Everything Everything are the semi-mad prophets of our time, or “bards” as frontman Jonathan Higgs would have it. Whether it’s ‘Get to Heaven’s zoomed-out treatise on terror, politics and power – a premonition-filled album that the band toured while the Bataclan, Trump and Brexit turned it into a reality – or ‘A Fever Dream’s deeply perceptive look at human nature in the current age; hardly anyone is getting under the skin of our culture and our times like the hard-working Mancunians are. The bonus is that they marry it to complex, rhythm-heavy music, fueled by nervous energy: poppy, razor-sharp synths, and killer clean guitars dueling for supremacy, with Higgs’ acerbic tongue delivering his rapid-fire, often absurdist lines in twisting, catchy falsetto melodies. Slowly but surely building up their audience across their four albums so far, Everything Everything just go from strength to strength – and if you haven’t seen them yet, we heartily recommend you jump on board as soon as you humanly can.

Sat 3 Mar, 7.30pm at O2 Academy 2, 16-18 Horse Fair, Birmingham B1 1DB, £23 seetickets.com