NEVER has a saxophone received such applause than when The Zuton's kinetic sax player Abi Harding blasted out the first notes of opening number and band anthem Zuton Fever.

As well as reclaiming Michael Bolton's favourite musical bedfellow, Liverpool's newest rock 'n' roll hopefuls returned to their homeland to headline their first major UK tour, and showcase their debut album Who Killed The Zutons?

The band arrived to a warm hometown reception and grooved on stage with a cartoonish quality - pumping out an exciting mix of funky rock, layered with stabs of ska-infused sax.

The five-piece combo really impressed with the rockier numbers Pressure Point and Long Time Coming.

But the move to a larger venue left some of the acoustic based songs a little exposed, with the exception of summery-sing-along Confusion and the stunning five piece harmonies at the end of Railroad.

The scouse rockers finished the hour long gig with a storming version of current single You Will You Won't - with its Beatles-like guitar line and nagging vocal motif perfectly encapsulating their sound.

Although the set suffered from a lack of material, having only released one album, The Zutons certainly lived up to the hype and should be around for a while yet.