Little Man Tate @ o2 Academy, Sheffield, 02/10/09

Last time I went to a gig I told you about how good the support band were. I wont be doing that this time.

We arrived in Sheffield full of anticipation for one of the final shows of the truly magnificent Little Man Tate, and the sheer drabness of the support band Artery only enhanced out need for the brilliant headliners. In a room full of people waiting to see the finest piece of Sheffield indie since Arctic Monkeys, the boring sound of what can be described as a bad Magazine tribute band, fronted by your dad, was completely out of place. Almost to the point of embarrassment. Luckily, they didn’t play for very long.

However, once Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine’s ‘Sherriff Fatman’ hit the P.A, the night was a non-stop, balls to the wall showcase. All the way from opener ‘Man I Hate Your Band’, through to the rousing closer ‘House Party at Boothy’s’, Little Man Tate were on fire. Clearly up there to enjoy themselves for one last time, I never noticed a moment when there wasn’t a smile on any of their faces. Thus making this swan song of theirs all the more heart-wrenching.

What’s more, the pure quality of each and every song only begs the question of how this band is not more popular. From the big singles, to the b-sides and supposed ‘filler’ album tracks, Little Man Tate continue to impress on all fronts. Each song giving the adoring audience plenty to cheer about, as they sang with every breath in their lungs.

The appreciation of the fans was also something of a rarity in music these days. Where at most gigs, the audience are receptive to the hit singles, and maybe more…quietly appreciative of the less well-known songs, that was not the case here. While the crowd clearly loved the likes of ‘This Must Be Love’ and early single ‘What? What You Got’, the level of response for the more obscure tracks of ‘Self Appreciation Club’ and ‘Back of the Pub Quiz’ was extremely enjoyable.

While Little Man Tate certainly put on a fantastic show last night, it was not without a sense of sadness that such a brilliant, well loved, band are not carrying on. Especially considering some of the ridiculous excuses for musicians that are gracing out ‘charts’. The fact that such a genuine, nice bunch of lads feel they have ‘achieved all they set out to’, so are calling it a day is heart breaking. Especially considering the passion of the large fan base this band has. This was clearly shown as when they left the stage, chants of ‘Don’t break up’ echoed around the streets of Sheffield. We can only hope that Little Man Tate heard.