Inspiral Carpets took us on a nostalgic journey through their biggest hits in front of a joyous Birmingham crowd whilst giving us a tantalising glimpse at two new songs from an album they let slip is scheduled for release in 2026.
After a long DJ set by Dave Sweetmore rolling out predominantly Manchester classic indie tunes from the end of the last century including a lovely shout out to his pal Mani, Inspiral Carpets took to the stage to the intro to Real Thing, the opening track from their breakthrough Life album. As the song burst into life, it felt something special was in the air. The band’s camarderie and togetherness has never been more apparent than now, bound together by a shared legacy going back over forty years to when Graham Lambert and Stephen Holt formed the band and a sense of honouring the legacy of Craig Gill, a loss that would have sunk some. With Martyn Walsh back on bass now after sitting out last year, they’ve got a formidable rhythm section back with Kev Clark taking over drumming responsibilities in his own style without losing sense of the huge shoes he’s stepped into.
For eighty minutes or so we’re reminded of the depth and the brilliance of their back catalogue. Stephen Holt has now been singing these songs for so long that he’s made them his own, his voice capturing the rich emotion of the more tender moments of Move, Beast Inside and Sackville to perfection whilst sounding more powerful than ever when the accelerator pedal is depressed on the likes of Find Out Why, Joe, Dragging Me Down and their customary finale of Saturn 5.
The sense of joy fills the room, call outs to friends, birthdays and those who’ve travelled from the US for the shows, banter with an irritating guy who thankfully departs half way through the set. There’s knowing glances, little smiles, fistpumps and the type of interactions you only get when a band is working as a gang, unified and together. And tonight that love fills the splendid surroundings of the Institute and is amplified back to the band.
Two new songs are greeted with respect and listening. Drag The Bag is the more immediate of the two, the song’s title doubling as a singalong chorus and Kev’s kick drum as a beat to clap along to. It’s due as the first single from the album in February. Wolf At The Door sits in the encore between Commercial Rain and the bouncing Saturn 5. Featuring vocal interplay between Stephen and Clint, something the great sound in the room tonight allowed us to fully hear and appreciate, it shows that we’re in for a record born of the love of creating together. That Inspiral Carpets are in a place to make an album again is something to celebrate, its reasons not chart success or financial, but one of love and the desire to capture it.
Tonight though was mostly about reminding us just how many great songs Inspiral Carpets have in their warchest, a relentless stream of hits and crowd favourites performed a band that's never looked happier up on stage, doing this for love rather than money.
Inspiral Carpets played Real Thing, Generations, She Comes In The Fall, Weakness, Move, Two Worlds Collide, Let You Down, Beast Inside, Find Out Why, Drag The Bag, Sackville, Uniform, This Is How It Feels, I Want You, Joe, Dragging Me Down, Commercial Rain, Wolf At The Door and Saturn 5
________________________________
Follow Even The Stars on Twitter at @eventhestarsuk and like our Facebook page for all the latest updates
No comments:
Post a Comment