PVRIS, Maggie Lindemann and Charlotte Sands Send Temperatures Soaring at Manchester Academy

The Manchester Academy welcomed the live return of electro-rockers PVRIS on the first night of their UK and Europe tour on a bitterly cold Sunday night, which saw many fans braving the freezing cold temperatures by forming a queue very early in the afternoon to secure a prime spot in the audience for the show. Thankfully the temperatures soared inside as we were treated to a bumper night of entertainment.

The energetic Charlotte Sands opened the show with a set of fiery pop-punk bangers that got the crowd bouncing, Maggie Lindemann was more enigmatic, bringing a darker, more indie pop-punk vibe to the stage, and the effortlessly cool PVRIS gave us an incredibly lively and ethereal headline set.

Opening with “Animal,” “Monster,” and “Mirrors,” it felt like, as an audience member, that you were an extra in some kind of cinematic scene from a futuristic thriller with an incredible light show from the back of the stage silhouetting the band throughout the show making them faceless figures and filling the venue with luscious, colourful auras.

Other than three bits of garden centre greenery dotted at the back of the stage, the production is quite sparse – leaving the whole of the Academy stage for Lynn Gunn to stalk, constantly moving from left to right with urgency all evening. The whole show put me in mind of a less eccentric St Vincent, with the physical delivery of punctuated lyrics a la Nick Cave and the occasional Kate Bushesque high notes in the vocals.

Suited and booted, with slicked-back hair, Lynn Gunn looked like she meant business and didn’t hold back. Alternating between pure vocals and wielding a guitar to punch home the delivery of some songs, she delivered a set that peaked and flowed beautifully with both raucous and tender moments throughout.

It seemed that every single song had a massive hook that was sung back intensely by the capacity crowd who enjoyed every moment of the show, and with a couple of live debuts for tracks such as the more acoustic, calm-sounding “Anywhere but Here” and new song “Goddess” they were treated to a perfect show to open the tour. One that will surely take some beating.

If you can, catch them on the rest of this tour or put them firmly on your radar for the next time they come around. If you love music that transports you from a room in Manchester (or anywhere) to another world, then you will not be disappointed.

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