Back down the front in 2010! For 2007, 2008 and 2009 live reviews check out the ARCHIVE menu.
Kele
Venue: Leeds Cockpit. The cocksure Leeds venue is packed to the rafters, or should that be arches for this one. It’s a barmy northern summers evening outside which means its baking hot inside. Support: God only knows, thanks to an accident on the A1 and a packing nightmare in Leeds city centre were lucky to get to the venue at all, in fact Kele is already on but he’s only just started so it’s all good. The Band: You can feel the anticipation, the atmosphere is bubbling under nicely ready and waiting to explode from the off, bizarre really Leeds crowds have somewhat of a reputation for their attitude and lack of response; they are usually here to be seen. Not tonight though, it’s gonna kick off any minute and to be fair it don’t take long, they are well up for Kele’s new brand of indie, dance pop and Kele too is clearly buoyed by the crowd and his acclaimed Glasto performance the weekend before as he starts his first proper solo tour in high, high spirits clearly all and sundry are well buzzing. It’s an electro infused fest, with all the main cuts from the dazzling ‘Boxer’ given a good airing tonight. ‘Tenderoni’ with it dance floor tendencies gets the arms firmly in the air and we do mean in the air too, for once Leeds is ‘aving it! In fact they are up and down like.... well you can fill in the blanks here! Kele never loses the crowd neither, they take a bit of a breather during the slower or more mellow stuff but then as soon as Kele ups the tempo at will it all kicks off again. Oh and by the way there’s Bloc Party stuff too... what! Yep, he’s a crowd pleaser alright, fact is he does have to ‘resort’ to the old band to lift the crowd; it’s just the icing on the cake. The place goes potty, some really old stuff and belters too, the likes of ‘Flux’ and ‘One more chance’ sound stunning in this ‘small venue’. To be fair the gap between ‘One more chance’ and Kele’s solo stuff ain’t that huge and it flows pretty nicely. The gig is going so well that as soon as the main set ends he’s back on for an instant encore and as most are heading for the exits there’s a second heroes encore which has those down and away turning back and scrambling back for more. Verdict: Simply stunning, both Kele and his fans make this ‘one of those were you there’ gigs. It even closes real close to a full set of tens too, close anyway!
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 10
Ability - 9
Effort – 10
Kele value for money - 9
( JULY 2010)
Delphic
Venue: The Stage, Leeds Met Uni SU. Cracking venue and oft underused on the gig front. Nice bar upstairs and a good sized venue, now named The Stage downstairs. Pretty full but try avoid standing near the back, you'll get a bit of a whiff of the bogs coming through! Support: No idea, sorry! The Band: Now this should be a review of how Delphic played their hearts out and connected with the Leeds crowd and the place went off big time. But actually what this is going to be is a 24 carrot slating of a crowd who obviously thought it was far too uncool to get into the music and actually move! For those who were down the front and did get stuck in we truly apologise but if you'd have turned round and witnessed the majority behind you you'd know why this review is gonna turn into more of a rant. It's strange really as we were completely underwelmed by the recent Sheffield Leadmill gig but thought hell give it another go, must have been a one off… nope it wasn't and the Sheffield crowd was far superior to their west Yorkshire cousins and by a country mile too. Anyway Delphic, what can we say about them, well they are good; a mixture of fantastic lights, guitars and glorious beats. In fact on a good day I bet venues can be really kicking and with a virtually full house in here there should be sweat pouring from the ceiling, but there isn't. Is it that Delphic are just too cool and are attracting the wrong clientele? They are too 'dancey' live and alienating those who think they are an indie band? Or is that their 'fans' treat their gigs as an opportunity to look cool and be seen? Well with plenty of experience of Leeds' crowds it could well be the latter as they have a bit of a reputation for that but perhaps it's a bit of the other two as well. Maybe they do need to break away from the NME scene and embrace the dance crowds then maybe it won't be as stagnant as it is tonight. Maybe they should interact with the crowds a tad more, there's little or no banter off the stage and maybe they need to through in the occasional curve ball or cut the inter song mixing. They have the tunes, plenty of them too, nobody could deny the power of a 'Halcyon' but it should spark the place into live and doesn't. Maybe we're been a bit harsh but we don't think so, why spend eleven quid and make the effort (you've gonna look good!) when you're not going to feel the music, get into the gig, it's a two way thing you know not just a stand there and take shite pictures on yer camera phone. And as this rant comes to an end it plainly obvious what tonight sorely missed… passion. A band can be as good as anyone but if there's no passion from either them (and we're not throwing the blame at Delphic here) or the audience then a gig is going to fall flat on its arse and that's the truth. Verdict: A flat arse.
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 1
Ability - 8
Effort - 7
Delphic value for money - 5
(May 2010)
The Futureheads
Venue: Sheffield Leadmill. If we've said it once we've said it a thousand times The Leadmill remains the best venue this side of Watford gap. It's a weird date to play, bank holiday Monday evening but there's a decent crowd in, not full but good sized and good natured too. Support: Err, it's a bit of a flying visit as we wander through the doors the support is exiting stage left so it's just The Futureheads for us. The Band: After a decade after becoming The Futureheads back in their native Sunderland, they are out on the road promoting their latest album 'The Chaos'. They are obviously in buoyant mood from the release as they are in chatty and charming form. They have plenty of laughs, chats with the crowd and even dedicate a song thanks to a fans tweets earlier in the day. Obviously with a new album to plug they spin out plenty of new tracks and when they are as good as poptastic new single 'Heartbeat song' why shouldn't they. This set like many, many before it just shows how they've managed to marry pop, indie guitars, new wave and that angular style that fellow north easter's Maximo Park. As ever crowds always respond best to 'the old stuff' and to be fair it ain't a deal better tonight, 'The beginning of the twist' is as poppy as on vinyl but it's weird that there's people requesting a 'piece of crap' which seems a tad on the strange side, more of which later. Any who, there's a neat trick when they kick out the famous 'Hounds of love', they get different sections of the crowd to do backing vocals. It may sound a bit boy band or cheesy but it's a bit of a blast and whips up the crowd a treat, quality stuff. So back to this here 'Piece of crap', when they reappear for their deserved encore they do indeed do a piece of crap and it's bloody excellent, it's a right royal punk pop romp. So that's The Futureheads, don't take themselves too seriously but cracking indie pop all the same. Verdict: Indie pop don't get much better, they are on top form and give it a right good go. As alternative bank holidays go it don't get much better.
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 8
Ability - 8
Effort - 8
The Futureheads value for money - 8
(May 2010)
Twisted Wheel
Venue: Doncaster Priory. Awesome when top bands come to your home town especially at come venues like the Priory. It looks the part, especially the cool lighting behind bar and the venue itself is tight and compact; proper basement with low ceiling and hot as hell. It's rammed too with a rowdy bunch with the atmosphere building as the booze flows. Support: Local lads The Kavaliers have brought plenty of their mates down and they all get down to it from the off. Their myspace quotes they sound like Stone Roses, Seahorses and Kasabian well the first too are bang on, there's times when it sounds like they are playing squires riffs except singing a different song over them! Don't take this as a mega knock back as they give a damn fine account of themselves and singer Tom Statham does his best Liam growls and sneers to pretty good effect. The Finlays are up next and they actually sound (and look a bit like them too) Milburn, the now defunct Sheffield band who caught the Arctic Monkeys coattails to indie b list fame. That said they actually sounded pretty good live and The Finlays aren't no slouches neither, they don't get the crowd shifting like The Kavaliers but that probably cause half their mates aren't here to egg them on but their final tune, a rather surreal blast through The Wannadies 'You and me song' heats up the place nicely. The Band: The place is already kicking off by the time the 'wheel hit the stage, there's all manner of football, band and county chants going down (note - when you are in Yorkshire it is fairly customary to give it a quick verse of 'Yorkshire, Yorkshire, Yorkshire' at all major events!). There's also booze flying about but a bit of a dark undercurrent too, a rather sour faced gent at the front is eyeballing all and sundry and there seems to be a bit of a heated debate going on mid crowd too. Thankfully as soon as they hit the stage running the place erupts for the right reasons, it never ever cools down neither, its hot hot hot! Twisted Wheel don't seem to be in much of a mood to disappoint neither, although they aren't here purely to go over old ground as they preview loads and loads of new stuff. There's a few choice cuts bobbed in now and again to keep everyone happy but primarily this tour of low key and unusual towns / venues is to get deep down and dirty with some new stuff in tow. The atmosphere stays on a knife edge, fortunately on the right side most of the time but the sour face gent is escorted from the premises mid set after getting a bit too angry with a couple of enthusiastic fans. It's high energy throughout and the place goes proper ballistic for 'You stole the sun' which is a right, royal stunner. The new stuff don't let the fans down, there isn't any massive change of direction just some blooming great tunes belted out in good style. An absolute corker. Verdict: An absolute fire cracker atmosphere, high energy and the 'wheel give it up good style. Bring on the second album!
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 9
Ability - 8
Effort - 9
Twisted Wheel - value for money - 9
(April 2010)
Bad Lieutenant
Venue: Sheffield Leadmill. What a week down the Leadmill this week, Monday Bad Lieutenant featuring the majority of the legends from none other then New Order and then on Friday the new Manchester electro kids on the block, Delphic. What a week! Anyway back to the venue, the famous steel city Leadmill shows no signs of losing its number one status despite hefty competition from the big boys across the city. Unfortunately it's no sell out tonight which is a bit of a shame but it's about two thirds full when the main event takes place. Support: Gabrielle's Wish aren't quite as lucky as it's pretty sparse when they are 'warming up' the crowd. It's pretty obvious stuff, heavily influenced by Joy Division and Manchester of old even down to the rather jaunty dancing of the singer who looks like he been round the musical block a time or two. It's obvious stuff but to be fair its good product placement. Then in between the bands there's a great selection of beats flowing through a savvy DJ including shadders fav's The Whip. The Band: Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris are the main reason why everyone has paid twenty quid a shot for this one but there's plenty of others in the band, Phil Cunningham has plenty of experience not only been part of Sumner's previous band plus part of the underrated Manchester indie moodsters Marion. Then there's new comer Jake Evans who supplies some vocals and guitars and cuts a rather fine and confident figure whilst doing so too. So it's billed as Bad Lieutenant so let's look at BL, there's plenty of new stuff for the band and the fans to get their teeth right into, there's no major new direction for Sumner and co, sounding more like an extension of the New Order legacy. It's actually surprisingly good, stuff like 'Sink or swim' has the pop element, melodies to burn, breezy guitars and Morris' drums underpinning the lot of it and obviously Sumner's effortless vocals rolling around like the icing on the pop cake. So thankfully the new stuff is okay so the next question that we dare to ask are they gonna do any old stuff too? Hell yes and then some! Sumner is in corking form, having a right laugh with his fellow band mates (with Cunningham taking the brunt of his jokes and jibes but he takes it in good humour) and this relaxed mood means that they can enjoy blasting through the huge back catalogue which takes in Electronic, New Order and deep breathe, Joy Division too. They pick some real corkers too, later New Order 'Regret' and especially 'Crystal' sound as fresh as daisies after having given The Chemical Brothers 'Out of Control' a real going over they finish with an absolutely stunning 'Temptation'. This finale is genius, a dancey electro monster of a tune and the place which has been a little restrained at times lap it up, quality. But the best is yet to come as they reappear for the three song encore, which Sumner gives the crowd the choice of what to play, well sort of as he picks them anyway! But despite dangling the 'Blue Monday' carrot into the crowds faces they leave it and pick New Order's first single 'Ceremony' and then possibly the highlight of the evening a throbbing and pulsating 'Transmission' which is just sublime. To finally pull things together we are treated to Joy Division 'signature' tune 'Love will tear us apart' which is a delight aside from Sumner's excitement whilst shouting 'Come on' at regular intervals! Verdict: The phrases Legendary, god like and genius are often used these days but the likes of New Order and Joy Division its well deserved. Sumner and Morris have reshaped music and without them English music would be less exciting place to be and whilst Bad Lieutenant don't break down the frontiers of their past it does continue the legacy with some fine tunes. It has to be said it's actually a privilege to see the likes of 'Temptation' and 'Transmission' played in some a small, cool venue and they sound better for the intimacy too. Quite simply this was a fantastic gig and it's a real shame it wasn't a packed house to witness it.
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 7
Ability - 10
Effort - 9
Bad Lieutenant value for money - 9
(March 2010)
Delphic
Venue: Obviously as this is part of our Manchester Electro double header it's back to the legendary Leadmill. This time it's definitely sold out and has been for some while, in fact this is quite the hot ticket especially as their low key steel stage performance earlier in the year seems to have developed into stuff of legends. So after Monday night's genius Bad Lieutenant gig and all that there's plenty to live up to, great expectations indeed. Support: Little Comets are the band given the unfortunate task to entertain the masses; they are 'cool' like Delphic, in fact the lead singer's horrific heavy knit jumper could be considered the fashion disaster of the year! So bad attire aside Little Comets aren't a bad little combo, they are more indie than electro mixing a bit of twee with stuff that makes The Maccabees such a fine listen. On the live scene they come across a decent watch too, good start then. The Band: They look the part, well geek chic anyway, all synths, lights, smoke and matching outfits and take no time to get straight down to business. So here goes… well no not really, we're expecting the place to take off but it doesn't happen in fact the crowd seem quite statuesque and coupled with the heads down 'ice cold' manner of the performance this could be one hell of a let down. 'Red lights' comes and goes without igniting the blue touch paper which is a shame as it's a monster of an electro tune but live it almost sounds like a remix, that actually does seem to be a problem as the whole performance feels like a big long Delphic remix, there's not the definition and impact of 'tradition' gigs. It's not till 'Halcyon' drops that the place comes to life, its one hell of tune with lights and beats in all directions and the crowd starts to warm up. They do crack on from here ploughing through the best of the stunning debut album 'Acolyte' but there's never a real connect between band and fans, it's never hits the highs they are well capable of, maybe next time.Verdict: The unfortunate thing with great expectations is that the often lead to great disappointment, this isn't the classic that we were expecting, not that it was bad in fact they were pretty good. Trouble is we were expecting to be blown clean away and that didn't happen plus the buzzing atmosphere we were also expecting didn't happen either. Overall the kids are alright but to be fair when you come up against legends with 30 years in the game and a back catalogue which includes some of the premier cutting edge electro tunes that this country has produced you are probably onto a loser! So that's one for the old guard then, congratulations Sumner, Morris and co.
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 7
Ability - 8
Effort - 7
Delphic value for money - 7
(March 2010)
Ocean Colour Scene
Venue: Sheffield Academy. A matter of a few days after a trip up the A1/M62 to the much fabled Leeds Academy we're on the road this time across the M18 to the Sheffield Academy outlet. Not quite as pleasing on the eye as the Leeds variety but still usually has a good sound and although the balcony is empty the downstairs is pretty busy and the bars are down a pretty brisk trade. Support: The Moons have the task of providing the pre OCS entertainment and whilst they don't get the crowd buzzing as such they give a damn good account of themselves and get some warm applause as the majority of those present lend them their ears. They look as retro cool as they sound and it's a good pick for the OCS crowd, heavily 60's influenced, similar to say the now departed Rascals, definitely worth a listen. The Band: It is perhaps arguable that OCS have never been the most exciting of bands of live bands, discuss! Well tonight both viewpoints can be true. With 21 years on the clock and nine albums in the can with a perchance for acoustic numbers it ain't gonna be 100 mile an hour throughout but toss the coin and they have some splendid tunes in the locker. For all their longevity they air plenty from the shiny new long player 'Saturday' and it can be truthfully said that the crowd hardly go bananas for it there's actually plenty to wet the appetite. The brisk whoesque 'Rockfield' has all the elements that made OCS the household name all those years ago. The new album takes the long running influences: Weller, Small Faces, Who, Kinks, Northern Soul et all with Fowler's distinctive 60's fuelled vocals and produces some damn fine moments. Next single 'Saturday' has plenty of grooves whilst 'Just a little bit of love' sees them revisit slow, introspective territory but still a fine tune. They are clever to pepper the new stuff with a few golden oldies to keep the faithful well and truly behind them, early on 'Profit in peace' becomes a singalong event and 'The Circle' gets a decent reception. Fowler is ably assisted on a couple of new tunes, female vocals adding another dimension on 'Sing children sing' and the bonzer new single 'Magic carpet days' with it's great beat and old skool feel. However, it all kicks off as we enter the twilight of their set. Craddock has been threatening to get off the leash all night and he's finally able to break loose during a completely off the hook 'Hundred mile high city'. It has one of the most recognisable guitar rifts of the Britpop era and Craddock gives the overblown treatment it deserves, that's the way to end a set! After a good while Fowler reappears alone to do a solo 'folk song from the last century' with a glint in his eye, it is sung back word for word. Craddock, Harrison and the others then rejoin Fowler for the obligatory blast through 'The Riverboat song', a song which boasts one of the best intro's of all time, no wonder it's still a regular on Tv and radio to this day. But the final word is left to 'The day we caught the train' which is a real moment and the place goes ballistic, pure indie nostalgia singalong time! When they have finished and doing their band thanks to the crowd they are still singing it right back, Fowler looks genuinely chuffed and grateful. Verdict: One thing you can't level at OCS is they short change their fans, they are on for nigh on an hour and a half and play plenty of the hits but with a new album hot of the shelves it's a bit obvious that's its going to dominate proceedings. Fortunately it's a good album and most of the songs fit in neatly into the OCS setlist. I'm sure as they prune down the setlist for the summer festival season a few new tracks will fall by the wayside as the cream rises to the surface but for this usual vast OCS tour the band seem to be enjoying airing this new material. As long as the fans favs are still banged out with venom then everyone leaves into the freezing winter air happy, job done.
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 7
Ability - 9
Effort - 8
Ocean Colour Scene value for money - 8
(February 2010)
The Maccabees
Venue: Leeds 02 Academy is the host to the NME awards tour featuring The Maccabees and the ones to watch to 2009 and the picks of the 'bands to pin your hopes on' for 2010. The place is packed to the rafters creating a right old buzz in this cool, cool venue. With it's high ceilings and sympathetic renovations thanks to the Academy group it is perfect for gigs of this ilk. Support: The Big pink, you know the one 'Dominoes' with it's catchy chorus and radio friendly feel? Yeah well they do it last! Prior to this they set their stall out with something not quite as catchy nor as interesting it's quite a dark and heavy brand of indie dance rock. They look like crap, aside from the drummer that is and oft slip across the 'line' into dirge. 'Dominoes' is clearly the stand out track and on tonight's evidence, one hit wonders it is. Bombay Bicycle Club are more like it, a load of skinny awkward looking lads doing awkward, oft twee angular indie guitar pop of the finest order.They connect with the crowd from the onset leading to a cracking atmosphere with even sections of the balcony on their feet and crowd surfing aplenty down in the stalls. They manage to up tempo at will and the crowd follow, throw in the knowledge of a decent tune and the singers 'unusual' dancing and you've got quite a watch. The Band: The crowd are bouncing by the time The Maccabees wander into the Academy limelight, they are clearly buoyed by the reception and see fit to muller through a blissful masterclass of an indie pop set. The place is electric throughout and Orlando and co are in top form picking the cream from their couple of albums and still find the time to bob in a curve ball or two in there too. 'I love you better' is symptomatic of their winning formula; perky guitars, bags of chorus but with that edge. From the debut 'Colour it in' comes back to back the poptastic 'X-ray' and the monster 'Precious time', what a killer duo. To bolster their live sound there's not just the core five pieces but brass too to give them even more added oomph, works a treat too. Anyway, so back to that curveball then, wish we'd had a couple a quid with William Hill's on this too as they as they cover I Am Kloot, not quite sure where that's come from but surreal and very much true. They end with their defining moment so far, 'No kind words' deliciously dark but still retaining a pop edge which is no mean trick. At this point the place is absolute mayhem, it's so frenetic in the balcony that you fear for their safety! They come back for a couple of songs encore, the young crowd has thinned slightly and the atmosphere cant again reach the heights but it's still a joyous bonus. Verdict: Bombay Bicycle Club take the acclaim in the support band stakes but The Maccabees were really great value with that brass section adding an extra dimension. Fair play to the punters, they loved every second, stella night all round.
Shadders scorelines
Atmosphere - 10
Ability - 9
Effort - 9
The Maccabees value for money - 9
(February 2010)