“Whimsical”, “charming”… two of the many adjectives most commonly used to describe Leicestershire-formed three piece.
Add to that the fact that their excellent new album ‘A Season In Hull was recorded largely acoustic, in one take with one mic, and you might imagine that we’re in for a quiet night.
However – and this may please hardened fans more than newcomers to their oeuvre – the band aren’t really showcasing the new release. To be fair, they do have upwards of 20 albums of material to cover, and in fact, as ‘Hull’ is only available on vinyl, this may be for the best as an entire set full of unheard material can be a sure-fire way to put a dampener on proceedings.
From the new release, ‘Thin Lizzy Live and Dangerous’ may offer the largest clue to the influences of mainman David Tattersall. The title rather than the tune, which is a lovely lilting effort with a singalong chorus. However, the band have a propensity to rock out, and a bluesey Credence cover is the set’s low-point, its interminable rocking out making this listener curse the time wasted which could have been better spent on some of their own far superior material.
Some present may also have bee lured by the band’s association with former Herman Dune man Stanley Brinks, but again, things are rather less fey – sorry, restrained – than on 2010’s ‘Another One Just Like That’.
The Thin Lizzy influence even crops up in a lyric – “dancing in the moonlight” – and Tattersall does, to be fair, show some tremendous technique, effortlessly firing out licks which would have the rockers he clearly idolises gurning as if they had bamboo under their fingernails.
The self-indulgence can of course only go too far – when asked if the crowd would like some mandolin, the enthusiastic “Yes” is tempered by a low voice who adds: “Not for too long though”.
In all, a gig which will remain in the memories of most of the hard-core Wave Pictures fans present. However, I think I’d rather have had a one-man show at that original recording session…