LIVE REVIEW + PHOTOS: Everything Everything – Aviva Studios, Manchester – 29/11/2025

Everything Everything performed at Aviva Studios in Manchester for their 10th anniversary of the critically acclaimed album Get To Heaven. The band Lime Garden opened up the night with their modern ’80s pop sound. 

Lime Garden blended ‘80s and modern disco, surf, pop and indie-rock. As it was the first time hearing this band, they reminded me of bands like Stereolab, Bloc Party, LCD Soundsystem and MGMT. The song Pop Star was accompanied with vocalist Chloe Howard playing the tambourine and showing a tongue-in-cheek attitude, especially with the song’s lyrical undertones. 23 followed suit and was a track that brought forth the ‘80s pop sound with the groovy instrumentals and Howard’s melodic, vintage-sounding vocals.  

Before Love Song, Howard dedicated it to her friend who was in the audience. This track reminded me of Bloc Party, as it followed similar instrumentals of rhythmic guitar tones and fast, dance-ready drums, almost feeling electronic in texture when listening to it. They ended their set with Maybe Not Tonight, which is their most recent song. Again, it contained this dancey, bouncy and electronic texture mixed with the sense of late-night longing. Where it was a burst of attitude and quick-moving rhythms, making it a great way to end their performance. 

Everything Everything was up next and one thing I love about this band is that they create unique and eclectic soundscapes, paired with unusual lyrics, but for them it works really well and from it they have built up this dedicated fan base who appreciate their artistic ability and the idea that each album that they make it sounds different, but remains them at the core.  

As Everything Everything made their way to the stage, they were all dressed in yellow and grey outfits, signifying the new era that they have entered. The stage lit up with a variety of different colourful lights and was met with an electronic soundscape, allowing the audience to delve into their technicolour universe. Building up this excitement for what the audience was going to experience for the next hour.  

The whole album is stacked with a collection of different songs that all have its own distinctive character and personality.  Starting the set was the song To The Blade, which depicts a frantic and synth-heavy tone. Showcasing electronic beats, jittery drumbeats and Jonathan Higgs’ idiosyncratic vocals, which creates tension. Blast Doors carries on this frantic energy, a track that balances chaos with control, making it a sound that Everything Everything is known for and executes well.  

President Heartbeat is a rhythmically tight song with dark and satirical undertones, adding a confrontational edge with its instruments and Higgs adding layered vocals that are paired with choppy synths. Regret touches on the theme of emotional vulnerability, where it also slows the pace down for the set. Allowing the audience to have a moment of pause amongst the more energetic songs.  

The performance then picks up again with tracks like Fortune 500, showcasing a playful yet sinister feeling becuase it contains the lyrical themes of corporate culture. Zero Pharaoh is a personal favourite of mine and hearing it in a live setting was such an emotive experience. Just being able to hear the unusual, twitchy electro-pop, with a touch of punkish electronic aggression and Higgs’ intensity with his frantic vocal phrasing drive.  

Encore songs like Hapsburg Lipp and Warm Healer inject an unpredictable and playful energy to the second half of the performance with its weird and whacky lyrics and infectious rhythms. Before the track Warm Healer, Higgs promised the crowd that if they were to make enough noise, then something special would happen.   

The surprise in question was a second encore and tour debut of the song MY KZ, UR BF, which is a fun, high-energy song with jagged and infectious synths, although it carries a sense of juxtaposition as the song is dark lyrically and is politically charged. Although, the surprises did not stop there. As a couple preceded to join the stage, where a proposal took place, since they came all the way from America to see and share their love of the band. This made for a sentimental and heart-warming moment.  

The band then concluded with the song Cold Reactor, which is a newer song for them and showcases intricate electronic-rock sounds. In terms of emotions, it is a more reflective, sombre and melodic song of theirs, but still has that synth-driven style that defines the band.  

Overall, I was so excited to see this album in its entirety, as it’s one of my favourite albums from start to finish. After ten years this album is no-brainer in terms of still holding a place where you can just go back and listen to it and still have an enjoyable and fun listening experience. 

Words by Zena Morris

Photos by Ben Whitehurst (Instagram)