FREE became two when Manchester ‘super group’ Freebass played at York on Monday night.

The idea behind the group is that it centres around three bassists who form a powerhouse of sound - the bassists from three of Manchester’s biggest groups of the last 35 years: Joy Division and New Order’s Peter Hook, Andy Rourke of The Smiths, and Stone Roses and Primal Scream’s Mani, plus the addition of singer Gary Briggs, formerly of Haven.

Unfortunately, the group lost a third of its impact immediately as Andy Rourke was stuck in New York (which Hooky deigned to announce, though only halfway through the gig after people started to query his absence). This may not come as much of a surprise to those who know that it has taken an incredible five years since the band’s formation to finally release their EP, Two World’s Collide, and their first studio album, It’s A Beautiful Life – with a glitterati array of guest vocalists.

But back to the gig, and with a guest guitarist standing in, the band took to the stage, but hardly bothering to address the audience throughout, they seemed almost like they didn’t care what kind of performance was on offer, and it all came over a bit sloppy and slack.

This wasn’t helped by the sheer lack of strength and power in their songs, which were, on the whole, bland and somewhat repetitive, and Gary Briggs found it hard to stay in tune at times. There were moments of light though – Hooky’s unmistakable riffs, and the final song, She Said, when the band finally seemed to come to life and give it their all. This was a cut above the rest of the set, though; an example of saving the best ‘til last.

However, for the calibre of musicians involved in this line-up, you’d expect some fireworks to have lit up the stage.

Instead, this was more like a damp squib.