In the early eighties the face of Nick Heyward, singer and guitarist with Haircut 100, was a regular feature on the front cover of pop magazine Smash Hits, not to mention on the bedroom walls of their female fans.

Fast forward over forty years on, and Heyward, along with the rest of the band, appeared to have aged well as they took to the stage at the York Barbican.

The band are currently enjoying a renaissance with a new album, Boxing The Compass- their first new music in forty years coming out at the end of May.

Their confidence in the new album paved the way for the first two tracks of the evening coming off the new record; Come Back To Me and Vanishing Point both came with the trademark sound of a rousing brass section and percussion that defined their earlier work.

Cricket fan Heyward enquired if anyone knew the days' cricket score; his pleas remained unanswered. The band and their music, though, were never going to be in a position to be bowled out on a show that was not just a nostalgia exercise.

Taking the audience back to their debut album, Pelican West, the tracks, like the band, have aged well. Unlike their peers, Haircut 100 never had many big hits; Heyward left the band after their first album to pursue a solo career.

It took the York audience over thirty minutes to get up out of their seats as One Plus One took the fans back to 1982. The absence of a plethora of hits meant that Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl) was performed in the original version and another one that was on the 12” mix.

Musically there wasn’t much light or shade between the old and new tracks; all were fast, funky and had the kind of guitar riff that Nile Rodgers excels in, punctuated in this case by the swaying brass section.

As the band concluded with Fantastic Day, another of their big hits, Haircut 100 had cut a fine performance – whether their compass points north or south after the new album release is yet to be decided.

Haircut 100 play Darlington Discovery Festival on Saturday 8th August