Three very different bands! - from dancing upbeat, to charged rock and lastly stylised 80s rock.First on stage was the very likable Darwin Deez from New York, and he and his dancers were a lot of fun. They literally bounced on stage and then performed the first of several slick dance routines, and very fit they are too! Darwin seemed to smile his way through his set, and he made eye contact often - and at the end of the set he said,'oh you like us!' They were also set up to focus on the edges and middle of the audience and in so doing kept us with them. I got some energetic fun shots of them. After I noticed them mixing and chatting with the audience which I thought lent a good touch and only adding to their popularity - rather than any 'aloofness'. Darwin's music was in the Conor Obrest style. I also spotted Darwin dancing at the front with his very long arms waving loosely during Everything Everything's set!
Next up were 'Everything Everything' - a rock band in red lights. There was a positive energy from this fresh rock band, while their lead singer has a strong voice with the elastic range and punch of a younger Tom Yorke. They had a good crowd of supporters there who seemed to enjoy their set. I was handed their set list so here it is - Intro, Suffragette, Schoolin, Qwerty, Engine Room, Tin, Photoshop, MY KZ, Weights.
We then waited patiently as the stage was set up for the last act another Manchester band called Hurts. Their set had a white backdrop with lights facing the audience - and this was in stark contrast to the reds of Everything Everything with their charged rock music. Hurts were named in a BBC poll of one to watch in 2010. I met Adam earlier when he came out to the bar area, and I said how much I liked their songs that I'd heard on YouTube - and he looked very smart in a red waistcoat. He said he had played at King Tuts before - with their previous band Daggers maybe?
Hurts are a duo with Theo the lead singer and Adam their keyboard player.
