Shepherd’s Bush Empire | Stereo Jealousy

Tindersticks don’t play London gigs often, which was why the dedicated were out in force tonight. The notoriously chatty Shepherds Bush Empire (which Stuart Staples professes a dislike for) was almost totally without back whispers. It was quite a nice change.

The group arrive on stage with the self assurance of a band with nothing left to prove. They may have experienced a few line-up changes, but they play with supreme confidence. It’s almost as if the audience isn’t there – that’s not a bad thing, it creates a kind of intimacy; like you’ve snuck into a private performance, where everyone concerned is playing as if no one is watching.

The set list unsurprisingly is made up mostly of tracks from their new album Falling Down A Mountain. However, fans of all periods were appeased with at least one track from every long player, although not necessarily an obvious one. Although known for their dark brooding songs, it’s actually their more (relatively) uptempo numbers which get new life on stage. They start off with the new album opener and title track, and tackle it without restraint, making it a more chaotic, more raucous mixture. They even manage to get the crowd dancing for new number Harmony Around My Table and for the classic Can We Start Again, which turns into one of the real highlights of the evening.

In contrast the slower brooding ballads, for which the band are more widely known, become more restrictive. They must remain wrought and carefully restrained. Stuart Staples’ elegant howl remains tender and beautiful; his performance sometimes tugging hard on your heart strings. But several of these slow ballads together, begins to make the audience a little restless. They save the tracks from their most adored albums, 1 and 2, till the latter portion of the set, but patience is rewarded in the encore, with a couple from album 1, City Sickness and Raindrops, which both go down a treat.

But a few minor complaints aside, this was a triumphant performance. A good live show should leave you with a greater appreciation of a band’s music. Tonight Tindersticks gave their music volume, what might seem quiet, sparse, restrained on record, was lively and full bodied live, even danceable. It was a different experience; and for that it was worth every penny.

Rating:

Tindersticks – Keep You Beautiful (mp3)

Photo: Maurice @ Paard van Troje – The Hague, Netherlands, 03/10

Setlist:

Falling Down A Mountain
Keep You Beautiful
Sometimes It Hurts
Bathtime
The Other Side Of The World
Dying Slowly – Can Our Love
Hubbard’s Hill
Peanuts
Factory Girls
Marbles
Black Smoke
A Night In
Harmony Around My Table

No Man In The World
Can We Start Again?

City Sickness
Raindrops

My date with the night came at the end of a very busy week of shows for me – in fact after the brilliance of Polly and John on the Monday (review to follow soon) I headed into this gig with a little sense of anti-climax. Goodness knows why, It’s Blitz! is a fantastic record, taking the trio’s sound into new and shiny areas. The Empire is packed by the time we get inside, having already missed Art Brut, much more so than the other two shows I’ve seen here over the last week. I guess this is the buzz ticket, the touts outside weren’t selling - only buying. The anticipation on the floor is heady, people are jabbering, pushing and impatient to see exactly how the band would make the step up to the big league.

The eye from the Zero cover looms over the stage and in a blaze of colour, and not many words, the band appear. Karen is shrouded in fibre-optic style headgear as they immediately launch into Heads Will Roll, whipping the crowd into a massed frenzy. The next few tracks whizz by in showers of glitter cannon rounds and I’m struck just how slick the band has become – they’re putting on a real show. For most of the first half of the set I struggle with the notion in my head, I’m used to seeing the singer writhe around on the floor emitting either wild shrieks or guttural roars. As my companion pointed out it just all felt, well, too rehearsed. Part of what drew me to them as a live proposition was the thrill of the unexpected , the seemingly improvised guitar work.

Perhaps, I thought, it is a symptom of trying to recreate the new tracks and their synth lines in a live setting – it ties the band down to strict routine. Take Hysteric for example, lacking the pace and bounce of the rest of the set, being almost a facsimile of the album version. The feeling begins to dissipate with airing of some of their oldest material, Miles Away sounded as urgent and thrilling as it ever did and Pin equally chaotic. Towards the end of the main set they’re winning me around, the night seems to have picked up pace and they thunder through Zero and Y Control to finish all too quickly.

The encore began with a cloying list of thank yous seemingly longer than the setlist, before lulling into a neat version of Maps. Following that though was the big surprise, and possibly the show’s saving grace, an astonishing rendition of Art Star complete with attempted mic-swallowing, screams and cutesy “do-do-do’s”. It is an absolute blast, as is the closer Date With The Night. In a way, I’m not sure how to sum the gig up. Sure the songs sounded great, the crowd loved it – if the whole thing was a little short. However I couldn’t help coming away thinking that despite sounding great on wax, the new stuff had stripped away the best thing about the band’s live act – spontaneity.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Art Star
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Zero

Photo: Hidden Shine