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A last
minute venue change meant Manchester’s loss was Liverpool’s
gain for this event. To paraphrase the evening’s MC, Martin
Smith: “In ’36 we had Woody Guthrie, in ’79 it was
The Clash and in ’93, it was The Manic Street Preachers”.
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| Bloc
Party |
So
who do we have in 2004 when political awareness through music is
more vital than ever?…
After
an appropriately passionate post rock/punk set from Bloc Party and
a melodic but tired-sounding Haven, it was up to MCs Skeme and Big
P to breathe a little life back to the proceedings. This was conjured
with some British hip-hop of the highest order, mixing sub-bass
beats and rhymes whilst reminding the crowd of the real reasons
for attending tonight’s event.
The
musical lineage from original ‘acoustic warriors’ such
as Guthrie and Dylan continues with a certain Mr. Damon Gough (a.k.a.
Badly Drawn Boy), who has no fear in voicing his concerns about
the worrying rise of racism, and begins with the amusingly titled
‘Don’t Ask Me, I’m Only The President’.
Despite
a frustrating delay with his highly anticipated third album proper
(discounting his soundtrack work) he seems in good spirits tonight.
Letting his music provide the notion that life can be a wonderful
thing for everyone in the right circumstance, Damon proceeds by
playing a number of tunes from his ‘Bewilderbeast’ debut.
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| Badly
Drawn Boy |
He
dedicates ‘The Shining’ to his children and their future
(awhh shucks!) before inviting the band onstage for a welcome airing
of old and new tracks. One highlight was ‘This is that New
Song’, which shows there’s plenty to look forward to and
that BDB may just brush away those ‘difficult third album’
blues before they even start!
Which
brings us nicely to the current malaise of The Music. Critically
lauded upon their debut release, they’ve come a long way from
their Leeds roots but haven’t quite reached the stellar heights
expected of them. However tonight’s performance, alongside
a current sellout tour, may be the turning point in their recognition.
Clearly
riding high on their recently acclaimed Homelands appearance, they’re
now starting to earn the early ‘21st century Led Zeppelin’
tag
(check out singer Robert Harvey and guitarist Adam Nutter’s
uncanny resemblance to the Page and Plant guitar/vocal solos of
yesteryear!)
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| The
Music |
The
criticisms levelled at them in the past are washed away on a blustery,
funk-adelic sea of sound that finally proves that they are able
to live up to their lofty moniker. Despite already playing to a
sell out Liverpool crowd three days before, there are no signs of
fatigue as they pick up the audience and throw ’em about like
a particularly evil fairground attendant bloke on the Waltzers.
Reminiscent
of pre ‘Urban Hymns’ era Verve but
without the baggy hang-ups that have daunted them in the past, they
are now the real deal, playing crowd pleasers such as ‘Getaway’
and ‘Take the Long Road and Walk It’, where people are
cheering 10 seconds into the intro as if
it’s the end of the song!
Considering these apolitical times, it’s good to see people
(especially among the mainly 18-30 year olds ) talking to each other
about the current climate and seemingly realising the power of a
vote in ensuring racism doesn’t become any more of an active
element within the political sphere than it is now.
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