Heartbreak Kids hit Southampton: The Vaccines deliver timeless indie rock with boyish glee
The band saw support from Divorce and Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers.
Photo: Wrenne Evans
14th of February meant two things: Valentine’s Day, and a Vaccines gig at the Southampton Guildhall. The indie rock legends have spent much of the year so far on the road, in promotion of their latest album, Pick-Up Full of Pink Carnations. The night saw supports Divorce and Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers take to the stage.
Nottingham’s atmospheric Divorce, and Aussie all-girl powerhouse Teen Jesus were both successful in getting the audience stomping and throwing up their arms, but the latter in particular made for one of the best support acts I’ve ever seen. Australia have kept up the trend of blessing the rest of us with some of the best rock around (ahem, see: King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, AC/DC, INXS, Tame Impala, etc).
Once these two tour-de-forces left the stage, the opening keys of McCartney’s Live and Let Die came over the speakers, building into that iconic melody with blinding stage lights and rapturous applause.
The Vaccines rifled through an intriguing mix, including all six of their albums, weaving several new tunes from Pick-Up Full of Pink Carnations throughout. One of them – a catchy, barely two-minute rocker called Love to Walk Away – opened the set, then Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra) (shorter, still!) from the group’s inescapable debut, What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?.
I Can’t Quit — a big, fuzzy stomper from 2015’s Combat Sports — followed suit, a testament to the group’s enduring success. Everyone wanted the early tunes, the tunes from their formative years, but they damn well knew the words to the LPs that came after. If only the five-piece allowed their audience more chances to prove it.
The Vaccines, whilst always putting on a blinder of a live set and selecting what is generally the best of their back catalogue, have a habit of leaving a consistent pool of tracks by the wayside. The group’s third, digi-punk release English Graffiti — home to anthems Dream Lover, 20/20 and Denial — sees only one tune on the setlist (Handsome). The boys performed favourites Teenage Icon and I Always Knew from sophomore record Come of Age (as well as No Hope; a sweet, deeper cut) but nothing else. Once again, no Aftershave Ocean, or rattling Ghost Town.
The group pander somewhat to their fanbase, ricocheting from their seminal debut to the current day, with little focus on the gulf between. But, to be fair, the fans in Southampton that day did seem familiar with the new stuff, and tracks like Post Break-Up Sex and Wetsuit are forever going to be timeless favourites. The Vaccines deal with teenage heartbreak and adult heartbreak. It’s all loss, exes and bittersweet memories of a time long ago. The irony of these loner-rock anthems like Heartbreak Kid and If You Wanna belted out on Valentine’s Day was not lost on anyone; least of all frontman Justin Young, who bridged the gaps between songs with semi-awkward lamentations on being single.
The night saw a request from the audience (somewhat of a rarity at a Vaccines show), in the form of A Lack of Understanding (also from the first one) as well as album track The Dreamer (from Carnations) and dancefloor favourite, All My Friends Are Falling in Love. The main set closed with All in White, a ritual of Vaxxer gigs.
While the group’s setlists are at risk of becoming formulaic, no one could come away from the Guildhall that night unrocked. It was a blistering eve of timeless anthems, pumping indie rock and face-melting riffs. Everyone, just for a second, was reminded of where they were the first time they heard the Vaccines, and the boys onstage revelled in every minute of joyous screech. It’s been over a decade since What Did You Expect…, but The Vaccines remain at the top of their game, a rare feat in the long line of British indie bands. If they wanna come back to Southampton anytime soon, that’s alright.