Iress arrived in a rainy Manchester for only their second UK gig, supporting Hexvessel. Their recent release Sleep Now, In Reverse is their best album yet, so I was looking forward to seeing them live. Maybe because it’s their first UK sortie, they spread their all too brief set across their back catalogue, which sadly meant only two tracks from their recent release.

However, they have great quality in depth. Starting off with the duo of Blush & Ricochet from their 2023 Solace EP, they prove their description of their sound as “dark sexy heavy music” is bang on the money. Most of their songs move in a glacial manner – slow but with an awe-inspiring majesty.

At the heart of this is the unique vocal talent of Michelle Malley. Her voice moving from a gentle whisper to a powerful crescendo effortlessly. One concert goer remarked to me after the set, “she’s got an impressive set of pipes on her”, which sums things up beautifully. Michael Maldonado’s bass underpins things with a combination of soft notes and ringing bass chords, while guitarist Graham Walker adds subtle textures over Michelle’s guitar. Glenn Chu’s expansive drumming gives each song a widescreen feel; simple but very powerful.

Falling sounds spine-tingling, with its subtly shifting dynamics and gorgeous, but powerful chorus melody. Nest from 2020’s Flaw has a beautiful verse before its potent chorus. The highlight of the set is The Remains, from their new album. It raises the hairs on the back of your neck, as well as carrying the heaviest part of the set in the staccato stabs towards its conclusion.

The final song is Wolves from their 2015 debut album, Prey. It’s a great song, built around dirty bass chords. Personally, I’d have preferred the stunningly gorgeous In Reverse or the riff-heavy Knell Mera to close proceedings. However, finally seeing them live, not only matched, but exceeded my high expectations.

Come back soon, you dark sexy beasts.