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