BIG FAT LIARS: FAT DOG AREN’T TIRED AT ALL IN SHEFFIELD

LIVE REVIEW | FAT DOG | FOUNDRY, SHEFFIELD | 5th October 2026 by Isobel O’Mahony

Fat Dog are the barking mad, lyrically untethered shot of espresso that so many gig rats have been desperate for. Waking up fans around the country with their second record Cancel Me (I’m Tired), the band came to Sheffield’s Foundry on Monday to celebrate the release, and celebrate they did.

It was a one-hour, non-stop set of intense bass and roaring saxophone, resulting in a constant pit that frontman Joe Love was jumping into from the start. He was taking selfies in the crowd, really annoying the security guard who was reluctantly eyeing him when off the stage, and multiple times got the entire room to sit down and spring back up like an electric exorcism. Not one band member dresses like they fit in with the others, and it’s perfect, because the music screams for itself. 

The album is impossible to fight; it’s far too enjoyable to ignore, and live it’s impossible to not get swept up in the crazy of the crowd and the music. ‘Smile and Wave’ is dramatic, high energy, and its drums and guitar buildup grabbed the audience perfectly at the start. ‘Shit Love’ has all the electric echoes wanted in a dance track, and its references are bonkers enough to forget yourself and just let go. 

A favourite was the record’s title track, a total earworm that bursts live. However, the slower (if you can say that) and the more thoughtful sounding tracks I felt really shone on stage. ‘Aliens‘ reads silly but sounds heartbreaking; the song feels bigger than yourself. ‘Call It What You Want’ is similar in its drama but differs in its intensity, with the ending, yearning drones of “call on me/call on me” floating throughout the room long after its end. 

There was a random cover break of Benni Banassi and The Biz’s robotic ‘Satisfaction’, with an addictive electric guitar lick that sent people mad. ‘Bad Dog’ and ‘Go Fuck Yourself’ had a similar effect, bringing the room together to bark and/or flip off the band. ‘Running’ is currently the band’s most notable track, and flipped a switch from constant mosh pits to a literally circular marathon taking place. Fans were jumping in, jumping out, and getting way too many steps in. Good gigs should be safe carnage, and the band has this down. 

Fat Dog are big fat liars. They’re not tired at all but instead, with their refreshing, ridiculous noise, have the crowd doing so much cardio that you become the knackered one. Anyone not on the Fat Dog train by now is missing out on one of the freshest acts in a long time, and not having as much fun a time as the rest of us.

Fat Dog are tearing up a stage near you here, there and everywhere over the next few months, including some seriously intimate in/outstore gigs as part of their extensive second album launch. Full dates and remaining tickets can be found here.

Listen to Cancel Me, I’m Tired now.

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Isobel O'Mahony

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