Editors – Brixton Academy – Oct 9th

I’d had my expectations raised for this gig – a friend of mine went a couple of nights earlier and told me just how good the Editors were, so I was full of anticipation on the drive up to Brixton. Support was from the Kissaway Trail, sounding like a cross between fellow countrymen Mew and some jangly pop – I really enjoyed their sound and wished I’d arrived about 20 minutes earlier to hear all of their set. Then came Ra-Ra-Riot – who to me sounded a little but willfully arty – joined on stage by stand-up cello and violin players, I felt they were a little like a 6th form project rather than a fully formed band…but I’m going to reserve full judgement until I hear some studio music,

At around 9.20 the Editors took to the stage – in front of a huge gasometer backdrop they blistered through tracks from both of the hit albums – and two I hadn’t heard before, one that lead singer Tom Smith said was new, and one which was old – possibly from the Snowfield EP.

Highlights for me were Racing Rats, Sparks and the incredible Munich – all carried off with great precision and loads of energy. Tom Smith was on good form – bouncing around the stage, and climbing on his piano for maximum effect. It was a typically edgy performance and his voice really cut through the typical Brixton sound.

An excellent night out – with an excellent band – definitely living up to expectations.

Some (rubbish) photos of the night are over here at flickr