White Lies, Hoxton Bar & Kitchen, London

Almost five and a half years after White Lies’ very first show at this same venue, the last night of a three-day residency at the Hoxton Square Bar comes loaded with an underlined feeling of accomplishment from both the band and the fans. This raffle-winners-only set of shows serves as an excuse to present new songs from the band’s upcoming third album and to bring back that intimate feeling for a band who are already selling out places 20 times bigger.

A couple of familiar tracks are used to establish the link with the all-hands-up crowd and just when everyone is starting to get cosy, ‘There Goes Our Love Again’, the first single from ‘Big TV’ is dropped showing a slightly merrier side of the trio, while still maintaining those choruses and bridges that seem to lift your feet from the floor like an air balloon.

Singer Harry remains talkative, narrating a few stories about the tracks and why the were selected for the setlist. He isn’t afraid to admit that the pieces of paper he has with him on stage are the lyrics of one of the new ones, ‘Be Your Man’, because he ‘couldn’t remember all of it yet.’ Another perk of this intimate show is the chance to hear a few rare tracks like ‘Streetlights’, a song they ‘haven’t played in a really long time’ and which didn’t feature in either of the other two Hoxton gigs.

The infinite ups, downs and loops of newbie ‘Getting Even’ finishes with the equivalent of a standing ovation for an already-standing crowd, and the very emotional ‘Unfinished Business’ (the same track that they used to open their first ever London date half a decade ago) sets an even higher standard for the rest of the show, where both brand new and classics are dedicated to the fans as a thank you for being there.