An ominous belch marks the start of Ebbb’s set: “BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.”

Feeder have never looked to reinvent the wheel. The only discernible difference between their latest material and their earlier output is familiarity. Each new album has a modular nature that means you could interchange, say, the fifth and eighth track on any LP and barely notice the difference. That doesn’t quite translate to the live setting, though; as solid as recent single ‘ELF’ is, it’ll eventually settle lower in the pecking order than its current curtain-raiser status.

There hasn’t been such a dense concentration of chequered Vans trainers in Manchester for at least 20 years. Then again, The Movielife shows are a rarity here, and an opportunity to relive 2003’s Forty Hour Train Back to Penn in full is the perfect excuse to raid the old wardrobe. The fans’ hair dye is more restrained these days, jeans rest above the hips, and most of the earlobe plug holes have healed, but their enthusiasm is as rabid as ever.

Featured image: Esther Roberts Crimson lights bathe the crevices of The Castle’s wooden vaulted ceiling and two chandeliers. Think of your local Methodist chapel taken over by the Hellfire Club. The stage looks set for a human sacrifice, and with a determined “Right, come on then”, An Exercise put themselves forward. Most of the sold-out…