Rat Boy signs on to success at Latitude 2015

Online hype can often outweigh reality, and there’s every chance that Rat Boy’s constant buzz could be a red herring for what’s to come. On paper, he has a huge career ahead of him. Kids love the cheek and delivery of this Essex newcomer, and they follow his every move when he’s only really existed for half a year.

The talk’s been met head on with constant stage invasions (things got so severe at yesterday’s Truck Festival that a punter broke their leg) and a Number One single in the vinyl singles chart. However fast things are happening with Rat Boy, it’s quickly become tangible.

Proof, if ever it was further needed, arrives on DIY’s The Alcove stage. It’s as packed as it’s been all weekend, with crowds huddling way outside the actual tent. That’s the hype question sorted, then.

But within the space of a half-hour set, he looks capable of penning anthems for thousands. Never missing a beat, delivering every line with perfect timing and pitch, behind all the gusto and tongue-in-cheek laddishness is a fiercely talented songwriter. He pens monsters about being young, frustrated, broke and bored, and he does this with such an energy that it’s no wonder so many have signed up to his cause. There’s just the one stage invader this time, but what’s happening on stage is way more exciting than everyday fence-hopping.