Mountford Hall at Liverpool University’s Student Union was the setting for an incredible live gig from Britpop pioneers Suede on Friday 6th February. A laidback set from support act Bloodworm set the scene for Brett Anderson and his band to come on and knock the socks off a crowd who couldn’t believe their luck.
The atmosphere at the sold out gig was building long before Suede took the stage, but when the charismatic frontman emerged in his classic crisp, white shirt, the room was electric.
The band opened with ‘Disintegrate’ from their 2025 album Antidepressants, letting the crowd know they were in for an energetic performance from age-defying Anderson. From there, it was straight into ‘Dancing With The Europeans’ – the title of the upcoming European tour dates and a nice singalong to warm the crowd up a little. The third track gave us the title track from the 2025 album – an atmospheric number that lured the crowd into thinking this might really just be a setlist that focuses on the newer material.
How wrong they were, because track five took the slightly older crowd (for a student union venue) right back to the 90s with ‘Trash’. It’s difficult to explain the surge in energy this track caused and the build up continued from ‘Trash’ straight into ‘Animal Nitrate’. The lights behind frontman Anderson turned green for this spectacle and the audience were utterly enthralled.
The 90s nostalgia continued when, after thrilling the crowd with ‘Animal Nitrate’, the band followed with ‘We Are The Pigs’, from their 1994 album Dog Man Star. Anderson had the crowd engaged from start to finish and when he fell to his knees during this track, it felt as though the crowd were ready to go down with him.
‘Somewhere Between An Atom And A Star’ revisited the most recent album before taking the crowd right back, with the band’s 1999 track, ‘Electricity’. The way Anderson effortlessly moved between eras in the band’s thirty-plus-year history, without ever a concern that the crowd wouldn’t follow, was truly special to witness.
I overheard a dad in his 40s who brought along his 14-year-old daughter to enjoy the music he loved at her age together, exclaiming that he couldn’t believe he was there. Shortly after, the ever-compelling Anderson noted the mixed demographic too, teasing the crowd about the very broad age range in the room and adding to the feeling that everyone was experiencing something very special in such an intimate venue.
‘Filmstar’ followed next, signalling the next bout of 90s indie-kid euphoria as Anderson launched into ‘It Starts And Ends With You’.
Anderson’s introduction to the next track had the audience well-and-truly tricked as he took his time to describe a track for “the insatiable ones, the young ones, the wild ones, the beautiful ones”. The crowd thought they knew exactly what was coming next when, instead, Suede shared unreleased track, ‘Tribe’, before ‘June Rain’ from the Antidepressants album.
Needless to say, Anderson has the kind of can’t-take-your-eyes-off-him energy that meant no one really minded being tricked and whilst there was a very slight dip in energy from the crowd during those two tracks, the atmosphere was carried by a first-class vocal in Liverpool University’s acoustically-blessed Mountford Hall.
‘She Still Leads Me On’ soon brought the energy back up again and was quickly followed by a string of other better-known tracks in ‘Shadow Self’ and ‘Trance State’. The rollercoaster of a setlist kept twisting and turning as the lights came down to place Anderson in the spotlight to sing ‘Asphalt World’ accompanied only by a piano. The crowd fell silent and absorbed every second of this unique performance.
The quiet and calm was soon replaced again with ‘So Young’ and ‘Metal Mickey’ bringing the energy and noise levels from an enchanted audience back up, along with the lights. When the 90s icons launched into ‘The Beautiful Ones’, the crowd was almost frenzied.
It’s difficult to describe just how incredible the atmosphere in this sold-out concert hall was, but it meant that an encore from the British rockers was the only possible outcome. Not a single person turned to the door to make their way out of the packed hall and we were all rewarded with ‘The Only Way I Can Love You’ to bring the gig to a magnificent close.
Brett Anderson commanded the stage for 90 minutes and didn’t miss a beat. For any other band, a setlist that jumped so quickly between albums spanning thirty-odd years might have made for a disjointed session and left the audience with whiplash, but not for Suede.
That Friday night in Liverpool felt like being let in to a (very loud) secret, entrusted to experience a tour from a band who really could be forgiven for slowing down. Anderson’s vocals were impeccable and he moved around the stage having not lost a hint of the glamourous-yet-understated swagger he has graced stages with since the late 80s.
Suede sent hundreds home that night, grinning from ear-to-ear and lit by the glow of a band that proves the 90s didn’t make them – they made the 90s. Rest assured though, they’re not done yet.
Suede: Website / Facebook / Instagram
Review and photography by Liz Ferris-Bleakley
Keep up to date with all new content on Joyzine via our
Facebook | Bluesky | Instagram | Threads | Mailing List