My first impression of the evening was how busy the Hare and Hounds was; the gig room was positively crammed when Goodnight Lenin took to the stage. It seemed that a lot of people had come out to see the local lads play through a highly entertaining set which was a lot folkier than I personally was expecting. I don't mean that in anyway derogatory however, the band clearly have a penchant for writing catchy and emotive music, and I was very impressed by their harmonies. They even threw out a cheeky cover of Kings of Leon's 'Four Kicks', however to call it a cover would be unfair on Goodnight Lenin, who it was clear to hear they had put a lot of thought into their reinterpretation of the piece.
Next up were Manchester-based Mutineers who, despite having a well formed sound, failed to engage with the crowd and recapture those who had wandered off following the end of the previous set. The band obviously wear their New Order/Killers-esque influences on their sleeves, which came across in my favourite of their bunch 'Shadow Kisses', which was a slice of Get Ready era synth-pop. Sadly I felt that they were a bit out of place on the evening's bill, and could easily have shone much brighter on another evening.
Last up of course was The Twilight Sad and, accordingly, the room fills up again. Tonight they were at their most epic, playing an equal mix of classic material from 2007's Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters and new LP Forget the Night Ahead. Opening with 'Reflection of the Television' I was impressed with the sound in the Har, which was much better than when I saw them back in the summer at Hop Farm Festival, enabling every layer of their dense sound to be picked up. Also improved was the general demeanor of the band, whom had seemed unhappy at aformentioned festival, however tonight vocalist James Graham even cracked a funny, joking that he couldn't see Birmingham for the constant cloud being thrown out by the smoke machine, proving that they're not always as miserable as their music may suggest. The lighting was also spot on, providing an apt and dramatic setting for the group - suiting their brooding, cryptic tales which switch effortlessly from beautiful meloncholy to brutal frustration with the touch of a guitar pedal. Vocally, I am left breathless by this band, Graham is easily one of my favourite frontmen of the moment, the highlight of his prowess coming in set-closer 'Cold Days from the Birdhouse', where he holds the melody over little more than a monotonous hum, before breaking into the final refrain of "where are your manners?" framed beautifully by walls of cacophonous, crashing guitar. This was a night I won't be forgetting for a while.
You can buy The Twilight Sad's latest album, Forget the Night Ahead, from FatCat Records
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