If there is a band that has been living up to their hype throughout this year it is Deadletter. The Yorkshire band made their return to Manchester after their successful show during this year’s edition of Manchester Psych Fest. Back in September, they played to a chaotic and crowded Pink Room in YES. Quite impressive if you take into account that they were assigned a 1 a.m. slot. After speaking to a few people that night it was clear that we had just listened to one of the most promising upcoming bands in the UK. I was even more surprised when I learned that the tickets for their double-set show on the 27th of October were sold out, for both shows.
This past experience set a high standard for their return to Manchester. Two shows in a single night are something I hadn’t heard of before (7:30 and 9:30 p.m.). Holding tickets for the late one, I was unsure whether I would get to see an already tired band or the delivery of everything they had – hopefully – saved for the end.
Sun King opened the show with rhythmic guitars and impeccable vocals. The band was a good introduction to the night with a slower pace than what was about to come. I was also there to photograph the show and saved myself a spot at the front. YES’ basement was completely packed by 9:30 when Deadletter came on stage. The contagious bass and sax melody of the ‘Snitching Hour’ broke the silence to open the set. In spite of counting only with EPs at the moment – which is definitely not a complaint – they completed the set with a list of now iconic songs that the crowd clearly knew as they sang each of them until the very end.
As it is a distinctive feature of their live performances, Zack Lawrence joined the crowd on several occasions to sing from among the audience as he also coordinated the mosh. If there is anything that Deadletter’s gigs do not lack, it is moshpits. Even though this was the second show of the night (with only 90 minutes in between both) the band delivered as if this was their only show of the night. More impressive is to know that they even headlined a DJ set later in the night.
When ‘Binge’ came into the set list, Zack invited Sun King to join them on stage. If you have been to YES basement, you know the space to work with is limited. The bundle of bands made up to eleven people on stage with the audience singing to every single word of their popular song. Of course, the excellent ‘Madge’s Declaration’, ‘Pop Culture Connoisseur’, and ‘Degenerate Inanimate’ made their way onto the setlist. ‘Fit for Work’ rounded out the night, which worked perfectly with a live crowd as Zack and the audience’s back-and-forth conversation was a backing track to the song.
The band didn’t disappoint and the vertiginous pace of the show made it feel that it ended soon after it started. Although the organic chaos from September didn’t quite unfold, it is clear that few bands have the energy to perform flawlessly to a twice-in-a-night sold-out venue.
