Across Viagra Boys’ latest album, frontman Sebastian Murphy’s newfound introspection is noticeable, alongside the band’s ability to sound foolish while demonstrating truly intelligent musicianship. While this makes for a brilliant record, it’s good to see that not much of this has made it into their live set. Instead, the band have continued doing what made them a must-see act in the first place: creating a swirling, frenzied, foaming-at-the-mouth crowd.
Murphy is a great punk front man. He played the whole gig shirtless, exposing a slightly bulging gut and enough tattoos to cover up nearly every inch of skin. He’s even got “Lös” – Swedish for loose – tattooed on his forehead, a word perfectly capturing the atmosphere the band create. He shouted every word with passion in the midst of a cacophony of whaling saxophone, synths, thumping basslines and guitar work impressive enough to rival the best that modern rock has to offer. At one point he paused – a rare thing – to talk about the last time they’d played Manchester. The sound system broke halfway through but, he says, the crowd didn’t seem to notice. Such is the enthusiasm the band creates.
All of the above made the gig a very difficult thing to describe. The band left no time for note-taking, although this probably wouldn’t have done them justice anyway. Without sounding too pretentious, the show became an interactive experience rather than the static performance you usually get at a gig. Really, it was just chaos. Most of the crowd at the 3,500-capacity O2 Victoria Warehouse ended up consumed into various mosh pits that continuously opened in different parts of the crowd.
Within all of this, there were a few tracks that stood out as particularly hellraising. Viagra Boys did an around 20-minute version of ‘Research Chemicals’, a particularly grimy number about particularly bad drugs from their first EP – 2016’s Consistency of Energy. The longer they went on, the more involved the crowd became. Meanwhile, ‘Sports’ – perhaps the band’s most famous song, featuring absurdist lyrics about wieners and surfing paired with Murphy at his most deadpan – caused a circle pit that took up more space than most venues themselves. ‘Waterboy’, a standout from viagr aboys, also got a good reaction, with off-kilter vocals, comparatively sparse but danceable instrumentation and stabs of buzzing guitar.
The only opportunity for something close to a moment of calm during the gig was during ‘Medicine for Horses’, another song from their latest album that focuses around Murphy’s love for his fiancé, and how this has inspired him to become less self-destructive. Here, the crowd was brought to a standstill while the band delivered a genuinely touching performance. Not that it lasted long. As soon as the next song began, it was back to more of the same as another circle pit opened instantly. However, the chaos that ensued throughout the gig didn’t seem to be an excuse for pointless aggression. When people fell over, they were helped up, and no one seemed out to hurt anyone else. Overall, Viagra Boys showed that they’re one of the best live acts going right now, with genuine talent with a willingness to let loose. Sell your phone. Sell your laptop. Just find a way to see them in the flesh.
