The Winchester, Bournemouth
Its Saturday night and that can only mean one thing at the Winchester,Music Mania. Tonight’s bill is 3 Bournemouth based bands. First up are Peace,Love & Gloves. PL&G are clearly out to make a big impression having brought in a massive following tonight. Aptly named Gloves & Glovettes its more like a ‘hooligan choir’ such is their fervent voice even during the sound check. My editor, one Mr. Chinners has been championing these guys for a while now so lets see what I make of them!
They open with Bang Bang Bang, a bouncy little number. Singer Mark has a voice not unlike David Byrne as he encourages the Gloves to sing along. ‘Ashamed of Me’ stays with Talking Heads territory although the music is leaning more towards early Chilli’s,in no small part with Ollie’s bass. James’s drums are confident throughout as is Ricky on lead guitar. On ‘Toy Story’ they ‘invite’ a guest singer onstage-more terrace-style chanting from the gloves & a slight nod musically to the Clash’s ‘Stay Free’.
The band describe themselves as an alternative indie-rock hip hop band but they are so much more than that,certainly with the influences I have cited. On ‘Eye F*^k City we get another ‘rapper’ joining the fray & they end with ‘Monster’ with its Streets-like vocal. PL&G are not a band content with being the support act,they clearly aspire to be the headliners. Time will only tell but confidence is high tonight as they receive rapturous applause from the majority of this crowd.
Second up tonight are Sketches of the Adverse. Another local act with a varied selection of influences. They open with two of their own numbers before a frankly disappointing cover of ‘Superstition’. Their music (to this reviewer) at first comes across as rather one dimensional until they hit their stride with ‘Bills & Beer Cans’ where they open up a bit. Another cover in the shape of ‘Aint No Sunshine’ gives Jack (vox) a chance to really find his range. Set highlight ‘My Generations Falling’ ups the ante & I’m starting to really enjoy their set now. Peter (drums) gives us the obligatory solo & these guys are clearly growing more confident. Lee’s unfussy bass is constant throughout as is Dan (lead). They save their best songs til’ last with ‘Sketch of my Love’ & the excellent ‘Little White Rabbit’.
I suppose my over-riding impression is how much Jack’s vocal style reminds me of the Kooks,but dont let that put you off-SOTA are fer from being a Kooks tribute act! They,like PL&G, have many influences so I wont pidgeonhole them. Yes theyre Indie with a hint of Ska but they have a sound all their own. They are a confident bunch but I feel they can get better & going on tonights performance the futures bright.
And so to my new favourite band and (possibly) Bournemouth’s finest; The Frequency. Fresh from their London showcase gig in front of none other than Alan Mcgee they return to home turf to headline tonight. They come on stage all guns blazing with the excellent Sticky Little Finger. Austin’s voice is strong tonight while the overall sound is large. Dan (bass) is pulling his usual shapes while Phil (drums) is all over his kit tonight. Dan (guitar) meanwhile just plays along nonchalantly. Live favourite Changing Faces doesn’t disappoint & the band are clearly enjoying themselves now. Austin (vox) starts to jump around while he appears to be shouting the vocals like his life depended on it.
The crowd response only gets louder as they play the first track from the High Society EP, the excellent ‘Run With You’. Older tracks ‘Falling In’ & ‘Loverblind’ get an airing before the band offer up a cover. Having likened Austin’s vocals to Kelly Jones in a previous review its no real surprise they take on ‘Dakota’. They make a decent fist of it & the crowd love it,but for this reviewer I hope its a one-off. They are so much more than a ‘Phonics Tribute! The band as a whole are milking it tonight & rightly so. They end with their brilliant indie classic ‘Lighthouse’ as we & band sing along one & all. Austin orchestrates the applause & milks it one more time. Just time for one more in the shape of ‘Same Old Nothing At All’. Dan (bass) does the promo stuff before the band exit stage right to great applause. Homecoming gig-& some!
Set Lists
Peace Love & Gloves
Bang Bang Bang
Hold On
Ashamed of Me
Toy Story
Eye F*^k City
Wait
Monster
Sketches of the Adverse
Intro
Silver Street
Superstition
Know About She
Bills & Beer Cans
Ain’t No Sunshine
My Generations Falling
Sketch On My Love
Little White Rabbit
Letter From The Queen
Arthur
The Frequency
Sticky Little Finger
All That You Found
Changing Faces
Save Today
Run With You
Falling In
Loverblind
Dakota (Stereophonics cover)
Lighthouse
Same Old Nothing At All
http://www.thefrequencyuk.com
http://www.sketchesoftheadverse.co.uk
http://www.myspace.com/peacelove&gloves
Review and Pictures By Ross ‘Do you like my new Haircut’ Ferrone.
