Gig review: The Molotovs at The Lending Room, Leeds

The Molotovs are tackling the New Year head-on promoting their Wasted On Youth debut album. A cold Tuesday in early January is a tough ask for any band, but The Lending Room in Leeds is packed with an expectant crowd.

Mathew and Issey Cartlidge are no strangers to relentless gigging, graduating from their early busking sets to small venue gigs and notable support slots with the Sex Pistols, Blondie and The Libertines. The crowd at the Lending Room reflect their journey with a mix of older mod and punk fans and a younger multi-genre fanbase.

Local support from Garage Flower delivered a trippy set of psych indie tunes to begin thawing the crowd. Their influences are there for all to see and hear with a Madchester vibe driven by a strong bass and drum backline. They are a recent addition to the Leeds music scene and well worth catching and already brought their own following along.

The Molotovs take to the stage and waste no time, the Cartlidge siblings were all motion with no pauses for breath.

Frontman Mat, in a sharp, fitted shirt that gave him a distinctly mod edge, snapped out lyrics in rapid, percussive bursts, pacing and twisting across the narrow stage like he was trying to cover an arena’s worth of real estate.

To his right, bassist Issey was a constant blur, her RAF Wren inspired outfit adding a dash of military swagger as she locked in backing vocals, basslines and a barrage of high energy poses that became their own sub plot whenever the lights swung her way.

The set showcased the Wasted On Youth album, with singles More More More and Today’s Gonna Be Our Day already having grabbed the attention with national radio play.

The latest teaser and album opener Get A Life was a stand-out and this set suggests that the debut album will consume a lot of fan’s much awaited January pay packet. Even the newer material destined for their upcoming debut already felt road tested and taut, arrangements stretched and snapped back for maximum impact rather than simply mirroring studio versions.

One of the most telling moments arrived with a timely cover of Suffragette City, their glam-punks-in-waiting status laid bare as they slammed David Bowie’s classic through at pace with a swagger the Thin White Duke would be proud of.

This was probably many of the attendees’ first gig of the year and will be one of those “I was there when they played The Lending Room” memories. They are destined for bigger venues with an appearance on the Yungblud tour seeing them stepping up to arenas.

On this evidence, there is little doubt that they will be as comfortable on those stages as they were on the streets of London during their early busking career.