Madness @Belsonic 2016

In the realm of the cliché, 'rain failed to dampen spirits' is probably the worst. When I ascend to the Iron Throne the punishment will be harsh, but fair. Until then, outdoor gigs will be marred with this abomination, every time there's a little bit of drizzle.

All day there's been near torrential rain in Belfast, the sort that Nick Cave sung about in Tupelo, and it's worrisome. Thankfully the site is paved, and the weather holds off, despite some very unpleasant looking clouds. It would take more than that to faze the crowd. They're beery and looking forward to tonight - the kids are being babysat, and there's more than one group of lads who will be paying for their night out with a good garage cleaning in the next few days.

Mind you, it's not just the veterans who are out in force - there's a fair few kids in the crowd as well, some of them too young to remember when This is England came out, never mind when Absolute Madness came out. I'm sure we saw a full, three generation family outing tonight, which was nice.

And while the first sign of Madness is Suggs walking up your driveway, the second is that massive MADNESS backdrop, channelling the spirit of the Comeback Special. There's little to no ado as the band launch into a massive House of Fun. While there's a new album just released, the band know that we're not here to hear it, and while there's a few new cuts later on in the set (when the audience has taken on a bit more beer, and is more receptive) it's a greatest hits set.

Madness are the musical equivalent of Only Fools and Horses. While you've got  the ones that have been played to death - Del Boy falling through the bar while Trigger makes a face - there's also the supposed 'lesser works', which remind us just how well crafted the writing is.

The band veer away from the nuttier end of the back catalogue (no Driving in My Car, for example) and we're treated to a display of classic British song writing, a lineage that began with the Kinks, run through to Blur and the Streets and still alive today in the likes of the Arctic Monkeys or Richard Hawley.

Madness ( the song) and Night Boat to Cairo top the night, and there's more than a few creaky knees raised in the Nutty Dance, as the band, tight as a duck and defying age bring it home, in a show as well natured and received as a return to your old local.

Shane Horan