REVIEW: The Appalled at Southampton 1865 - 6.2.26

LOT of noise going on in the 1865 for some reason. First there's a rude, cautionary fire alarm type bell ringing like the end of playtime from the back wall of the stage. Then there's the crackle and fizz of a guitar lead giving up the ghost. 

As luck would have it, this early evening technical hitch fitted right in with the hushed part of "Haircut". Not, of course, that there is anything at all "hushed" about The Appalled.

Far from it. Their racket, always ferocious, always catchy of melody, always deliciously growly, is a fine sharpener for the ANL-hoodie brigade, of which there are an entire army tonight.

We've seen this before, and it doesn't always end well for support acts. But tonight it did. Maybe it was singer Ads' cheeky comments about Berlingo drivers, maybe it was something else. Whatever - the league of Leagueheads took to the visiting South Islanders warmly, and gave them a fair old dance and a decent cheer. Yeah... the final noise of the winning set was an approving one. Noise noise noise.