Good gig. First three songs really built one on top of the other in quite an impressive way. After five or so songs, they were joined by an extra guitarist and Brian praying harmonica, which suggests they’ll look to be expanding the band.
The band have come a long way from the Brighton gig we saw in Feb 2009. They’ve built an impressive big venue sound and stage craft without being too clichéd, although they’ve obviously been influenced by sharing stages with Bruce.
Although they were strong throughout and Brian is a charismatic frontman, there were still some songs that ome still really standing out (Queen of Lower Chelsea for one).
Brian mentioned first visiting London in 2005, stopping outside Hammersmith Apollo and saying they’d play it one day. Bandmate joked ‘maybe in 15 years’. He said ‘no, we’ll play it’.
The show was also very different from Brixton gig we saw in the summer. There were fewer crowd-launched clapping crucendos in the middle of songs and less wild over-reaction. The set was also quite different, with lots of strong songs held back.
The audience was strange, though. They talked through lots of the quieter songs. And a bit sad to see a band you love in a venue that big. Great they’re doing well, but you don’t get the same intimacy or feeling of intimacy. The pains of being an early fan!
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