Live: White Lies @ Apollo

White Lies
Manchester Apollo
13 December
3 and a half stars

When musing over a night’s performance, it’s natural to think over the highs and lows of the evening. With support from The Chevin, proceedings were off to a promising start with their guitar fuelled indie tunes warming things up. Playing to a mix of old and young, White Lies’ dark themes, coupled with their large anthemic sound, have drawn comparisons to such bands as Joy Division, however it’s unfair to say that they haven’t generated their own sound.

With the release of their second album Ritual, White Lies have a wealth of material to draw on, however it’s not had quite the same reception as the band’s debut To Lose My Life… Despite this it still musters a warm response, with songs like ‘Is Love’ and ‘Turn the Bells’ being particular highlights. And this takes me back to my initial point, and the exploration of the other side of the coin – low points. The problem is there weren’t any as such, the light show was intricate and varied, the bands sound clear and defined, although singer Harry McVeigh could do with livening up his mid-song crowd interaction as apposed to the stock *insert city here* formula. But this is still no reason to criticise, the problem is the gig format in itself surprisingly. Despite many crowd pleasing favourites, there is a strong sense of deja vu as we plod through the set list, exploring many of the same musical themes and approaches.

White Lies have got a bright future after their difficult second album, but haven’t shown any great progression from their first just yet. As gig experiences go, this weaved in and out of sublime and mundane, but given time and freedom these guys have the potential to produce something very special.

White Lies – To Lose My Life