This November, Brighton-based band Lambrini Girls took to the stage at O2 Ritz Manchester to continue their 2025 tour in celebration of the release of their 2025 album, Who Let the Dogs Out.
The duo, consisting of lead vocalist Phoebe Lunny and bassist and backing vocalist Selin Macieira-Boşgelmez, shot to fame amongst the UK's punk-rock community after the release of their debut album You're Welcome. The album has since been acclaimed amongst alternative communities for its politically-charged lyrics and energetic instrumentation reminiscent of the iconic music released during the UK's seventies punk era. Once the fierce duo solidified themselves as modern staples of the UK punk movement, they began using their platform to raise awareness of many messages about the current state of the UK's political situation. To honour the importance of the messages spoken at the gig, there will be a series of links at the bottom of the article for more information about each topic.
It goes without saying that Lambrini Girls know how to put on a show, immediately bringing a level of insatiable energy the second they ran on stage. The crowd was instantly receptive to the band's powerful presence, swarming to the centre of the venue space in anticipation of Dunny's interactive crowd work. Lunny storms onstage and instantly incites a mosh pit prior to their opening song, making the crowd agree to "pick them up!" if somebody gets injured on the venue floor.
The band opened with the same track that begins their latest album, 'Bad Apple', which addresses corruption and brutality within the police force. Lunny's aggressive delivery pinnacles the feminist punk movement, asking the crowd "officer, what seems to be the problem? Or can we only know post-mortem?" in the scathing chorus. 'Bad Apple' was the opening track for Who Let the Dogs Out for a reason that becomes glaringly obvious once seeing it performed live, as the vivacious nature of the song uplifted the crowd's morale instantly, and that stamina continued for the rest of the set.
The band ensured to incorporate old staples from the band's debut album with their newest set, performing the 2022 hit from their debut album, 'Help Me I'm Gay'. Lunny's sarcastic lyricism and raspy screams capture the dialogue surrounding homophobia and societal expectations for young queer people. Lambrini Girls continued with their frequent crowd interaction, with Lunny throwing herself into the audience to crowd-surf through the venue, and walking through the crowd to interact with LGBT audience members during the aggressive instrumentation bridge. With the first tracks of the gig being strongly politically centred, Lunny took the opportunity to encourage the audience to "write to your fucking MP" about dissatisfaction with the current political climate in the UK.
Lambrini Girls continued to interweave their popular hits with tracks from their latest album, performing hit single 'Boys in the Band' halfway through the set. The duo expressed the value of the track to them, outlining the importance of talking about the problem of sexual abuse in the music industry, and Lunny concluded her passionate speech by telling audience members to "take your friend for a pint and fucking call him out" for their sexual misconduct. The lyrics are unflinching, candid, and almost tear-jerking amongst a juxtaposingly vibrant atmosphere, with Lunny telling the audience to "hide your drink from the boys in music, before you pass out in their limousine". The passionate track holds a mirror up to the UK music scene, and speaks for every woman who's received unwanted and unsolicited attention from a band member, been groped in a mosh pit, or almost drank that pint at a gig that didn't look quite right.
The final song of the night had to be the band's biggest hit thus far, 'Cuntology 101'. Before the final track began, Lunny left the stage again to organise one giant mosh pit with as many audience members as possible. This was truly a sight: hundreds of people of all ages and identities dancing together in what looked like one huge wave. Once Lunny was finished watching the giant mosh-pit, the song's comedic delivery and booming vocals offered the perfect delivery of its message about setting boundaries and refusing to be confined by patriarchy.
It is needless to say that Lambrini Girls as a band have imprinted themselves on the UK punk scene, with no doubt that the impact they've had on the revival of punk music will never be forgotten. Their Who Let The Dogs Out tour stop in Manchester was a spectacular cocktail of satirical tracks and the pushing of important, politically charged crowd interaction. It was evident that every person in attendance felt empowered at the gig, having the confidence and excitement to engage with the band and each other throughout. In short, if Lambrini Girls come knocking at Manchester again, be sure to open the door and welcome the revival of feminist punk with open arms.
https://open.spotify.com/album/4GzF4Yg3GSkKi4hAzmjBKV?si=wRnU7HcpTUCih97oX2HiMw
The link for Rape Crisis England and Wales can be found here .
The link for the LGBT Foundation can be found here.
The link for Migrant Help UK can be found here.
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