Maximo Park, 2020. Credit: Em Cole When Maxïmo Park scissor-kicked their way on to the indie scene in the mid-’00s alongside the likes of Bloc Party, Kaiser Chiefs, The Rakes, Franz Ferdinand and fellow north-east rivals The Futureheads, they came armed with a debut album crammed full of killer pop tunes. Back then frontman Paul Smith was a bowling bookworm of energy, documenting his quest for romance in the face of rejection on 2005’s ‘A Certain Trigger’. Over the last 15 years, the Newcastle five-piece have managed to evolve with the times, tipping their trilby to classic synth pop (âToo Much Informationâ) and ’80s funk on their last album, 2017’s âRisk To Existâ.