Live Review Fontaines DC, O2 Victoria Warehouse, Manchester 13th November 2022

Any concern that energy might be running low for Fontaines DC’s third consecutive night at Manchester’s industrial Victoria Warehouse are quickly quashed moments into the scuzzy drone of opener ‘Big’. Masked by a murky haze, frontman Grian Chatten steps onto the monitor to screams otherwise reserved for some the world’s biggest pop stars as the crowd surge and clamber onto shoulders, raising celebratory Irish flags into the air.

It’s a special kind of gritty euphoria that the Dublin five-piece have been mastering since 2019’s ‘Dogrel’. They’ve come a long way since the biting spoken word of ‘Boys In A Better Land’ – still met by tonight’s biggest reaction. This year’s ‘Skinty Fa’ marks a natural step in their evolution, adding an avant-garde edge to their understated bravado. The sludge of ‘Big Shot’ shrouds the venue in a newfound density, while the dirge of ‘Jackie Down The Line’ or ‘How Cold Love Is’ appears remarkably upbeat.

Fontaines DC have rapidly forged their own path, evident in their perfectly-collected performance, driven by an effortlessly muted energy led by the relentless guitars that underpin much of the band’s sound and the stage production that masterfully captures their downtrodden despondency. It’s mirrored in the eerie glow from the stage, plunging the warehouse into deep greens and reds.