White Lies @ The Liquid Room, Edinburgh, 11 Feb

A sold out and sweaty Liquid Room welcomes White Lies onto the stage with the roar and passion of a crowd twice their size, as the London group stop by Edinburgh promoting their latest release, Five.

Opening with new track Time to Give, it's immediately evident how tight this four-piece are, having clearly spent many hours in the rehearsal room prior to this European tour. Even the newer songs sound polished, already sitting comfortably in the set with older jams. The unmistakable beat of Farewell to the Fairground slaps – arguably the band's greatest hit – and the audience sings along with frontman Harry McVeigh. "It’s great to be here in this beautiful city," he tells us, looking genuinely happy and humbled to be here.

Besides the group’s slick performance, the most notable aspect to the show is the impressive lighting. Flashes of neon and impeccably timed sequences almost act as a fifth member of the band, the whole stage set up and light performance taking the gig to another level, transforming this relatively small venue to a Wembley-esque arena.

Each album feels a little different with White Lies, a band who seem to grow and move forward each time they step into the studio. Five certainly incorporates a more synthwave approach than its predecessors. It’s easy to get the whole synthwave thing wrong, but White Lies have nailed it this evening, mixed fantastically and performed impeccably. Each song from their varying releases gel well together, creating a compelling journey for us to embark upon this evening.

The audience are treated to a show that could easily have filled a venue three times the size this evening. Looking around, it seems the group have an extremely loyal fanbase, who sing each song as loud as the last, from older hits like There Goes Our Love Again to brand new tunes like Tokyo. It’s pretty hard to find a fault in this evening’s performance. Even when McVeigh trips a little during the intro to encore Change, he rescues himself in a charming, witty way – "Sorry I’ve fucked it up already, not a great start." Everyone laughs, and we start again. It’s a communal night and everyone's in the same headspace.

"It was an honour and a privilege to see you," remarks McVeigh before leaving the stage. The feeling is certainly returned by all in attendance tonight.