Black Honey @ The Ruby Lounge, Manchester, 28 Mar

Black Honey know just how good they are. Ever since the Tarantino-indebted Spinning Wheel rightfully put the band on the lips of every Rough-Trade-tote-bag-sporting teen far and wide, frontwoman Izzy Bee Phillips has insisted she’d prefer her band to stay "secret". Absolutely no chance. The Ruby Lounge is absolutely swarming, and somehow tonight feels like the very start of their trajectory.

It’s rare for an agreeable indie rock band to offer anything beyond cut and paste song delivery, but Black Honey are that rare gem. Amid shimmering shoegaze guitar lines and loud-quiet euphoria, frontwoman Izzy Bee Phillips is intense and magnetic – reining back attention during the band’s few quieter moments. Her presence sets the band apart from their contemporaries; few bands have the capacity to demand such attention.

Quite simply, Black Honey are a near-perfect indie rock band and they know exactly how to prove it; recent singles Hello Today and Somebody Better feature midway through their set, and act as proof that the Brighton gang are only getting better. At times, such as during closer Corrine, the four-piece threaten to broaden their horizons beyond congenial reverb-heavy soundscapes, but they scarcely manage to do so; Black Honey’s charm is evidently in execution rather than scope.

This is indie rock at somewhere near the peak of its capabilities. It’s far from revolutionary but it’s a million miles further from dull. Don’t be shocked to see Black Honey go stratospheric.