Badgers! That's what I think of when I think of Vintage Trouble. Badgers. I went to see them about six years ago and I already had a number of reasons to be in a great mood. It had been a lovely Summer's day and we don't get too many of them in Manchester. I'd just seen one of the greatest live bands around. I'd marvelled at the performance of frontman Ty Taylor, one of the greatest frontmen around as he covered virtually every bit of the venue and had the entire audience in his thrall throughout. I was also impressed by their humanity as they initiated an impromptu collection for the victims of the Manchester arena bombing which was only two weeks earlier. I was approaching my house when I saw something move across the road to our car. At first I thought it was a fox or a cat but as I walked up the drive I saw it as it moved from behind the car and across the lawn. A badger. It was the first time I'd ever seen one and I was elated. I was so excited that I went straight into my house and woke Marie up to come and see. It had gone by the time she came down and I don't think she was very impressed at being woke up to see something that was no longer there but it just capped an already memorable night. This is why Vintage Trouble and badgers will always be inextricably linked in my mind.
Warrington's Standin' Man open up tonight with a sound which is like a mix of the rockier side of Britpop and classic rock. Sometimes they sound like Oasis meets Rival Sons, not least because the singer Dean has a real Liam Gallagher edge to his voice on occasions. He also sounds like James Dean Bradfield and Roger Daltrey at other times. 'Eleanor Rigby' is given a rock makeover which sounds like The Manic Street Preachers. Nalle from Vintage Trouble also appears for a great little cameo. The final track 'Changing Wind' sounds like Cast covering The Who. Pretty decent. Marie thinks that they could be big and I think I agree.
It's a miserable night outside but Vintage Trouble bring the sunshine right from the start. 'Run Like The River' is a great rabble rousing, foot stomping opener and the crowd are invested straight away, although there doesn't seem to be as many people here as there was the last time they played here. The whole room is swaying to the sweet soul stylings of 'Doin' What You Were Doin'' which is fantastic. The soulfulness doesn't end there. 'You Already Know' channels Otis Redding and James Brown whilst 'Not The One' is a great sixties soul ballad. Elsewhere, 'Shinin'' is The Temptations' 'Get Ready' meets Pharell's 'Happy'. 'Holla!' sees Ty singing in the middle of the audience, and even dancing with some lucky audience members. It's hardly an exaggeration to describe Ty as one of the greatest frontmen alive today, he is phenomenal. 'Who I Am' from the new album is the natural successor to 'Run Like The River' and features some great rapped vocals. 'The Love That Once Lingered' is a classic soul ballad and features Dean from Standin' Man singing the Lady Blackbird part. Ty sounds amazing on an incredible cover of Stevie Wonder's 'Higher Ground'. Vintage Trouble prove again that they are one of the best live acts around and to see is to believe.
Vintage Trouble *****
Standin' Man ***
No comments:
Post a Comment