Review by Colin McCosh Keep It Live! Magazine
Where do I
start? It was great to be back involved with promotions again,
albeit not a wholly KEEP IT LIVE! affair, it was great to be involved
in a gig at Blakey, a fine venue that has been a major player
in the original music scene over the last two years and is now
a sought after and very significant venue to play at. Blakey has
built a reputation on original artists.
So to two more original artists, and two that have really done very little gigging locally, in the immediate area they boast a whole three gigs between them, so it was difficult to predict what would really happen tonight. As time approached The Lion filled up and in the end an excellent crowd was in attendance to witness the inaugural performances of Brian McCarthy and Last Chance Texaco at Blakey.
Brian is wonderful, you can't help feel his humbleness at the fact that people are really enjoying his music and taking precious time out to come and hear him. Brian strolled through his repertoire like a true professional, mainly drawing on his album 'Elements'. Brian was inspiring considering his minimal live experience, he treat the crowd to a delightful wave of acoustic enchantments, relaying such numbers as 'Blue Rain', 'Hold On', 'Elements', 'True Friend', 'Out In The Crowd', and every number was resplendent in it's airing and applauded hugely by the listening audience.
I was listening to Last Chance Texaco for
the first time live with Paul on drums, I have so much admiration
for Paul Smith and all that he does, a massive and incredibly
talented performer, a better drummer in the NE you will not find,
this really is a testament to the ability that lies within Last
Chance Texaco.
LCT were stunning. Straight into 'Sleeping With Vampires' Kev's vocals immediately impress the large crowd that had now filled the room, the whole immense resonance that is created by LCT is overwhelming and with the addition of Paul on the drums, it took on a whole new enlightening experience for me.
Kev, Steve and Paul took this gig by the scruff of the neck and I'm sure there were many out there watching that were stunned by the quality of the performance. LCT's strengths lie in their subtle application of their tunes, although bearing a melancholy approach, there is brightness in their tunes, it's up to you how you interpret them. But it is their handling of the songs that makes this stand out. They don't overload their playing and are so deft and subtle where it counts, Kev's spectacular vocals are the focal point, but also his guitar work is immense and Steve compliments Kev's vocals with outstanding and uplifting harmonies where it counts and then adds those so crucial rhythms on bass intertwined with Paul, who's all the time adding thoughtful percussion to already thoughtful songs and performances - perfect.
LCT brandished their wears for the rest of the evening, delighting the audience with every tune including 'Ring Of Roses', ' Whiskey Lemon Valentine' and 'Keeping Me High' plus 'Sleeping With Vampires', the opener - these tracks make up their incredibly eagerly awaited first outing on plastic.
A fantastic night that I was proud to be
a part of, another immensely positive night for original artists
in our area. My thanks to Paul and Blakey for their hard work
and belief in the original scene that they so fervently and enthusiastically
promote and support and also a massive to thanks to all who turned
up and encourage the local scene, for without you, nights like
this would not exist.
Col
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