Weekly > Reviews
Supergrass - Leeds Metropolitan University
Tonight is one of those strange occasions for me…one where I actually pay for a gig! I’m now getting so used to freebies to write the reviews, that when a gig comes up that I don’t have a contact for I look a little flustered, cry into my wallet, dawdle about getting tickets and eventually miss out because the event has sold out in the meantime!
Not on this occasion though, I got in early and stumped up £40 for my two tickets for tonight, (it’s all about money with us Yorkshiremen) on my way into the venue I was having a discussion with my better half and had worked out that this must be the 11th time I’ve seen Supergrass over the years.
No mean feat really, I’ve always liked them but it’s not as if they are my favourite band, right from seeing them at The Duchess Of York in Leeds I’ve tried to see them as often possible. Only once in that time have they been below par and that was a few years ago at Leeds University, when they started off way too pedestrian in what is the worst venue in Leeds.
Her question to me on the back of this was “so why are we going to see them again if you’ve already seen them so often?” A fair question and the best I can come up with is “because I really like them live and I’ve got a feeling tonight’s going to be really good”. It’s not the most convincing response I’ve ever given, I’ll be honest.
Taking our places in the sparsely populated room and Sergeant make there appearance on stage, a Scottish four piece with a good front-man (Weller hair and Gallagher attitude), he breaks the ‘world bouncing up and down during the song’ record comfortably, I’m proud to have witnessed this achievement. It does at least keep things interesting for the crowd, were it not for this, I think people might have given up on their melodic lad-rock after a promising start.
Just after 9pm Supergrass breeze onstage lead by Gaz Coombs in his hat, smiles all round for the crowd and then they belt into the set. The set is brilliantly constructed, as you would expect they play a fair percentage of the new album, this though isn’t an overwhelming amount as they are seasoned veterans at this game now, instead they interject the new songs in and amongst the classics that the crowd know and love.
- Supergrass
- Leeds Metropolitan University (16th April 2008)
- Category: Live
- Label: Parlaphone
- Support: Sergeant
- Reviewed by: Kev
- Published on: 21 Apr 2008
- Comments: 0
- Beat Surrender Rating:
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Add to favouritesThe lighting and stage set up is impressive tonight and keeps in tone with the bands sound, which tonight is huge. The new tracks like Diamond Hoo Ha Man, Bad Blood and Ghost Of A Friend sound really beefy and don’t stand out as poor relations to the rest of the set. We get classics like Moving, Pumping On Your Stereo, Sun Hits The Sky and the brilliant Late In The Day, Mary sounds as sinister as ever and pleasingly they don’t play Alright, but we do get Lenny and a closing encore track of Caught By The Fuzz which brings the house down.
As a band they seem genuinely pleased with how tonight went and you can’t blame them, a rip roaring gig in front of a sold out crowd, a confident, tight performance from all five members, the Supergrass fight back has started.
Walking out of the gig my Mrs is enthusing about the gig and saying it’s one of the best performances she’s ever seen, “now do you see why I’ve seen them that many times I reply”.
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