The Arctic Monkeys mere presence on this tour has ensured incessant interest in it throughout, and the fact that they are not headlining has raised eyebrows in the popular media. But, instead of generating interest in Maximo Park (who surely must be good if they are above everybody's favourite band on the bill?), it has just provoked wailing about how stupid/unfair it all is. Reports from previous gigs have suggested that many people end up leaving just after the Arctic Monkeys' set, which suits me just fine, as it means fewer idiots there for Maximo Park.
The story of the evening was that everybody seemed to be playing everybody else's songs for them, except for Maximo Park, who played all their own songs and nobody else's. First up were Mystery Jets, playing their biggest ever gig by some distance. To a decent sized audience, they carried their set off very well, and probably won a good number of new fans in the process. We Are Scientists joined them on vocals for one of their songs, which was the beginning of the many cameo appearances during the evening. 
A good set of songs from Mystery Jets, and this tour will probably see them set for good things, as much because of the exposure as anything else. But, they do at least deserve the attention, judging by tonight's performance.Next up were We Are Scientists themselves, a bunch of mad Americans with some excellent rock songs. Having heard their album before, it didn't sound all that spectacular, but live they were a different proposition entirely. Full of energy, with guitars that sounded incredible, they were an unexpected highlight of the evening. In the night's second cameo, Alex Turner from Arctic Monkeys joined them on guitar for one song, which many of the crowd seemed to completely fail to notice - never mind. Overall, an excellent set, and I think that album is definitely worth another listen having seen them live.
And so to Arctic Monkeys. In Brighton the previous night, apparently they had not been up for it, just standing there, rattling through their set as quickly as possible so they could leave. Tonight, no such apathy - they were on absolutely blistering form throughout. Playing every song slightly faster than the recorded version always helps to inject some added energy, and make a gig go mental, and it worked a treat tonight.
Alex Turner even engaged with the crowd, inviting a sing along to the opening bars of When The Sun Goes Down - something I never thought I'd see. Maybe he is getting used to the idea that people like them now. A mad 45 minutes, covering most of the album, plus a new song, and with the amusing omission of Mardy Bum, much to the annoyance of many recent converts. And, a member of We Are Scientists to play lead guitar on Fake Tales of San Francisco, to allow Alex to go properly mad with the mike in his hand. But overall, it really was a set absolutely packed with highlights, they deserve all of the hype.
I can now almost understand why people have been leaving after the Arctic Monkeys set, because it really felt like a headline show, and it felt like it would be very difficult for anybody to follow that show. If you hadn't really heard of Maximo Park, I can see where the temptation to leave early might creep in. So, off they all went, leaving an easy route to the front for Maximo Park - cheers!!
The headliners duly appeared, and launched straight into an ear-splittingly loud version of Graffiti, which sent the remaining people in the place wild. In a set which covered the vast majority of their album, plus a new song, they didn't put a foot wrong all night. Incredibly loud, incredible energy, one of the best frontmen around at the moment, it was an awesome set which did justify their position as headliners for this tour. And that is a high accolade, given all the Monkey attention that has followed the tour around.
Finishing up with electric versions of Apply Some Pressure and Going Missing, refusing to do an encore, and shunning the final bow by all the bands that happened on last year's tour, Maximo Park truly left Brixton wanting more - and more of them, not just more Arctic Monkeys.
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