A man in a shirt and tie gees up the crowd before the band come on. The lights go out, and there are several minutes of darkness while anticipation builds. It's hard to avoid the feeling that either Foster the People are about to deliver something extraordinary, or they're padding out their allotted time.

The Los Angeles trio are that kind of band. With just one hit – albeit a huge international hit – in last summer's naggingly catchy Pumped Up Kicks, they're pulling bewilderingly huge crowds. Live, their songs generally veer off from Italian house pianos and the high-pitched vocals of Mark Foster into a giant extended percussive workout. They are trying desperately hard to start a party.

The squeakily handsome Foster is a crowdpleaser, whether running up and down the stage banging a cowbell or acknowledging Manchester's contribution to music. At one point, he even claims Foster the People were inspired by New Order, an influence as audible as the Dodworth Colliery Band. FTP are more obviously rooted in MGMT's mix of light psychedelia, 80s synth-pop and Friendly Fires' percussive clanging, although the People's songs are slighter. Hummable but innocuous – no doubt the legacy of Foster's days penning advertising jingles – they gradually become wearying. The jerkily funky Call Me What You Want creates something of the desired atmosphere, but there's a palpable sense that the crowd are waiting for something.

And, eventually, they get it. On the hour mark, the final song sees Pumped Up Kicks' instantly singable "All the other kids with their pumped-up kicks" hookline propel hands and mobiles into the air. Extended with a dancier feel and inevitably, a percussion workout, it's a microcosm of Foster the People's ability to make a little go a long way.