The Heartbreaks, The Deaf Institute, 9th April 2011

Lancastrian duo The Lovely Eggs kicked off tonight's gig at Manchester's Deaf Institute, with the not so lovely named but fantastically fun song 'People Are Twats', followed up by 'I Like Birds But I Like Other Animals Too', a two minute shoutfest filled with crashing cymbals and scratchy guitars. Drawing attention from the crowd with their surreal lyrics and a Vaselines inspired sound, singer and guitarist Holly and drummer David continued with their single 'Don't Look At Me, I Don't Like It', instructing people to "look at him with his sausage roll thumb!". Finishing the set with 'Digital Accordion' they left the stage, leaving smiles on the faces of the crowd.

As the venue began to fill to it's maximum capacity, the second support act Mabel Love took to the stage. Opening with 'Ha Ha People' and following with 'Hardened Face', the Sheffield four-piece impressed the crowd with the combination of Dave Mitchell's fast-paced drumming, George Moran's hard hitting bass along with Dan Whitehouse's sweet-sounding guitar and Richard Rice's euphonious vocals. The song 'Socks' seemed to be the most favoured song tonight - one which is available to download for free from their website - followed up by 'Breaking It All' a "slightly political", slightly heavier song compared to their others. After playing a new song entitled 'Bootstraps' they finished up with 'Gardenstown' they left an extremely good impression on the Manchester audience in preparation for their Arctic Monkeys support slot in the summer.

Finally, complete with a projection filled with shots of their hometown Morecambe in the background and an avid atmosphere charging The Deaf Institute, The Heartbreaks graced the stage and introduced new material going by the name of 'Winter Gardens' - a song which delivered the classic repetitive lyrics and crisp sound which the four are so loved for. Speeding their way through the set they played 'Delay', as well as 'Save Your Souls' with singer Matthew questioning "what are you doing so intoxicated?" as guitarist Ryan and bassist Deaks span around the small stage. As well as playing their debut single 'Liar, My Dear' they showcased yet more new material; 'Man Overboard' and 'Gorgeous', leaving the audience eager to hear more and in high anticipation for their upcoming debut album. As they played their final songs for the night - their newest single, 'Jealous, Don't You Know' and the equally wordy titled 'I Didn't Think It Would Hurt To Think Of You' - it was clear that The Heartbreaks aren't just another generic "Manchester indie band" as the crowd sang along to drummer Joseph Kondras' poetically genius lyrics, but a band who are destined for all kinds of success.