THE CRIBS TAKE NEW ALBUM ‘SELLING A VIBE’ ON THE ROAD WITH 2 SOLD OUT NIGHTS IN BRIGHTON
LIVE REVIEW | THE CRIBS | CONCORDE 2, BRIGHTON | 28th March 2026 by Tom Jenkinson
“It’s nice to know that I could have retired off that riff alone” announces Ryan Jarman, songwriter and frontman of The Cribs, having just finished playing their 2004 hit “Another Number”. The riff in question is indeed so synonymous with the band since their debut self-titled album, that the audience (as they do every night) are singing it for the band, rendering Jarman’s own guitar effectively redundant in the proceedings.
The Cribs are playing their second sold-out show in Brighton, and this is the finale of their Selling a Vibe tour, following their screeching success of their album of the same name. The tour has been relatively short in the UK (the band embark on a longer US leg shortly, before returning for odd festival appearances later in the year) but I question why that would be the case, given the demand in Brighton alone merited two equally well attended shows, which no doubt could have been multiplied in bigger venues across the country. Perhaps this is the band going back to their indie club roots, “we would rather sell out two nights at Concorde than do one night at the Brighton Dome” Gary Jarman tells us.
But true fans of The Cribs that have followed their output now for more than two decades will know that this is not a band that lives in the past but rather moves forward. Yes, they could play a whole tour of clubs and just live off their first three albums and retire happy, living like 2006 never ended. And they are still happy to play fan favourites tonight, with “Mirror Kissers”, “Martell”, “Men’s Needs” and “Another Number” all prominently and proudly adorning tonight’s setlist, with the security working overtime to recycle crowd surfers over the barriers and back into the audience like this is Leeds festival and everyone has only just finished their GCSEs.
But this hasn’t always been the case. If this year’s Selling A Vibe is celebrated (rightfully) for its creative boundary pushing (just listen to the operatic intro to “You’ll Tell Me Anything”) then we should remember 2009’s album, Ignore the Ignorant, which saw ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr join the group, shifting the brotherly punk/indie trio to a “serious” rock band. That album was, arguably, some of their maturest output to date, but the album divided fans and ultimately led them to parting ways with Marr, opting instead to “keep it in the family”.
In the years following the split from Marr, a lot of the material from this album was untouched in their live sets, perhaps unplayable without the additional instrumentation, or perhaps they felt a whiplash urge to go back to what fans felt comfortable with. It is pleasing then that finally the band bring back “We Share the Same Skies” and “City of Bugs” even if it is with the help from a session guitarist to fill the gaps in music, while leaving the gap in personality untouched.
The Cribs could have retired off hits like “Another Number” but albums like Selling A Vibe only happens for bands that are prepared to leave that in the past and move forward, without forgetting where they came from. Seeing the Jarman’s perform such a well curated selection of their back catalogue like tonight shows the breadth and depth of a career that has had this at its heart all along.
