Kids In Glass Houses, Electric Ballroom, London

At the start of last week, Kids In Glass Houses released their fourth album. That, in itself, is an achievement: four albums in five years is no mean feat, and if their latest album has proven anything, it’s that they’re still more than able to come up with the goods.

The arena in which they really shine, though, has always been live. Tonight, Camden’s Electric Ballroom is in line for such a treat, and there’s no disappointing. Provoking a wry smile from many an audience member, they prove to still have their finger on the pulse of pop culture as their intro music begins, sounding awfully like the soundtrack to recently-completed TV phenomenon Breaking Bad.

Bursting to life as the subtle instrumentation draws to a close, the Welsh quintet waste no time in naming their agenda, as their new album’s title track blisters into action. Tonight will be dedicated to airing a good handful of new songs, and rightly so: they provide a new lease of life into their live set, already standing firm as pop rock anthems.

Within their seventeen track set, we’re treated to a melding together of their debut, second and latest album – all of which seem to complement one another wonderfully - but their previous effort ‘In Gold Blood’ barely seems to get a look in. Nonetheless, tracks like the 2008 cuts ‘Easy Tiger’ and ‘Fisticuffs’ still sound as brilliant as their first airing five years ago.

The band themselves possess an electrifying energy, with frontman Aled Phillips proudly channeling his inspirations: from the smooth crooning of Prince, to the frantic pace of Glassjaw’s Daryl Palumbo, he manages to showcase a kaleidoscopic breadth of frontmanship.

The only pity? We were half hoping that a heavily pregnant Frankie Sandford might appear onstage for her part on the band’s ‘Dirt’ offering ‘Undercover Lover’, but hey, that much can be forgiven. A fine show, filled with wit, talent and enthusiasm more than makes up for it.