The countdown is over and Canadian indie rock quartet Half Moon Run return to London’s Roundhouse to end their ‘A Blemish In The Great Light’ world tour.

It seems we’ve come full circle following their Roundhouse show almost exactly four years ago, which also happened to be the last stop on their tour then. This time, they’ve brought reinforcements in the form of a string quartet – the cherry on top of an already perfect sundae.

The set is laid out in largely the same way as their sold out Electric Brixton show last year, with a few twists. 21 Gun Salute precedes I Can’t Figure Out What’s Going On, where the strings make their debut. Songs off their new album A Blemish In The Great Light such as Then Again, Favourite Boy, and Razorblade are scattered throughout the set, sandwiched in between older tracks. Fortunately, many favourites from their platinum-certified debut album Dark Eyes make an appearance tonight – Call Me In The Afternoon‘s rousing start sees co-frontman Devon Portielje showing off his skills as he takes the position of third drummer, then picking his guitar back up for She Wants To Know, while drummer Dylan Phillips hammered away at the keyboard.

The encore, of course, brought the best surprise. It starts with Jello On My Mind. Then “we haven’t played this one in awhile” comes the introduction, leaving us with a second or two of guessing, before the familiar guitar licks of Give Up fill the former railway engine shed. The strings lend themselves beautifully to this one, particularly at the outro where they led the song out. And finally, as usual, Full Circle brought the show to a close.

With their signature heavenly harmonies and flawless percussion accompanying a steady supply of solid riffs, Half Moon Run get better and better each time, and if the sky is the limit, we’ll be needing a rocket to see them next.

Photos: Abigail Shii