I may have been a bit late to the party in terms of becoming a Frank Turner fan (I only got into him after his appearance at the Opening
Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics), but having listened to his albums he has
someone I have wanted to see live for a while. Fair to say he didn’t disappoint.
This was show number 1,528
and although this was my first, it lived up to all expectations. This was his
first arena tour and although there were reservations about him playing bigger
venues, from my point of view, his music works perfectly on a grander scale.
Especially with thousands of people singing the works back at him. “I didn’t
really write these songs to be played in a room this size and shape. “I wrote
them to play in bedrooms and bars. But we’re here because this many people
wanted to see the band. It’s not about the room. It’s about us,” Turner
explained. |
| Beans on Toast |
Before Frank took to the stage though, there was support
from Beans on Toast and Flogging Molly. Having never heard of Beans on Toast
before, it didn’t take long for him to make an impression. With songs about
serious subjects such as fracking, chickens and blow jobs, his humorous yet
punkish lyrics related very well to the crowd. He also gave the crowd options with
the setlist he played as well, giving them to choice to vote between two songs
as to which got played. Overall he was very entertaining. Well worth checking
out.
 |
| FM, Pyramids Centre 2011 |
Having seen Flogging Molly before when they played the Pyramids
Centre in Portsmouth a few years back, I knew exactly what we were in for. They
were fantastic when I saw them before and nothing has changed since. They had the
had the crowd in the palm of their hand within the first thirty seconds or so
of their opening song ‘Drunken Lullabies’, and after playing a short set consisting
of favourites such as ‘Float’, ‘Devil’s Dance Floor’ and ‘What’s Left of the
Flag’ they had the place well set for the headline act.
The man we had all come to see was next, and throughout the
2 hour and 24 song set, people were clapping, dancing and singing along. Songs
such as ‘Photosynthesis’,’ The Road’, ‘If I Ever Stray’ and ‘Wessex Boy’ were
all such examples of mass participation. And ‘Eulogy’. And ‘The Way I Tend to
Be’. And ‘Losing Days’. I think you get the picture. It wasn’t just an
impressive performance audibly though. Visually it was striking with effective use of
the lighting making it an impressive spectacle.
With the ‘Best Crowd of the Tour’ award still up for grabs as well,
we had to out-do Manchester, Nottingham and London during ‘Recovery’ by
combining singing, jumping and clapping in one routine. To aid in our effort,
Turner’s road crew joined the stage dressed in animal costumes to lead
proceedings. Naturally we beat our rivals, of course.
He finished his set with two of my personal favourite songs
of his, ‘I Still Believe’ and ‘Four Simple Words’. I love them because I can
relate to them on so many levels. They encapsulate perfectly how I feel going
to live music and about rock music in general, so to sing along to them live
was something special.
It was a fantastic end to a brilliant night. His songs take
on an extra dimension live, with added energy and the impressive Sleeping Souls
playing with him, it made it a great night. It was well worth the late night
and getting only 3 hours sleep before work the next day. A lot of people said “Frank
who?” when I said I was seeing him live. It’s their fault they haven’t heard of
him, as they are missing out on a real talent.
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