Chumbawamba could only come from Leeds, just as Ride could only have come from Oxford. A rollercoaster career has taken them from miners’ benefits in squats in 1984 to triple-platinum status in America and cult figures in Japan. Their eighth and latest LP, ‘WYSIWYG’, has so far failed to ignite the planet so they’re back on the small venue circuit in an attempt to whip up some interest.

Only three faces in the line-up look unfamiliar - impressive considering all the ups and downs. Maybe the arrival of kids and mortgages has dampened their renowned political bickering. ‘Tubthumper’ may have sold five million copies in the USA but only after they agreed to extensive censorship of sleeve-notes and expletives. It would be interesting to know how many Americans, and there’s a fair few in tonight, understood the irony of the single. Despite their internationalist outlook, there’s something very English about them, particularly the flawless, folky harmonies, as evidenced best on songs like ‘Homophobia’. Though the set encompasses material from their whole career, the songs sound like they could all have been written in the same afternoon, and there’s a whiff of going through the motions. New single ‘She’s Got All The Friends’ is worthy enough, but doesn’t grab you like ‘Enough is Enough’ or ‘Homophobia’. Depressingly, Radio 1 wouldn’t playlist it because it’s ‘too poppy’.

Chumbawamba are still consummate show-people though, forever dashing off for costume changes, in fact there are so many singers it’s a hard job keeping up with who’s on stage. Alice Nutter still looks fetching in her nun’s habit, though she’s started to look disturbingly like Cilla Black. The irritating thing about them is their insistence on proselytising about every issue.

Their own website, in eight sections for the eight members of course, contains thousands of words detailing their opinions on everything from globalisation to which is the best-tasting jelly baby. It’s a bit like those hip-hop albums where you spend so long reading the ‘thanks you’s’ that you forget to listen to the music.

That said, their tireless commitment to anti-fascism dates back to a time when such a stand put their personal safety at risk, and wasn’t a slogan for sportswear conglomerates. If their music was as radical as their politics they might yet attract more attention and find themselves returning to the big league.

Art Lagun