Live Review: Dinosaur Jr, Luluc

Firstly, singer Zoe Randell's microphone didn't appear to be plugged in (seriously) and then they had to battle through feedback, which at one stage led to them stopping one song and moving on to another. Despite this and the fact that most of the early arrivals didn't seem familiar with their work, Luluc gave us a performance that showed why they have been receiving acclaim from the likes of Lucinda Williams. Finishing up with a cover of David Bowie's Quicksand, Luluc are well worth a listen.

As the venue filled up with punters young and not-so young, there was a definite air of anticipation as Dinosaur Jr sauntered out onto the stage to loud applause and kicked off their set with The Lung (from 1987's You're Living All Over Me). As the silver-haired frontman J Mascis blasted away through his three Marshall stacks, the band moved on to material from their most recent album, last year's Give A Glimpse Of What Yer Not, which showed that despite the years and miles travelled, Dinosaur Jr can still deliver fresh and refined takes on their well-established sound. 

With bass player Lou Barlow showing off his undoubted chops and, at times, appearing to bash his instrument into submission, Dinosaur Jr continued with their aural assault, tearing through a selection of songs from their more recent albums recorded following their unexpected reformation in 2005. While they have proven that they are not just on some greatest hits tour, it must be said that the biggest crowd reactions were reserved for their older, perhaps more well-known material. Starting with a more sedate feel and building to a deafening crescendo, Feel The Pain bought the crowd to life. Start Choppin and Freak Scene kept the momentum going before the band finished their set with Gargoyle from 1985's Dinosaur.

With the hot and sweaty crowd baying for more, Dinosaur Jr returned for a brief two-song encore finishing up with a cover of Just Like Heaven by The Cure, which they have well and truly made their own over the years. 

Sure, the band are so loud that most of the time Mascis' vocals are lost behind the roaring guitars and a few of the punters left the gig grumbling about songs that they didn't play, but at the end of the day they're Dinosaur Jr and you wouldn't want them any other way.