After a listen to the Runner's forthcoming debut album, a recent appearance on mainstream music programme Popworld and a distinctly average set from support act New Rhodes, I expected nothing more than an inoffensive indierock show from the much-talked-about foursome.
I was pleasantly surprised, then, at the stunning lighting display, the pounding rhythms and the sheer volume of their set. Sounding like a usually undesirable cross between Starsailor and Keane, with Matthew Greener's strong but high vocals and a preference for that piano sound, Morning Runner wouldn't normally float my boat.
However, the energetic and at times danceable beats from drummer Ali Clewer set the band apart from their boring contemporaries.
After new single Burning Benches and a simple vocals/keyboard encore, the band finished with a crescendo of noise, earning themselves a possible early nomination for Best New Band at the Brit Awards 2007.
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