Written By Henry Chappell

5 piece Irish Post-Punk band, Fontaines D.C. have quickly built up a reputation as a live presence, and their performance at Brixton Academy did not disappoint, with an eclectic mix of ages, and people, crammed into the iconic Brixton venue. Performing a sold-out show at Brixton is a feat in itself, and you could tell this meant a lot to the boys from Dublin, with the occasional smile and wave from the captivating, Grian Chatten.

The support act Toy, a psychedelic punk-influenced band from Brighton, with indie-rock verses and visceral punk choruses, that went down well with the crowd, so well in fact that when the set ended, and their setlist was chucked carelessly into the crowd, there were almost tears from someone who did not get their hands on one, who then asked to pay 5 pounds to buy it off of the person who caught it, and in a wholesome moment of the night, she got it for free. Unfortunately, they were untimely pulled from the stage, by a growingly frustrated man in what looked like pyjamas, to the left of the stage. Their style was reflective of the indie music of the 2010s, complemented nicely with psychedelic punk sounds that blasted out of the Brixton sound system. The mix was unluckily poor, as is typical with many support acts, with the vocals almost entirely drowned out by overwhelming drums. Aside from this, they made for a great start to the evening.

As Brixton Academy filled to capacity, the anticipation grew amongst the fans. The lights dimmed and an Irish Folk song boomed from the speakers surrounding us. The band walked out, Grian announced “this is a new song”, and they were off. Launching into Hero’s Death, the crowd could not wait to get moving, with a relatively young audience pushing and showing all over the place. This atmosphere was hotly maintained throughout the set, with songs such as Chequeless Reckless, Too Real and Lucid Dream.