The Cribs, 100 Club, London

Tonight is a special night. Not just for the lucky 350 free ticket winners that find themselves crammed into the infamous (and tonight very warm) central London venue. But also for the band. ‘We’re going way back to our roots for a one off, tiny, special show next month,’ the Jarman brothers said of the gig back in March following the release of their 10 year compilation album ‘Payola’. ‘This one’s for the fans.’

The three-piece enter the stage to their usual walk-on music of ‘God Gave Rock ‘N’ Roll To You II’ by Kiss, the already thoroughly warmed-up crowd needing little invitation to cram even further towards the barrier-free stage. Wasting no time, the Jarmans (joined by a fourth guitarist who lingers at the back throughout) open up with an energetic rendition of third album track ‘Major’s Titling Victory’, the crowd jumping and chanting along enthusiastically from the off - alcohol covering those in the audience not sensible enough to have finished their drink already.

Second album track ‘Hey Scenesters!’ keeps the tempo and energy levels high, the sound of hundreds of excited fans shouting every lyric back at the band audible above Ryan and Gary’s vocals - with this jumping from album to album a constant throughout the evening. The setlist is comprised of songs throughout the entirety of their back-catalogue, from more wholesome fifth album songs like ‘Come On Be A No-One’ (which is opened with the riff to Weezer’s ‘The Good Life’), all the way back to to the lo-fi scruffiness of their debut album with ‘Tri’elle’ - which gets its first outing in nine years.

Tonight Ryan is his usual bouncy self; he throws mic stands around, crowd surfs guitar in hand and quickly gets himself as red-faced and worked up as those squeezed right at the very front of the crowd. Gary, as expected, is more subdued and considered to Ryan’s left - glancing at his twin brother when he leans perhaps slightly beyond ‘carefree’ and into ‘ramshackle’ territory, but still most certainly enjoying himself throughout. And Ross, who finds himself stuck behind the kit at the very rear of the stage, gets in to the spirit throughout the evening - standing on his drum stall and playing from there as often as drum parts allow.

While the fans are undoubtedly being well and truly pampered this evening, it’s evident that tonight is also very much for the band themselves. Shouts of ‘Wakefield’ get shot down by Ryan (‘where we used to live, thank you,’ he quips sarcastically), chants for live favourite ‘Another Number’ are ignored (in a very rare move the track is left out of their live setlist tonight) and the band tell the crowd just how much it means to be back at the 100 Club after playing there in 2004 supported by Comet Gain when The Cribs were still just getting started.

While ‘City Of Bugs’ feels a little of an underwhelming and calm ending to the evening (following directly after the anthemic ‘Our Bovine Public’ and ‘Men’s Needs’ is never going to be an easy task), there are absolutely no complaints here - it’s impossible to find a member of the crowd with a smile not spread across their face. Towels are handed out for free by the exit doors as the venue spills out onto the streets of London, fans reintroduced to real life and society covered in sweat but more than satisfied.