Photo by James Minchin III

The music industry may worry that internet will cause concert-going to be a thing of the past, but Manchester Orchestra fans know better. They flocked to Cat’s Cradle for the blistering-hot, yet blissfully sweet, jam-rock of Manchester Orchestra, with the added bonus of three like-minded opening acts: the frenzied O’Brothers, the British blasters Biffy Clyro, and Tennessee-based, country-tinged, The Features.

If media buzz rocketed Manchester Orchestra to the top, the under-the-radar word is that Andy Hull—songwriting, lead-singing virtuoso frontman of this five-piece Atlanta band—likes to improvise and change things up a bit on stage. Fans sing along, knowing every word to every song, at the same time anticipating improvisation, thrilling to surprising twists and turns from studio-album versions. Manchester Orchestra delivered, playing their hearts out, performing nearly every song from their latest LP, 2009’s Mean Everything to Nothing, plus a couple of new unreleased numbers, and a few from their first record, I’m Like a Virgin Losing a Child.

Hull’s complex, soul-searching lyrics, held aloft by his soaring vocals, create an odd vulnerability mixed with emphatic strength bordering on rage; his accompanying lead guitar sizzles in the same vein. Robert McDowell also played frenzied lead guitar and added backing vocals, while Jonathan Corley provided expert bass; a powerful Len Clark drummed, and an equally percussive Chris Freeman pounded keyboards, and at times a second drum kit, along with vocals. The band conversed easily with the audience, at times joking and bantering, always answering questions and requests.

In interviews, Hull often discusses his obsessive need to make every song his best—to craft his music to perfection. During the show, he talked about this driving work ethic, critiquing his songs even as he performed them, concluding at one point: “When we stop realizing the new songs suck, that’s when the band will suck.” This kind of rambling, sometimes insightful, often funny, commentary, along with with Tull’s passionate tirades, kept the energy crackling. This kind of energy can only happen between audience and band, face to face. Manchester Orchestra possesses not only astonishing musical expertise for a newcomer group, but amazing rapport with a crowd and a confidence that you’d expect from a much more seasoned act. Andy Hull and his band may have been born recently, but they were born to do just this, and their love for it shows.