Manel, in L’Auditori

Hard to believe though it is, Manel have still not had an official concert-hall presentation of their third record in Barcelona, even though Atletes, baixin de l’escenari was released almost a year ago, in April, 2013, to be precise. Up until now, the band have only played in the city during open-air festivals such as Primavera Sound and Pròxims.

Consequently, the concert on Sunday the 2nd in L’Auditori, part of the programme for the Festival del Mil·lenni, should provide the perfect opportunity for fans to once again see one of the most successful Catalan bands in recent years to sing in Catalan, a band capable of topping the sales charts in Catalonia with their first two releases.

Atletes, baixin de l’escenari supposes a change of direction towards a more direct, electric sound, and tends more towards pop-rock than their previous records. Gone is the hallmark ukulele which was so evident on the first release and which, by the second, had relinquished some of its prominence. What remains, however, is the fabulist nature of the songs and the careful attention paid to the lyrics, though in this instance the band steers away from more literal narration and reveals slightly more cryptic tendencies.