“York are you ready to get down and dirty?” Deadletter’s frontman Zac Lawrence asked the crowd two songs in after ripping off his top and grabbing the mic from its stand.

By this point introductions from the band – who turn dark post punk riffs and melodies into something you can dance to – were over and the show at The Crescent on Friday night (March 29) in full swing.

Scarborough-born and Malton raised Zac wasted no time in showing that this is a band going places – after declaring the gig was somewhat of a homecoming for the group which formed in North Yorkshire.  

He bounced around the stage while holding the sold-out crowd in the palm of his hand.

At times he’d jump between the crowd and stage like a yo-yo – effortlessly bringing his huge energy to each.   

York Press: Deadletter who played The Crescent on Friday (March 29)Deadletter who played The Crescent on Friday (March 29) (Image: Louis Gilbert)

It was seven years since Deadletter – now based in London – last played The Crescent.

And they showed what they’ve learned from playing the capital’s gig circuit.

The six-piece – equipped with a thundering bass, two guitars and a saxophone – roared through songs that have become instant hits with their fans like Madge’s Declaration where the audience bellowed back lyric: “I’ve got shoes but no soul.”

In Degenerate Inanimate the band’s dark sound goes hand in hand with Zac’s tongue in cheek lyrics about betrayal: “Do you ever get a feeling that you’re looking in a mirror but with inspection see that this is no reflection?”

It leads up to a sharp burst of the eponymous: “Degenerate inanimate” – brought to life fully when played live.

The band’s interactions with the crowd were brief. Not that this mattered – the music they delivered meant there was little explaining to do.

But when they did engage it was meaningful – be it offering insight into the gig being the band’s closest to home in three years, or Zac’s straightforward instructions to them.

One was asking the audience if they could recite three words before launching into the industrial sounding, bass driven Fit For Work. It shot waves of energy through the room as Zac flew around the stage and crowd – at points parting it through the middle.

For Binge – which has become the band’s biggest song – the room was gripped with pulsing guitar riffs and pounding drums as Zac raced through lyrics before declaring: “Life’s a binge.”

They ended with the moody Zeitgeist where the frontman declared: “There’s something in the air.”

And by the end of the song there was – Zac himself.

He launched himself off the stage into the crowd before disappearing stage left.

Deadletter’s tour ends with a gig at Stockton Calling on Saturday (March 30). To keep up with the band follow them on Instagram (@_deadletter).