If all Brakes’ songs weren’t about 2 minutes long it might be more surprising that they managed to play their way through what I tallied up as 23 songs, a good mixture of virtually everything from both their debut Give Blood and The Beatific Visions.

Opening with Hi How Are You, a song about how annoying it is when people talk at you when you’re watching a band was played with such panache and enthusiasm, and it was fairly obvious that Brakes owned that small but perfectly formed stage.

Eamon Hamilton sings as though he is possessed by some chainsaw wielding maniac, but with it there’s a delicate charm that shows he’s just putting his all into it. That’s especially clear by the amount of sweat that gushes from the man!

After two renditions of the ten second Cheney, counted in by members of the crowd, everything fell into place and there was a great atmosphere and rapport between the band and the onlookers.

We were also treated to a cover of Camper Van Beethoven’s We Saw Jerry’s Daughter. I always like it when a band covers one or two songs at their live shows, it kind of goes to show that they have the tenacity and ability to pull something off that isn’t theirs’ and proves that Brakes are more than just a snappy punk band.

All Night Disco Party was a real highlight; it’s truly a brilliant pop song. New single Cease and Desist was effortlessly slipped out and showed Brakes’ to be a truly fantastic live band, and in many ways I think they’re better live than on record, because there’s something about their onstage presence and style that encapsulates more about them than you can ever experience just listening to a CD.

Other classics included various strange, short and snappy songs which don’t seem to make much sense but are brilliant nonetheless included Porcupine or Pineapple, Comma Comma Comma Full Stop and Pick Up The Phone, which I think are the most enjoyable because they’re the ones the crowd absolutely spazz out to.

After a fairly predictable gap before an encore, Brakes played 5 more songs, and it seemed impossible to actually get rid of them! Opening the encore was a beautiful rendition of No Return, a very atypical brakes song, and apparently this was only the third time they’d played it live.

Throughout the entire show there had been requests from the audience for the classically country Jackson, they finally played it third in the encore, much to the approval of the audience.

When they departed from the stage it seemed impossible that just over an hour had passed so quickly, and that we had just heard virtually every song Brakes have to offer.

Despite there being a light turnout, those who were there made up for this in their clear adoration of Brakes. The gig was intimate and they played fantastically, clearly having great passion for what they do. Their sound is very tight and I think you have to see them in action to really appreciate their qualities.

If you have the chance to see them and you’re not sure about it, I’d definitely advocate going, as Brakes are something quite unique and gripping when you catch them on stage.