Amyl And The Sniffers are one of the most thrilling bands arounds. For the past ten years, they’ve been playing their scrappy “pub rock” – funny, ferocious and uplifting guitar songs with boisterous, shout-along hooks – with an unrelenting, slightly chaotic energy at whatever venue will have them. It’s fast, it’s snotty and it’s guaranteed to get people moving.
It's why they opened for Fontaines D.C. at Finsbury Park this summer and it’s easy to see how they got the job supporting fellow Aussies-done-good AC/DC in stadiums across their home country next month. On Saturday night, Amyl And The Sniffers played their biggest ever headline gig at London’s Alexandra Palace.
Just like she’s done hundreds of times before, powerhouse vocalist Amy Taylor started things off with the house rules (“Don’t touch anyone that doesn’t want to be touched, if anyone falls down, pick them up.”) before they launched into the snotty pre-debut album deep cut Balaclava Lover Boogie. From there though, Amyl And The Sniffers shook off that “pub rock” label and embraced something new – arena punk.
Yes, the thundering 90-minute gig was a masterclass in high-energy anarchy and Amyl And The Sniffers constantly reminded the crowd just how grateful they were to somehow be playing this grand old space. But a giant video screen broadcasting close-ups of the band and the swirling pandemonium in the pit made even those standing at the back feel part of the dizzying action. Live, their music is far heavier and more robust than ragtag studio recordings, with plenty of rifftastic breakdowns that made the night feel more like a Foo Fighters gig than anything you’d see down your local.
A lot of that swagger comes from last year’s brilliant third album Cartoon Darkness. The smirking Me And The Girls takes influence from dance and electronic music, the slow burn Big Star is a gorgeous, tender exploration of how hard it is to chase dreams when the odds seem stacked against you and Chewing Gum is a loved-up pop track. Motorbike Song gets philosophical with the question “Are you sure that ya living free?” The band had an absolute blast toying with those extremes in front of 10,000 people.
The celebratory rebellion of Tiny Bikini and playfully defiant U Should Not Be Doing That, aimed squarely at those complaining about Amyl And The Sniffers doing things their way, demanded fierce euphoria throughout the room.
As Amyl And The Sniffers platform has grown, so has their confidence in standing up for what they believe in. Ahead of the sunny nihilism of Doing In Me Head, Taylor highlighted the lack of meaningful action being taken to stop the climate crisis as well as the deaths that are still happening in Palestine despite the ceasefire. Knifey, a revenge anthem originally written about Taylor not feeling safe walking alone at night, was dedicated to the trans community across the UK. “I can empathise with the fact that people are trying to make you shrink. All I can say is stand fucking tall and proud – we’ll stand behind you.”
Closing out with the posi-punk of Jerkin’ and the familiar pub rock kiss off of GFY (aka Go Fuck Yourself) Amyl And The Sniffers dominated their biggest gig so far. It was brilliant from start to end, no matter what you call their music.
