Rock group The 1975 mocked their critics with a tongue-in-cheek self-trolling performance at the Brit Awards, as their set was “interrupted” by flashes of derogatory messages about their music.

The band won the coveted British Group award at the ceremony before taking to the stage to perform their hit The Sound, which saw them project highlights from negative reviews they have received.

One of the messages read: “Is this a joke?”

Brit Awards 2017
The 1975 at the Brit Awards (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

“Do people really still make music like this?” one of the pop-ups asked, while another slated the band’s “terrible high pitched vocals”.

“There’s no danger in this music at all,” opined another.

Viewers were slightly confused about the stunt, with some on Twitter suggesting that the show had been hacked.

However, fans of the band were quick to point out that the pink and white messages were actually used in The Sound’s official music video.

While The 1975 are a fan-favourite, with two chart-topping albums among their accolades, music industry critics have been less enthused about their pop-rock sound, with NME even naming them the Worst Band at their awards in 2014.

Earlier in the evening, the band’s frontman Matt Healy urged people to speak up about their political views as they accepted their Brit Award.

He said: “I think people in pop music and in the broader public consciousness are told to stay in your lane, stay in your lane when talking about social issues.

“But if you have a platform don’t do that, please don’t do that.”