Mostly Autumn

Newcastle University

9 May 2002

I wish I had written this last night while I was still high, but I got back so late. They played two hours, then when I assumed they weren't doing an encore, they came back to play Mother Nature. I mean, who plays 20 minute songs in the encore? So, probably everybody missed the last train home. I don't think anybody cared.

I'm drained. I can't even type properly. What an incredible concert. Definitely the best concert I have ever seen.

This is absolutely an incredible live band. It's so different from their studio work. They still capture the complexity of the studio arrangements, but damn they rock so hard on stage. They're still not the most polished professionals in the world. There are missed cues and general confusion about who should be where on the tiny stage. (Memo for next time: walking through Angela's cable is obviously going to pull the microphone off her flute. Duh.) But they look like they're having fun, and they tell us over and over that they've never heard such an enthusiastic audience.

So... I'm singing the set to myself again now. On reflection, it was better to write this today, because I can remember it all over again. I think they played everything I was expecting, and some things I didn't expect (The Last Climb, *sniffle*), and two new songs, and ended the main set with Heroes Never Die, and yes it makes me cry (don't tell anyone).

I bought the new album (it's been impossible to find in shops). And I got a tour t-shirt, which was a pastel brown colour and very nice but doesn't really fit my image. (Huh? I have an image???)

Arrrgh... what else can I say? Are you sick of reading this yet? Can I just tell you that I love their live arrangements and the mood swings from acoustic ballads to jigs to hard rock are perfect, and that they play seventeen instruments between them and have five-part vocal harmonies and their drummer rocks, and maybe some of the guitar solos didn't quite make it (I've heard Bryan play better) but the song dynamics are incredible and I'm in love with Angela Goldthorpe and I just want to go again tonight. In fact, I'm seriously considering a trip round the country to see them again. Somewhere. Anywhere.

Ummm.

Thanks for listening.