Fledgling punksters The Tyne are the real deal at The Cluny

Waiting backstage just a few hundred meres from the Quayside, there's something very apt about The Tyne closing their UK tour in Newcastle.

Despite their name, the teenage band has laid their foundations more in the virtual world of the internet than here on Tyneside.

Lead singer Ryan Lofthouse does hail from Durham, his North Eastern roots and an ambitious message to Sam Fender involved in creating the band's name, and he is joined by Cooper Stout and Joshua James.

The band first broke through back in 2019, enjoying a string of support sets whilst touring alongside New Hope Club.

Of course, luck would have it that the pandemic hit just as the promising teens were whirring into action, but the savvy pop/punksters used the time to cultivate an online following of thousands - 409,00 of those just on TikTok.

Having released their debut single 'Jessica' in February, the band spent the half term week touring the country, ending up at Ouseburn's The Cluny on Saturday afternoon.

Despite having just one released song under their belts, The Tyne's online following translated into a small sea of teenage fans who waited eagerly in the intimate venue.

Bounding on stage with a smirk, the trio launched into action and powered through half a dozen unreleased songs, punctuated by the occasional covers.

That bold debut single 'Jessica', which has already surpassed 10,000 Spotify streams, is unsurprisingly kept for a triumphant ending, but there is plenty to enjoy before that.

'Friends' is a catchy take on Gen Z solitude and 'Hide On The Moon' a euphoric flick that goes down a treat - The Tyne seem to be sitting on an album's worth of unreleased gems.

Covers are wisely chosen from the youngsters, determined to make their own sound rather than follow the electropop influences used by many of their breakthrough piers.

Smash Mouth's 'All Star' is chanted back by the crowd, despite being released before any of them were born, and the confidence with which the band deliver twenty one pilots' 'Tear in My Heart' shows the sonic direction they're aiming for.

A highlight of the afternoon comes as Ryan and Josh slink off stage and down into the crowd for an acoustic rendition of a track written just weeks ago.

It's a bold move, and one the band admit they thought of just the day before.

It's that willingness to do things a little bit differently that make The Tyne's days on small stages like The Cluny's seem numbered.

Give it a few years and an album or two, there's no reason why this band can't be on the biggest of festival stages.