Three years ago, the Fratellis were discovered at In the City, the annual Manchester music conference founded by the late Tony Wilson. Less than 12 months later they were chart stars. Last year they won a Brit Award for best British breakthrough act and in June, they released a second album, Here We Stand, that was supposed to send them stratospheric.

But even as they returned to In the City to headline the closing night there was a feeling that fame could be slipping through the Fratellis’ fingers almost as fast as they found it. Despite making the Top Five, Here We Stand failed to match the success of its platinum-selling predecessor, Costello Music, while its singles hardly dented the charts.

Here the close-to-capacity crowd — mostly students, and surprisingly almost as many women as men — suggested that the Glaswegian group still has plenty of pulling power but, as the evening wore on, the ecstatic reaction to old songs and the muted response to newer numbers became increasingly apparent.

It was a shame because the band often compared to Oasis at their most plodding has attempted to broaden its horizons. The recent single Look Out Sunshine! had bits of glam-era Bowie bubbling through its midtempo bloke-rock, while Stragglers Moon borrowed from the Beach Boys rather than the Beatles. During both the crowd was almost motionless, though. But as soon as the old hits Henrietta and pub anthem Chelsea Dagger began, the venue exploded.

But the Fratellis did little to win the affection of fans. The scruffy frontman, Jon Fratelli, stood to one side, more intent on playing guitar than rock star. A high-voltage light show helped, as did a striking backdrop, but, for the first hour, the band’s energy levels seemed stuck on low. Then came A Heady Tale, the best song on Here We Stand, and suddenly the Fratellis were transformed. Funk, rollicking rock, ragtime piano and some celebratory la-la-las suggested a huge hit in waiting. Quick, someone release it before the album ends up in bargain basement bins.

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