You remember The Cribs, those indie darlings from the 2000’s, with a fringe to rival Jim Carey in Dumb and Dumber, a pop star girlfriend, plenty of NME covers and that incident at the NME awards in 2006. A whirlwind time for the Jarmen brothers, causing a stir with their brand of straight talking Yorkshire no nonsense and never really caring what people thought. Thankfully, from an era that had a lot of indie landfill they not only survived but grew and became a powerhouse of DIY pop music, showing that you can have a career and morals, without the music suffering.
Seeing a band that snarls and mocks scenesters and hipsters (Hey Scenesters/Mirror Kisses) in Digbeth has a beautiful irony to it and with that thought in mind we walk into a venue that once held the indie disco’s that The Cribs soundtracked. Support for the tour comes from Courting, a band that are part of the group of bands like Yard Act, Eades and the others that do their own take on The Fall. To people of a certain vintage it can all sound a bit Where’s my jumper? or Jilted John (Ask your parents). Live however, it is fair more pleasing. Courting are trying hard to get the crowd up for it; songs like Pop! help with this endeavour and show a different dynamic to the band with guitar riffs more in the vein of The Strokes and Ramones.
The strength or question of a band that are 22 years on from their debut record and 9 studio albums into their career is’ what will the setlist be?’. Almost like assembling a squad of talented footballers, you can’t play them all but across a tour you will have a chance to rest a few and some fringe ones will get a chance. Now Birmingham City away is not a daunting proposition by any means, so we could get a set of Bsides and rarities here tonight.
Instead The Cribs go strong, not full strength but strong. Walking onto the pop brilliance of Aztec Camera, the band open with Dark Truth off their latest record, then we are hit with the energetic catchy anthemic trio of: I’m a Realist, Hey Scenesters, I’m Alright Me, much to the enjoyment of the crowd tonight. The jeans might not be as tight, the hair not as straight and the footwear is far more sensible but the enthusiasm is the same. The “take drugs” ending of I’m Alright Me, is now more likely to be anti depressants and blood pressure medication than anything recreational, but the songs act as therapy, allowing the band to feel young and connected.Their latest album Selling a Vibe released on the bands own imprint Sonic Blew is the reason for the tour and the record makes up the majority of tonight’s set. It is testament that the songs fit in amongst old classics and one rarity (it is only Birmingham away after all) That is what you get with The Cribs: it’s all on their terms, it’s unapologetic and fierce but fun. The songs are catchy and honest, full of anti-capitalist angst, Yorkshire wit and just great pop songs, served up with the right blend of scuzz and feedback. This band also know a riff when they hear one. Ryan and Gary even debate mid set as to which is their best; in truth we have long forgotten what either said but the set list tonight is littered with them. Another Number from their debut would feature highly on this but so would We Share the Same Skies, which wonderfully proves the point.
Men’s Needs, see’s the crowd taking over on lead vocals, Mirror Kisses is one last chance for the crowd to jump around without a care in the world and then Be Safe, with the poetic spoken word of Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth closes a triumphant set. The Cribs, it can only be concluded, are a force of nature, a band that have loved being the outsiders, revel in their own cynicism, are sharp witted and have stayed true to their course. To be releasing albums and touring after twenty plus years without compromise is to be applauded, to do so with such DIY attitude and ethics, could and should act as a blueprint for those Hipster types.
