Tonight was the night I’d been waiting for for some time - Broken Social Scene, back in the UK. As anyone who’s ever seen them live will tell you, they put on quite a show, and having seen them twice in the past I knew to look forward to an awesome night.

I first became aware of the ‘Scene after a friend invited me along to one of their gigs at Manchester Academy 3 a couple of years back. I’d only heard a couple of their songs before going in so really didn’t know what to expect. What I saw and heard that night was, to me, nothing short of epic. The sheer size of the band (which varies between around 5 and 15 members) and massive, sweeping sounds they create were a revelation for me.

Since that gig, they’ve pretty much become a benchmark band for me. Rightly or wrongly, whenever I see a new act live, it has become difficult keep from asking myself “well, I liked them, but did I like them as much as BSS?”. The answer is very rarely “yes”.

They visited the North West again early in 2006, this time at Liverpool Carling Academy. Another incredible gig, and I’ve been waiting for their next visit ever since.

Truth be told, however, I was a little concerned about how tonight may have turned out. After a 2 year since break since their self titled last release, Broken Social Scene returned late this summer with a CD entitled “Broken Social Scene presents : Kevin Drew - Spirit If“. This is effectively BSS frontman Kevin Drew’s first attempt at a solo album, but with contributions from virtually every member of the ‘Scene including co-founder Brendan Canning, Justin Peroff, Feist, Emily Haines and Amy Millan, it makes sense to place it under the Broken Social Scene “brand”. The album’s sound is familiar yet different, and it had taken a while for me to “get” some of the songs. Reports from earlier performances on the tour stated that the set list was revolving around the new album, with little to nothing from their older material. With such an incredible back catalogue to choose from this seemed unfortunate, and I worried whether I’d be hearing any of what made the past performances great during this gig.

I won’t worry again. I now “get” the album. I can’t quite put my finger on what it is, but Broken Social Scene’s music comes alive when you see them playing in front of you. It could be the sheer passion that you can see them put into their performances, or perhaps their genuine interaction with the crowd , including inviting one lucky birthday boy to join them in singing closing song “In The End”. I defy anyone not to enjoy their performances, even if you’re not that big a fan of their music. You will be afterward. If you have ears.

Tonights gig featured 3 veteran ‘Scene members - Kevin Drew himself, of course, playing guitar and keys at times alongside co-founder Brendan Canning on bass, and Justin Peroff on drums. Relative newbies Andrew Kenny and Sam Goldberg provided additional guitars, creating that massive BSS sound. Bill Priddle had also been on this tour, but had broken his collar bone last night up in sunny Glasgow (one too many Super Tenants I’d bet) and so the 5 remaining rotated to fill in for his parts (and an admirable job they did too). That’s it - 5 members from over 15.

My fears of a show without any of their old classics were put to bed quite quickly. Of course, the emphasis was on material from Spirit If… (it was the album promo tour, after all), but there were fantastic performances of some of their best from the previous albums, including Lover’s Spit, Cause=Time and my favourite, Superconnected. But the real revelation was in hearing the new material. Songs like TBTF, Backed Out On The Cause and Frightning Lives (presented below in camera-phone-o-vision) are now firmly placed in my list of favourites, and I’m left wondering how they passed me by before.

BSS have been booked already to play the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival in Minehead this May, along with They Will Know us by The Trail Of The Dead, Explosions in The Sky and Iron & Wine. It’s going to be a treck, but I am WELL there!