Touring the UK for the second time this year, rock and punk legends The Stranglers returned to York for the first time in over fifteen years, taking the stage at Fibbers. In support were indie and punk two-piece …And The Hangnails.
First up were …And The Hangnails, a two piece semi-local band. They played in the smaller area of the venue known as The Bierkeller and drew a relatively large crowd with the room nearly full. Their energetic mix of indie and punk may have been the reason for this, as they were impossible not to watch once in the room.
The Stranglers themselves played in the main room of the venue, and set up while the support band played. Though a larger space, the venue retained an intimate feeling and afterwards fans remarked on how nice it had been to see the band in smaller space then they would usually play. Interestingly, while there were many people there who could well have been around when The Stranglers first started playing in 1974, there were also a lot of younger fans too (some even in their teens), and it was great to see that the band had such a wide range of people coming to their shows.
As for the music, the show was great and The Stranglers played a variety of songs from throughout their 41-year long career. The show was sold out long in advance, and the love for the band was clearly shown by the cheers and applause from the audience for every song played. The show kicked off with Waltzinblack and ran through other classics such as Four Horsemen.
Hit Golden Brown was played later on in the set with the audience singing along to every word. The Stranglers also seemed to be enjoying themselves very much, and were sweating as much as everyone else inside the small venue.
After a long time away from York, it was a triumphant return for The Stranglers. We recommend that if you have the chance to get tickets to a show, get them quick!
…And The Hangnails and The Stranglers played at Fibbers on Monday 13 July 2015