Bloc Party, Earls Court, London

Bloc Party are one hell of a confident band, whatever their quiet disposition might suggest. The four-piece have chosen Earls Court as their London venue of choice - a 19,000-capacity monster, where an artist will either go down in history or suffer humiliation at the hands of a half-filled arena. It’s no wonder, then, that Kele Okereke takes to stage with the words: ‘This is a very emotional time. Please bear with us.’

As the coloured ring from the front cover of latest album ‘Four’ illuminates the stage, the packed venue (which appears to be at near full capacity) roars as the opening bars of ‘3x3’ fills the air. The set showcases the changes the band has undergone over the past few years. Not so long ago, the four-piece, dressed in skinny jeans and motif T-shirts, were friendly but reserved onstage, offering little in the way of crowd interaction. It’s refreshing to see that a few album releases and one musical separation later, they’ve embraced the adoration, consistently telling us throughout their set how pleased they are to be playing to such a crowd and that they’re glad to be ‘back’. Oh guys, we’re glad to have you back.

The band spend the majority of their stage time blasting through latest album ‘Four’. ‘Truth’ and ‘Octopus’ are gems, but it’s still tracks from 2005 debut, ‘Silent Alarm’ that really get the crowd going. As the opening bars of ‘Helicopter’ pummel the air, there’s beer thrown everywhere alongside pogoing 20-somethings and a man resembling Scroobius Pip yelling ‘LET’S FUCKING HAVE IT’.

This is how a gig should be conducted.