The last Don't Look Back event that I attended was Teenage Fanclub performing Bandwagonesque in an impossibly sweltering Kentish Town Forum in 2006. It was an excuse for a nostalgic singalong which continued with an array of crowd favourites well after the scheduled set, and, brilliant as it was, was an altogether throwaway experience. Last night, it is safe to say, was not. Jason Pierce's 1997 classic Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, for all the emotional desolation contained in its lyrical content, is a lush, expansive listen. It is also an extremely private affair - at times Pierce bares his soul so openly that listening to it can feel like an intrusion into personal grief.

The band shuffled on stage, taking an eternity as it soon became apparent that there were 33 of them, including choir, brass and string sections. The lights dimmed to reveal an understated backdrop of the sky at night. Yep, Teenage Fanclub this wasn't. It was, however, utterly spellbinding. Picking standouts is an altogether impossible task, as each song, arranged impeccably, flowed beautifully into each other. 'Broken Heart', with its melancholy yet strangely Motown brass arrangement was heart wrenchingly beautiful. 'Electricity' reminded the all seated crowd that Jason Spaceman was still capable of making an unholy racket when he wanted to, as well as surely sending any epilepsy sufferers into fits, such was the intensity of the strobe lights. 'Cop Shoot Cop' was almost transcendental; well over ten minutes in length, it could have been four times as long and there wouldn't have been any complaints.

Pierce played the entire gig sat down, and rarely looked at the audience, let alone engaged with them. It would have ruined it if he had. Tonight was about watching a performance. It wasn't even supposed to be nostalgic. It was simply about watching one of the most honest mainstream records of the last twenty years arranged and performed impeccably. It was an experience quite unlike anything I've ever seen, Don't Look Back or otherwise, and for that I am truly grateful.