This tour is to be the bands last. Their passing is not likely to make huge waves in the world at large, and it is a fair guess that Melvyn Bragg won't be featuring them on the South Bank show any time soon. They have never sold bucket loads of records, and they famously declared their own debut album to be 'sh*t' days before it was released. Despite this there is a great deal of respect for The Beta Band on planet pop. Since their first appearances in the mid-'90s they have continued to push musical boundaries and create music that refused to be defined. Over the years we've heard rock, electronica, dance, hip-hop and even a spot of folk from The Beta Band and tonight was Sheffield's last chance sample these varied delights. The four men, who had often performed in arctic fatigues and snow goggles, appeared this time in sober suits and a selection of granddad's ties. "We look like we've just been selling TV's for Comet don't we?" Asked singer Steve Mason at one point. Well... yes, but no matter. 'Dog's got a bone' and 'She's the one' – both from the band's debut release The three E.P's – were as ramshackle and wonderful as ever, and signature tune 'Dry the rain' was awe-inspiring. There is a scene in High Fidelity where John Cusack sells a dozen or so albums after playing this song in his music shop. If he'd set up stall tonight he could have sold a hundred. Mercifully some of the more meandering moments of the band's catalogue have been airbrushed from the set on this tour. Most of that ill-fated debut is missing and the emphasis is more obviously on their tunes rather than their quirkiness. Beta Band albums were often greeted with the worry that their would be too many sounds and not enough songs. This worry, it has to be said, was often justified. Alongside songs like 'Squares' and 'Assessment' – both of which bewitched tonight – were other far less exciting moments. Not now though. Perhaps it's the fear that one day soon they really will be selling TV's for Comet, perhaps it's because they've stopped trying so hard. Either way in their final moments The Beta Band seem to have finally become the band they once promised to be. Cool. Weird. Important. "You don't know what you've got 'till it's gone" sang Joni Mitchell. True. The Beta Band appeared at The Sheffield University Foundry on Sunday, 21 November, 2004.
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