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Liverpudlian band The Wombats celebrated both their second visit to Norwich and the start of their 2009 UK tour in fine style at their recent gig at the UEA. For an event which was sold out over two months before, you would expect a performance of high calibre, supported by artists which are looking to break through into the UK music scene. The 1500-strong audience were not to be disappointed.


The first of the evenings support acts came from Finnish band Le Corps Mince De Francoise, whose unique mix of electro pop and tropical beats worked well at energising the crowd and preparing them for the rest of the entertainment on offer. Each song performed by the trio included catchy melodies on the keyboard, which along with the lively and upbeat nature of both their songs and their lead singer left a lasting positive impression on the crowd.

After a short wait, the second support act of the evening appeared onto the small stage at the LCR to cheers and applause. Obviously by the reaction of the crowd, the band goFASTER are more mainstream and well-known than their predecessors. Recent reviews of the acts give comments such as "Songs that need to be played to fans jumping around and losing shoes in a sweaty dive, because these are true party-starting anthems", and the band certainly lived up to these high expectations. Performing both classic songs such as She Starts Monday and new songs such as Flammable Leisurewear, goFASTER certainly helped liven the crowd further and warm them up for the impending arrival of the main act of the night onstage. This band is destined for success - with their experimental pop sounds and catchy lyrics the public will soon warm to their sound.

Thirty minutes later, the lights were once again dimmed and the photographers given access to the front of the stage. The crowd rushed back into the hall and attempted to push as far to the front as possible due to the expected arrival of the main act of the night at any minute.

After what seemed an eternity of the crowd chanting "Wombats", the band finally appeared and made their way onto the stage. I'm not saying that the UEA presents an intimate gig as such, but even with tickets fully sold out there were still only 1500 people and no matter where you stand in the venue you cannot help but feel quite close to the artist when compared with the more common venue for a band with 4 UK top 40 singles within the last 2 years. The trio were filled with energy and enthusiasm for the gig - "we're proud to be starting 2009 here in Norwich" and the crowd both acknowledged this and returned it, providing strong backing vocals for their opening song "Party in a Forest" and subsequent songs.

The Wombats both performed their most famous songs, including Kill The Director, and new songs which the crowd were the first to hear live (Reynolds Park and Dr Suze).


After an unbelievably energetic 11 songs, the band left the stage only to return two minutes later for their encore, once again to chants of "Wombats" from the very-satisfied-but-still-want-more crowd. The encore consisted of three songs, of which their first, Dr Suze, was a brand new song never before heard (which still managed to sound just as good as their previous material and should be a hit single if released!); and their last was arguably their most famous song Moving to New York.

The band may have returned to Norwich to complete their second gig in three years at the UEA, but it seems that none of their energy has been lost and if anything, their enthusiasm for performing and their crowd-pleasing seems to have increased two-fold.