The Undertones brought their anniversary tour to Edinburgh's Corn Exchange with a 90-minute set that proved their 1978 debut "Teenage Kicks" has endured as much more than nostalgic artifact.
Bassist Mickey Bradley opened the show by introducing the breakthrough single with deliberate understatement. "This is the first record we ever made. Still sounds good to me," he said. The band, fronted by brothers John and Damian O'Neill on guitars, delivered the song with unvarnished intensity. What emerged was a track that retained its rawness and yearning while taking on new weight alongside an audience now silver-haired like the band itself.
The set moved quickly. The Undertones played 30 songs across 90 minutes without dwelling on any single moment. The Guardian's reviewer noted the pace left little room for sentiment, even as audience members hugged when the O'Neill brothers' guitars stopped after "Teenage Kicks." The band was already into the next song.
This speed served a purpose. Rather than mining the past for comfort, the tour became a sprint through the punk humour, new-wave surrealism and raw vulnerability of their first two albums. That approach meant the Derry band treated their catalogue not as museum pieces but as living work.
The Undertones are touring the UK and Ireland.