Feeder review: I was in the Manchester crowd as Welsh rockers delighted fans with hits old and new

Ahead of the release of Feeder’s 12th studio album ‘Black/Red’, they stopped off at Manchester’s Albert Hall for the latest leg of their tour and they certainly put on a show for the 2,000 plus in attendance.

As the band approaches 30 years together, they show no signs of slowing down as bassist Taka Hirose produced an effortless display and Grant Nicholas showed what makes him such a terrific frontman. His stage presence is unbelievable, his vocals soared with the eagles and blended perfectly with mesmerising guitar riffs as he captured the eyes and minds of the band’s devoted army fans of both young and old.

And that army of endearing fans was electric from the outset. From the moment Feeder walked onto the stage, they were bombarded with chants of ‘FEEDER, FEEDER, FEEDER’ and it was a sight to behold as Nicholas stopped to soak up the atmosphere inside the Albert Hall - a unique and picturesque venue. 

For the Manchester leg of the show, the audience was treated to a strong performance from Nottingham rockers GIRLBAND!. I’d be lying if I said I knew who they were prior to last week, but as always I love surprises and the trio with their excellent catalogue of ready-made hits for intimate venues and festivals alike were a very entertaining opener. 

Following a 30-minute wait after GIRLBAND!’s set, the legendary Welsh rockers came onto the stage to an electric reaction from the Mancunian crowd and kicked things off with ‘Elf’ to give the fans an early snippet of what to expect from the ‘Black/Red’ album. 

After a riveting performance of ‘Kyoto’, the band took the engaged Manchester audience on a trip down memory lane as they belted out the atmospheric ‘Feeling a Moment’ - a personal favourite of mine before giving the crowd another taste of nostalgia with fan-favourite ‘Just the Way I’m Feeling’ and intertwined those two hits with a song from their new album in ‘Lost in the Wilderness’. 

Overall, Feeder performed six songs from their new ‘Black/Red’ album, which is perhaps a bit of a risk given some have yet to be released, but they worked incredibly well live and increased the anticipation for the album’s release on April 5.  

Of course, they didn’t play songs exclusively from their new album. Time was reserved for timeless classics such as ‘High’ and ‘Buck Rogers’ to get the crowd bouncing before wrapping up the night with an encore of ‘Soldiers of Love’ and ‘Just a Day’.