Live Review: The Enemy / Twisted Wheel / Kid British – Southampton Guildhall 9th April 2009
The Enemy have been a formidable force in the UK music scene for almost two years now, and have embarked on a rather large UK tour to gear up for their new album, Music for The People.
Kid British opened up, sounding like a weak combination of a tonne of really good bands. Perfectly competent, they threw in a few surprises (a cover of Madness’ “Our House”? Did not see that one coming!), and belted through a set that got a lot of the kids ready and raring to go.
After a short interlude, Twisted Wheel ambled onto stage, singer Jonny taking a leaf out of Oasis’ book by wearing a raincoat on stage. A mini version of the Enemy, they led the way through a rapid 20 minute set that was belting from the opening “She’s a Weapon” to the end. Cramming in the obvious tracks (Lucy the Castle getting a roar of approval) and a few welcome album tracks, banter was kept to a minimum as the tracks did the talking. Sounding like an (even angrier) version of the Enemy two years ago, the future’s looking bright for these youngsters.
Finally it was time for the headliners, The Enemy, the ones most people had come to see. We’d seen the two articulated lorries out the front of the venue and was slightly intrigued about the amount of stuff three lads from Coventry would actually need. However, it turns out it was justified, with a huge video-style screen that complemented their relatively simple set-up.
Relatively little stuff from their new album was played, with the obvious hits from their début album gaining the biggest responses. “Away From Here” saw Tom Clarke play to his front man strengths, conducting a chaotic chorus, whilst the double header of “We’ll Live and Die In these Towns” and “This Song” was nothing short of euphoric – we’d honestly forgotten just how good their anthems were, with everyone yelling back the words like their lives depended on it. For their new single “No Time for Tears” they were joined by Emma (didn’t catch her surname) to do backing vocals with a voice that’s pretty amazing.
Coming back for an encore of “Happy Birthday Jane” and “Not Alone”, we left slightly sticky and sweaty but all the better for a night of great music where The Enemy cemented their place, and Twisted Wheel showed that they’re the next to take their crown.
The Enemy’s new album, Music for the People, is out on 27th April. Twisted Wheel’s self titled debut comes out on Monday (13th April).
After the jump: some pretty awful pictures of the gig
Continue reading Live Review: The Enemy / Twisted Wheel / Kid British – Southampton Guildhall 9th April 2009
