Born Ruffians @ Soup Kitchen, Manchester, 18 September

During second song of the night Kurt Vonnegut, from Born Ruffians' first Warp Records release, Red, Yellow & Blue, it's evident – as knowing "woah-ohs" are exclaimed – that life-long fans are in attendance tonight at Soup Kitchen's nearly full-to-the-brim basement venue. As frontman Luke Lalonde makes a temporary mysterious escape off stage, bassist Mitch Derosier fills in with a seemingly natural secondary role: "Is this my stand up debut?" he asks, as the crowd giggle like adolescents.

Birthmarks, the band's third album, released in April this year, is Lalonde's first melodic venture in which tracks were laid down without having first being presented to the public. Birthmarks' songs flurry around the venue with a raucous energy similar to that of Vampire Weekend's earlier material; the basslines of Ocean's Deep bounce from the walls, paving the way for more heartwarming numbers, including Too Soaked to Break.

Audience members swoon as Lalonde's emoting practically drools through the speakers; fans glare longingly at the stage as though on the cusp of falling in love (or, more appropriate to tonight's crowd, falling further in love). The fandom on display is intense; arms are thrown into the air to Red, Yellow & Blue's Hummingbird, and excitement hits record levels as the band conclude with an encore of Foxes Mate for Life. Judging by tonight's performance, the crowd are Born Ruffians' for life.