Gang of Youths at the Albert Hall, Manchester

By Anya Baxter.

All the way from Australia, led by frontman Dave Le'aupepe, Gang of Youths brought their A-game to a sold out Manchester Albert Hall.

Photo by Anya Baxter

The original line-up formed at a church youth-group in 2011, but have since undergone some changes. Alongside Le'aupepe, Jung Kim, Max Dunn, Donnie Borzestowski and Tom Hobden graced the stage in Manchester, accompanied by touring musicians Louis Giannamore and James Larter.

Photo by Anya Baxter

The alternative rock group first entered the scene with debut album "Positions" back in 2015, grounding them in Australian music. Their incredible second studio album "Go Farther In Lightness" (2017) saw the band rise to further worldwide appreciation and earn three ARIA awards, Album of the Year, Best Group and Best Rock Album. Following this huge success, a third album was highly anticipated. The band first teased listeners with a three track EP, "Total Serene", before releasing the new album "angel in realtime." during February 2022, followed by a world tour with support from Tom A. Smith and Charlie Collins.

Opening with the popular single "angel of 8th ave." the band appeared on the stage, proving that no venue would have been better for such an orchestral band, with a lead singer who creates intimacy with his audience by holding out eye contact and singing with people one on one. Taking things back with "The Heart Is a Muscle" we saw the crowd reminisce on "Go Farther In Lightness" as they came together in hopeful positivity. Throughout the performance, Hobden's graceful violin set the undertone for deeply meaningful lyrics, complimenting the other instrumentation and L'aupepe's undeniable charisma and showmanship perfectly.

Photo by Anya Baxter

A surprise heartfelt performance of "brothers" saw Le'aupepe alone on the stage at the keyboard. After beginning the song, he announced he would have to start again as he had messed up. This only made the audience love him more. The song tells the story of his late father, and of the brothers he never knew he had, setting the tone for the rest of the album.

Photo by Anya Baxter

The chart-featured single "in the wake of your leave" turns grief and loss into a catchy unmissable hit, and completely set the crowd alight, stamping on the floor of the venue and forcing the band to extend the song, allowing the audience to do the singing before Le'aupepe took the lead once again, for the encore of "goal of the century" and "What Can I Do If the Fire Goes Out?".

Photo by Anya Baxter