The Courteeners review- Manchester indie underdogs celebrate ten years of success in style

The Echo Arena, Liverpool

Marking ten years since the release of their debut album, The Courteeners celebrated in style by delivering a compelling performance to a simply astonishing Liverpool crowd

The Courteeners took to the Echo Arena in Liverpool
as part of their ten year anniversary tour

Taking to the stage amid what could only be described as an electrifying roar from the Liverpool faithful, the air immediately became polluted with coloured smoke from pyrotechnics. A sea of dedicated fans jumping up and down filled the 11,000 capacity Echo Arena. Ten seconds into their opening song- ‘Are You in Love with a Notion?’, it became abundantly clear that The Courteeners show no signs of slowing down.

A mix of teenagers and middle-aged men filled the arena and joined forces to create a simply electrifying atmosphere. Playing a mixture of renowned classics and new tracks from the forthcoming album, frontman- Liam Fray, had the crowd blasting back every lyric with sheer passion.

Following up the intro with ‘Cavorting’- an equally energetic song, the arena yet again erupted with joy. Yet more smoke filled the air, the crowd continued to jump frantically up and down whilst bellowing every lyric. It was at this moment that I remembered why I perceive Courteeners to be one of the best live bands in the industry.

After playing more songs from their back catalogue of indie anthems, Fray took the stage with an acoustic guitar, whilst the remaining members exited the stage for a short while. The frontman proceeded to play three songs on his own to a stunning ovation.

The next ten minutes could easily have been tame in comparison to the rest of the set, yet, with Liam Fray at the helm, this was not to be the case. As Fray played ‘Please Don’t’ acoustically, the arena became rife with emotion, displaying the versatility of Fray. Every member of the audience seemed to put their beer down, place their arm around a friend’s shoulder and belt out every lyric with overwhelming pride. The attention was firmly on the frontman for a ten-minute period and it was a beautiful sight.

Fray exited the stage, only to return with the remaining members of the band for their sublime encore. Beginning with ‘Heavy Jacket’- a new track from their forthcoming album, you could sense impatience amongst the thousands in attendance as they geared up for the Manchester band’s inevitably exhilarating close to an already excellent set.

The band paused before the final two songs of the evening, with Fray thanking the fans for their support, after suggesting that the band had gone through a tough period as of late. Yet, it seems to me as if this tough period showed no signs of disrupting their momentum, as they had delivered what I perceive to be a stellar performance in front of an ever-loyal crowd.

After the heartfelt admission from Fray, a ringing noise similar to that of the intro of ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ surrounded the Echo Arena, prompting the crowd to erupt into cheers. The arena soon became full of smoke yet again, as the Manchester band played the intro to their timeless classic. The building was quite literally bouncing as the 11,000-strong crowd gave everything they had, one last time.

In a city where Mancunians aren’t exactly the most popular of people, it seemed as if The Courteeners were playing a home town gig. Leaving the arena to an astonishing ovation, The Courteeners left a lasting effect on those in attendance. Delivering a faultless performance to one of the most passionate fanbases in British music, The Courteeners cemented their status as one of the best live bands of the past decade.