Saturday, May 26, 2007
Midlake and New Toilets in the Concorde. Rivetting stuff.
Oringally published on the Brighton Argus website.
Neil Tennant from the Pet Shop Boys doesn’t blog. ‘Blog is such an ugly word’ he recently said in an interview and I’m inclined to agree. To me ‘Blog’ sounds like a particularly feckless alien race, or much worse, something that wouldn’t flush first time……
Blogging took a while to appear on my miniscule cultural radar and even then it was instantly dismissed like every other internet phenomenae I encounter: “What does a blog do that a website doesn’t – I’ve already got myself one of those. MP3s on the Internet – er? Why? I’ve got a Minidisc player. Myspace? Pah! What’s wrong with Friendster?
Now I’ve got one because of course a blog basically takes all the hard work out of building a site if you’re just going to use it for spilling your brains to the world. Which is effectively what the Argus are allowing me to do here. The remit is pretty vague: promoting, music, out and about in Brighton or some toss like that. I’ll just have to muddle through…..
Ever wondered what Fleetwood Mac covering Radiohead as produced by Wings with the spectre of Neil Young looming large in the studio might sound like? I’ll tell you. It would sound like Midlake, a fantastic Texan four piece who rode into Brighton just the other week.
With 2006's ‘Trials of Van Occupanther’ topping many an end of year poll and plenty of heavyweight critics singing their praises you suspect MDLKE are just one well timed Glastonbury slot away from greatness. So on a balmy Spring evening it really feels like everyone packed into the Concorde is willing them to turn the stark, wintry tones of the album into something languid and hypnotic, and in the most part they succeed. The performance is pretty much faultless; Drummer McKenzie Smith fair nails Young Bride’s distinctive kick/tom tattoo and the whole ensemble breeze through some exquisite four part harmonies. Sadly the dreamy music can’t fill the onstage charisma vortex and singer Tim Smith attempts little to no audience interaction beyond complaining about his monitor mix. So as the makeshift backdrop cum projection screen slips off the back wall as the band close their set it seems like a fitting curtain call for a largely drab performance.
Couldn’t help but notice the smart new toilets in the Concorde 2 too the other week. Where ageing posters for reformed Ska bands and inevitably, The Bluetones, once adorned the walls, now it is mile upon mile of pristine white emulsion. Hitherto, a trip to the loos involved wading knee deep through spilt lager and urine, now before me - spotless easi-wipe flooring. Where there once stood three redundant hot taps and three drizzly cold ones there now stood a smart young man plying punters with after shave, lollipops and soap. OK – I made the very last bit up but one wouldn’t have seemed that out of place alongside C2’s relentless quest for beautification. As if to hammer the point home a notice had been pinned to the wall to the effect of “We’ve spent a lot of money getting these toilets nice and we want them to stay that way. If you feel the need to write your name or your band name, do not do it here. Anyone doing so will be banned from the venue for life.
How tempted was I to bust the magic marker and scrawl ‘Fatboy Slim’ across the tiles? But I resisted. Surely it’s only a matter of time though, let us know who cracks first. C2 Bogwatch continues right here all across the summer.posted by: Jim Brackpool @ 5:37 PM
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