apollo and were subject to the usual problems of that gig venue - people talking incessantly through the set and spending more time at the bar than watching the band. This time they were playing 2 nights at The Ritz, which, with its bouncy dancefloor and good acoustics, is rapidly becoming one of my favourite Manchester gig venues. Better than the Academy 1, or the Apollo certainly.

We got down there early to get a good spot and to watch opener The Brakes who were highly entertaining, playing a mix of country and punky rock in short bursts - songs ranged from 10 seconds and one line to several minutes, and were catchy and energetic.

Ahh Belle & Sebastian, long have they inspired a devoted cult following of bookish indie types who only leave the library once every 2-3 years to watch their favourite band play. You'd think B&S gigs would be a thing of celebratory joy and dancing, but you would alas, be rather wrong. We thought the Apollo problem was an Apollo problem. But with the quietness of the sound (why don't they turn up the volume?), despite being against the barrier all I could hear through large portions of the set was talking. Yes, talking. Apparently a group of students from Leeds felt the need to squeal like idiots in between songs, talk through the ones they didn't know, and then flail about bumping into people for the couple they recognized. And the 2 blokes behind us, singing into each others' faces off-key in the comedy stylings of a six-year-old on helium and banging into everyone within a 10 foot radius with very bony elbows.

As for the set? Well, we didn't go the first night, and they said they'd changed the set entirely, so I reckon I missed pretty much all the songs I wanted to hear barring "Judy & the Dream of Horses" and "Like Dylan in the Movies" and "Le Pastie de la Bourgeoisie." Ahh well. I would have liked to hear such classics as "I Fought in a War" and anything more than "I'm A Cuckoo" off Dear Catastrophe Waitress but it wasn't to be. Not that they didn't sound great, because they did. They were on fine form, joking with the audience and sounding very sweet, but it was just one of those things. With so many songs in the back catalogue they were never going to please everyone.

On the whole, I would always recommend seeing Belle & Sebastian when they tour, just don't expect to hear much over the talking of their foolish fans.