xx teens

Rich Cash is minus his trademark shades, but stoically (and mind-bogglingly) he still stays completely still throughout the set, staring into space and adopting the muted expression of a simple man who just happens to deadpan the best New Wave songs around right now. ‘The Way We Were’ has Uber’s guitaring shoulders jerking about as he jolts around with his singer in a bizarre partnership. Motoring through their set, the band are the picture of a professional outfit. Despite an unresponsive crowd, XX Teens are still the fucking coolest cats about and it’s hard to strip them of that, regardless of the situation. The paradoxical edge of their wry sharpness means they’re idiosyncratic, but not daft in their shirt and trouser uniform. ‘My Favourite Hat’ self-perpetuates its wired Devo tenacity, tightly revolving ahead of ‘Darlin’s rumbling dance freakiness, and the mad, Mark E. Smith echoing single ‘How To Reduce Your Chances Of Becoming A Terrorist Victim’ doesn’t even need to be played. The Teens look like they’re making a good time of it, but there’s no escaping the complacency of this being a support slot with little chance of getting incendiary. This summer however, they’ll be an essential festival fixture wherever you catch em. SO HOW DID THE LONG BLONDES GO DOWN IN MANCHESTER? CHECK BACK MONDAY TO READ SOPHIE HALL’S REPORT…