The Wedding Present at O2 Academy Leeds review: 'Great songs from a great band'

They revisited their hometown and marked the album's anniversary at the O2 Academy by playing it in full, with Desperate Journalist completing the bill.

Desperate Journalist made the ideal support, partly because their set proved a band can slip new songs among old ones and lose nothing. Three tracks from Gilding the Lily, their sixth album, out in November, sat inside a set stretching back a dozen years, and the joins never showed. Empire opened with the same shimmering intent as older favourites, Terrible Years carried its lead-single confidence, and 20th Century Women settled beside Fault, Cedars and Satellite. Jo Bevan's voice did the joining, as dramatic on the new material as on Cristina, and the set flowed as one argument rather than a preview followed by a retrospective.

The headliner began with B-sides and rarities, plus two new songs. Limbo opened the set and, as David Gedge told the room, was getting its first outing, in Leeds at least. It's nice to be back, he added, and the hometown crowd agreed. A second new song, Yo-Yo, arrived fourth. The between-song chat was reliably deadpan. Introducing Montreal, Gedge recalled playing it in Montreal, assuming that would be nice. Food poisoning intervened, and it wasn't.

Then the main event. Dalliance opened proceedings and retained all its nervous energy, holding its shape through the thrashy section before the band ripped straight into Dare. They are great songs from a great band, and both facts still land instantly. Suck followed with an extended intro, stretching the tension ahead of Blonde.

From there the album ran in order, Rotterdam through Octopussy, the closing six minutes giving the run its slow-burn finish. The current lineup, Rachael Wood on guitar alongside Gedge, Stuart Hastings on bass and Chris Hardwick on drums, steered the record's dynamic swings without losing its tension, and Wood's heavier touch suits its darker corners. Even if you aren’t a fan of album playthroughs, they do provide an opportunity to hear songs that usually don’t make the setlist.

The encore looked back past the album: Box Elder, their 1990 Pavement cover, then My Favourite Dress and Kennedy, with You Should Always Keep in Touch closing the night.

Recorded in ten days in Minnesota and a No. 13 hit despite its uncompromising sound, Seamonsters remains the band's most imposing record, and this hometown show treated it as a living document rather than a museum piece.