A POPULAR rock band returned to their adopted 'second home' of Brighton and told of their love for the city as they met fans.

The indie band The Maccabees performed a gig and signing at independent record store Resident in the North Laine.

The group is based in London and recorded new album Marks to Prove It in the capital but they are former Brighton residents. Before the short set, which comprised four new songs, guitarist Felix White told of his feelings for their former home .

“It feels special coming back to Brighton, because it’s so full of memories for us. Even seeing The Dorset pub makes me feel quite heavy with emotion. It reminds me of certain people in my life and has so many happy times connected with it. It feels incredibly sentimental to come back.”

White said The Maccabees’ affection for Brighton stems from a chaotic gig they played at Concorde 2 in 2006, and he smiled whilst remembering the frenzied crowd reaction that night.

“That Concorde gig is still one of the great Maccabees gigs. I don’t know if I’ve slightly romanticised it over time, but I remember kids hanging off the pillars in the venue. Brighton was the first place that became a staple of what Maccabees gigs really were – it all became tangible here, whereas before we’d just been playing in pubs.”

Singer Orlando Weeks, a former student in illustration of the University of Brighton, said he “had a lovely time in Brighton during university, but eventually it came time to move back home to London.”

Entry to the gig at Resident was free upon pre-ordering Marks to Prove It, The Maccabees fourth album of an 11-year career. That the small shop was fully packed-out was an indicator of the band’s enduring popularity in Brighton.

Long time fan Daniel Warner said that he had “grown up with The Maccabees” and is “enjoying the journey that they are going on,” whilst Laura Shama recalled seeing the group a decade ago at Brighton’s Great Escape festival, the first of her eight Maccabees gigs.

Imogen Holland was keen to claim The Maccabees as a local band. “I like to think of them as being from Brighton. They’ll always have a special place in my heart,” the fan said.