THE idea that pop groups are not as clever or original as they used to be has been turned on its head in the last year or so. In fact, ever since Franz Ferdinand’s extraordinary rise to the top, it seems that arch lyrics, musical wit and an elegantly raised eyebrow have become essential to the making of modern music with mass-market appeal.

The Futureheads, four young men from Sunderland armed with all of the above and more besides, have seen their stock gradually rise since the release of their self-titled debut album almost a year ago, to the point where the Astoria was almost bursting at the seams by the time they stepped on to the stage.

Lined up across the front of the stage were Ross Millard (guitar), David “Jaff” Craig (bass) and Barry Hyde (guitar) — their shirt sleeves all rolled up to within a millimetre of the same spot at their elbows — and behind them Barry’s brother Dave Hyde (on drums). Very much a group of equals they shared lead vocals and harmonies in various combinations, and (with the exception of Dave Hyde) all talked between numbers, maintaining a cheerful three-way banter in largely impenetrable northern accents.

Behind them, a set of severe, geometrical shapes was dotted among the amplification and lighting equipment, providing a visual echo of the precise, angular designs of their songs.

Setting the tone with an opening salvo of Decent Days and Nights and The City is Here for You to Use, they set off at a furious pace, navigating a succession of fast, spiky chord changes and complicated, interlocking harmonies while barely breaking sweat. Robot, which followed, was even faster, spikier and shorter, a song that seemed to exist at an unlikely point on the pop spectrum where XTC meets the Ramones.

From there the numbers zipped past with such gathering haste that it was as if the show was being glimpsed from the window of a speeding train. A cover of an old Television Personalities song, Dorian Gray, and a new number called Areas were dispatched with a typically fierce, staccato flourish, while they took a minute to orchestrate some vocal accompaniment from the crowd before embarking on their bustling version of the old Kate Bush song Hounds of Love.

Although marred perhaps by an excessive fear of the slower tempo, which meant that despite the imagination of the songwriting the show had a rather samey feel throughout, this was a gig of exceptional skill and bravado. The art school dance goes on.

The Futureheads play Baltic Square, Gateshead, May 30

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