Project House, Leeds 9th November 2026
It’s been two years since Teenage Fanclub’s last visit to Leeds and tonight they have a new album to promote. Being the easy-going people they are, they only play four of the new songs and please the crowd with a range of songs from across their career. Seemingly more rocking than the last visit, the new songs benefit from a live kick up the bahookie and the crowd in Leeds react enthusiastically. Of course, everyone is happy to hear a preponderance of songs from Bandwagonesque, Grand Prix and Songs From Northern Britain but there isn’t the energy drop some bands get for the new stuff.
Throwing ‘About You’ and ‘Metal Baby’, stalwarts of the archive, into the mix early on sees the band remind everyone what tunesmiths they are and the harder edge works really well on ‘Tomorrow People’ from the new set. Euros Child is the magic ingredient – stirring things up with unusual sounds and often questionable tones, he enlivens the sound and keeps energy high. Norman Blake is full of smiles as normal, and seems to delight in short solos and throwing some guitar poses. Raymond McGinley is his usual unobtrusive self, contributing the other solos and harmonies. Francis MacDonald, the third original member, is the great but never in your face, get the job done drummer and the highlight of the rhythm section is Dave McGowan on bass – burbly, bubbly and pleasantly high in the mix for keeping the pot on the boil. He may have been a member for a ‘mere’ seven years but he feels essential to the sound, especially on ‘Start Again’.
The crazy keys and rocking edge make ‘Falling Into The Sun’ and ‘Everything Is Falling Apart’ way better than the records. ‘I’m In Love’ sees Raymond on wah-wah pedal solos and the whole band rocking and jamming, as well as great harmonies. The pace and variety works great, with the lovely Crosby & Stills harmonies of ‘Over and Over’ bringing smiles and the gentle strum on ‘Mellow Doubt’ and ‘There Was You’ keeping the ears interested.
There is a special pleasure in the warmth of the band and the way they’ve built a career around songs that make the everyday something to celebrate. Tonight the audience celebrate looking back (and forward) on a consistently melodic career; “all my life felt so uptight / now its all alright”. You hear it in Norman’s chat; “this is the last one… then we’ll come back and do some more”, you hear it in the extended relaxed jam of ‘The Concept’ (the one that goes “oh oh yeah”).
The last song of the night draws us back to the band’s first single, ‘Everything Flows’; “See you get older every year / but you don’t change / or I don’t notice you changing”. It’s the path the band have followed. We’ve all grown older but gently and incrementally and we are bathed in the melodies that have started in youth but developed and grown, while staying fundamentally the same. And the new album – ‘Do Not Dare To Dream’ is a gentle tease to those expecting fireworks from life – Norman has said: “Those ‘dare to dream’ sentiments are kind of ridiculous, I don’t think the world works that way.”
https://www.vanguard-online.co.uk/teenage-fanclub-do-not-dare-to-dream-closely-sung-warmly-played/
Ross McGibbon